Increase awareness on Food Safety & Consumer Health
Hands-on training on advanced Food Safety microbiological techniques
9th –13th Dec 2019, CIFT, Kochi, India
Learning through sharing Knowledge
Following a Memorandum of Understanding, signed in 2016, for a bilateral scientific collaboration on Food Safety between FSSAI (Food Safety & Standards Authority of India) and ANSES (French Agency for Safety of Food, Environment and Occupational Health, France), and along with the support from the Embassy of France in India, a 2nd “Hands-on Training Program on Advanced Microbiological Techniques” was conducted.
This training session was adressed to 15 Food Safety microbiologists, belonging to 10 laboratories, from accross the country, approved by the FSSAI for official controls to improve Food Safety Testing & Practices.
10 FSSAI approved laboratories were represented including 5 private ones.
Attendees
As experts in ISO* and CEN** standardization committees in Food Microbiology, Dr Lombard, in charge of reference activities at the ANSES Laboratory for Food Safety (Paris, France), and Mrs Desforges (bioMérieux Global Marketing Scientific, France) stayed the whole week in Kochi, presenting ISO standards and interacting with microbiologists on advanced techniques for ensuring food safety in food products eaten in India.
bioMérieux India Industrial Microbiology team collaborated with FSSAI, an autonomous body established under the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India, to support and ensure the training success, with the help of the bioMérieux regional scientific affairs.
Program
Mrs Moreau Lalanne, counsellor at the French Embassy and Dr Ravishanka, director of CIFT opened the training session.
This 5 day Training Program was organized at CIFT (Central Institute of Fisheries Technology), Kochi and covered key topics concerning Food Safety, Consumer Health and ISO (International Organization for Standardization) Standards to improve Food Safety Testing & Practices in India.
CIFT is one of the 8 National Reference/Referral laboratories recognized by FSSAI, under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. It has extremely good laboratories and facilities, particularly modern analytical techniques in microbiology. This high-level laboratory allows prefect training conditions.
Beside from Indian and French officials and ISO experts, bioMerieux India has greatly contributed to the success of this training for improving food testing practices and food safety in India.