Official calls for policy for food safety

National

A SECTOR policy is needed to align the Department of Agriculture and Livestock (DAL) to manage the different corporations and organisations dealing with food safety, security and nutrition in the country, an official says.
Department deputy secretary Stephen Mombi said there are many players working on the food security, food safety and yield the food nutrition and better produce from livestock.
However, there is a big gap to link each of them with the Department of Agriculture and Livestock’s policies.
Mombi said entities like the commodity board – Cocoa Board dealing with cocoa, the Kokonas Indastri Koporesen (KIK) dealing with coconut, CIC (Coffee Industry Corporation) dealing with coffee, Naqia – quarantine, National Agriculture Research Institute and other players are performing on their own.
He said the department had a good policy established to deal with each of the entities independently.
“However, a policy that can bring them in an alignment is really needed,” he said during a workshop to development a programme on one health yesterday,” he said.
“We need to get one immediately.
“There is team already doing consultation to come up with a 10-year agriculture sector plan.
“We just have it completed and get the policy pushed through.
“If we can legislate, it would be brilliant.”