MSMEs urged to adhere to hygiene practices
Operators of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises within the agriculture sector are being encouraged to consistently adhere to hygiene and food-safety standards and practices.
Director General for the Hazardous Substances Regulatory Authority, Dr Cliff Riley, says adherence is critical to the export potential of these businesses. “We often find some of the gaps being related to the hygienic practices of manufacturers and the frequency [with] which most of these institutions go through the process of seeking certification,” he said. This, he added, “whether it be in foodmanufacturing practices, certification from our Ministry of Health and Wellness or even going further to the
CGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations) from the US or the EUGMP (European Good Manufacturing Practice) for the European Union”. He was speaking during a Jamaica Information Service ‘Think Tank’ at the agency’s head office in Kingston on Tuesday.
Riley maintained that entities need to improve their quality management and control systems to meet these requirements.
“We want our local businesses to ensure that their internal quality control processes involve testing of different batches and testing of the products that they produce before they enter the market space. We also want them to utilise the facilities that have the accreditation and the history in terms of undertaking and facilitating those tests,” he said.
Riley, who also advises the Geneva, Switzerland-based International Trade Center on matters relating to product innovation, food safety as well as agro-production, also noted significant improvement within the sector.
“We have seen significant growth in the testing capabilities or laboratories and we have seen a number of companies in Jamaica, primarily some of the small and medium enterprises, establishing robust quality management systems and quality control systems within their spaces which allow them to trade internationally. The gaps that we tend to find mostly are in the micro enterprises,” he said.