• The 5th State Food Safety Index (SFSI) of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) was released by Honorable Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya on the occasion of World Food Safety Day.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS:

• Among the top three large states are Kerala, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, Kerala has replaced Tamil Nadu bagging the top position.
• Among the top small states are Goa, Manipur and Sikkim bagging the first, second and third positions.
• The top Union territories are Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi and Chandigarh.
• On the occasion, the health minister honored winners of the Eat Right challenge for Districts Phase II with most districts located in Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Maharsathra who have showcased outstanding efforts in implementing plans to improve the food environment and raise awareness about food safety.

FOOD SAFETY PARAMETERS

• The Food Safety Index evaluates the performance of states and Union territories across different aspects of food safety.
• Human Resources and Institutional Data (with 18% weightage)
• Compliance (with 28% weightage)
• Food Testing- Infrastructure and Surveillance (with 17% weightage)
• Training and Capacity Building (with 8% weightage)
• Consumer Empowerment (with 19% weightage)
• Improvement in SFSI Rank (with 10% weightage)

 ABOUT THE INDEX:

• The Food Safety Index is released by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is a statutory body established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
• The Index was first started in 2018-19 with an aim to create a competitive and positive change in the food safety ecosystem in India. The setup was also taken to galvanize the states and Union territories to work towards ensuring safe food for citizens.
• The FSSAI aims to train 25 lakh food businesses operators in the next three years to ensure that food quality standards are met across the country and meet the quality benchmark for food safety, hygiene and nutrition.

FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA (FSSAI)

• It is an autonomous statutory body established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSS Act).
• Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India is the administrative Ministry of FSSAI.
• Headquarters:
• FSS Act, 2006 consolidates various acts & orders that had earlier handled food related issues in various Ministries and Departments, such as–
  • Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954
  • Fruit Products Order, 1955
  • Meat Food Products Order, 1973
  • Vegetable Oil Products (Control) Order, 1947
  • Edible Oils Packaging (Regulation) Order 1988
  • Milk and Milk Products Order, 1992