SON calls for food safety awareness, charge media practitioners on partnership in food industry
By: Tijani Salako.
The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has called for food safety and quality awareness on both locally made, grown and imported food product to Nigeria, charging the media on high level partnership in food industry through the agency Food and Agriculture Technology Laboratory.
This appeal was made by Mrs. Nene Maudline, who is the deputy director of head, Food & Agriculture Group in SON, during a one-day capacity building training for Commerce and Industry Correspondent Association of Nigeria (CICAN), on the essentiality for food safety awareness held at SON complex in Lagos state.
Mrs. Maudline noted that food safety and quality standards is a combination job of every individual which the SON takes a led in covering various aspects, including contaminants, hygiene, and labeling requirements, which has over time developed required standards for various food products, including beverages and cereals.
During her presentation, she highlighted that SON frequently conduct impact assessments in other to keep evaluating the effectiveness and identify areas for improvement by not compromising the required product standard through the agency reviews panel committee at the designated time frame of five years
By implementing food safety and quality standards, SON ensures that public health is protected and promoting trade and commerce industry in Nigeria, and ensuring that the standardization meet the international required quality standards, enhancing consumer confidence and trust in the food industry.
Also, another head of SON unit, Mrs. Arannilewa Comfort, while explaining the rudiment of food product testing, she added that these services are not limited to food product SON test for nutritional content, additives, and allergens ensuring that all product meet labeling requirements and are safe for consumption.
Mrs Comfort further acknowledge that the microbiology laboratory is accredited to International Standard Organisation (ISO) with various units, including microbiology, physical chemistry, and mycotoxins which these units provide essential service especially for contaminants, such as pesticides, heavy metals, and microorganisms, that can be harmful to human health including disinfectants of baby diapers to ensure they meet safety standards.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Emmanuela also re-echoed that standard Organisation of Nigeria effort in mostly engaging in service training, building MSMEs and ensuring sustainability, which will equip organisations with adequate skills to improve their management system and certification with the aim of enhancing national capacity, quality, productivity and work performance across all sectors.
She noted that core objective is to align with international best practice, customer satisfaction and trust, reduce waste and expand customer-based loyalty by strengthen the compliance with national and international regulation.
