AHMEDABAD: Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe on Saturday warned that poor compliance with food-safety regulations is contributing to a growing public-health crisis, saying people often fail to connect illnesses with the food and beverages they consume.He said laws and regulations governing food safety already exist but are not being properly followed.Speaking at a press conference after the ‘Tukaram Se Takkar’ talk session at Karnavati University in Ahmedabad, Mundhe said the lack of compliance with food-safety norms was a major concern.“The largest or the biggest issue in India regarding food safety is that it is causing public health havoc. We are not realising it. The sooner we understand and appreciate it, the better it will be for us,” the IAS officer said.Mundhe said several laws, rules and regulations related to food safety were already in place, but were not being implemented properly.“Rules do exist, acts do exist. Except maybe licensing and registration, no regulation is followed. This is how we are compromising public health,” Mundhe told reporters.He said people often looked at illnesses only from a health perspective rather than examining their possible connection with the food and beverages they consumed.Citing changes in India’s disease burden since Independence, Mundhe said, “Around 65 to 70 per cent of the disease burden in India at the time of Independence was attributable to communicable diseases, while today, a similar proportion of the country’s disease burden is from non-communicable diseases (NCDs).”“Today, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, cardiac diseases are increasing. Even at the age of 25-30, we are getting cardiac arrests, and this has a direct correlation with what we eat,” he asserted.Mundhe also identified lack of awareness and sensitivity towards food safety and standards as another major concern.“We need to be much, much more sensitive about our food safety and standards, and adapting those standards and food safety not only when you eat outside but also at home,” he said.The Maharashtra FDA chief said people would need to build their food habits and culture around safety and standards.“We should consume food which is safe, which is standard. The three major stakeholders, comprising food business operators, regulators Food Safety and Standards Authority of India and state FDAs as well as people will have to work towards food safety,” Mundhe said.(With PTI inputs)
