libnor

Pursuant to the recent developments regarding food safety in Lebanon and which caused quite an upsurge recently, the American University of Beirut issued recently a synopsis on general public policies related to the food safety system in Lebanon.  The document describes the challenges of the food sector, the various stakeholders involved, the legal framework, and international approaches to food safety.
The document notes that there are nine instances which cater for food safety in Lebanon each with different mandates and tasks.  These include Ministries of Agriculture, Public Health, Economy and Trade, Interior, Industry, and Finance, in addition to LIBNOR and the National Council for Scientific Research (CNSR).  These instances have overlapping and redundant mandate and suffer from poor coordination, absence of accountability, absence of food safety laws and of comprehensive and integrated mechanisms.  The document also points out to the difficulty in systematizing national food safety bodies in Lebanon which suffer from many a hurdle, namely: political disturbances and instability, lack of competence and scientific expertise, limited resources, poor monitoring of food related diseases, limited number of field staff to undertake control, as well as poor awareness of food safety issues amongst holders of small food outlets.
Source: Al-Safir 2 December 2014
The AUB study can be accessed through the following link: General public policies related to the food safety system in Lebanon

Minister of Industry, Dr. Hussein Hajj Hassan, convened a joint meeting yesterday with representatives of the Syndicate of Industrialists and the Syndicate of Food Industrialists as well as the manufacturers of jars, plastic barrels and bags.  The Minister insisted on the necessity of protecting national food production from factors that may jeopardize safety and quality as this has negative implications on citizen’s health and the reputation of the Lebanese industry. Hajj Hassan also emphasized during the meeting the important role of LIBNOR (the Lebanese Standards Institution) in setting mandatory standards for the production of plastic barrels of all sizes especially those used for packaging food such as pickled, olive oil, olives, wheat and other products so as to ensure that the packaging adhere to all safety and health standards and are specifically manufactured to be used for food packaging and storing.
Source: Al-Diyar 21 May 2014