Research Reports
Evaluation and Improvement of Agri-Food Safety Management System
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AuthorHan, Jaehwan
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Publication Date2010.12.01
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Original
Agri-food safety management system in Korea is inefficient and unsystematic since diverse ministries and institutions accomplish agri-food safety management based on by commodities and stages.
Demand that the domestic agri-food safety management is to increase consistency and efficiency and to be reorganized in accordance with the international flow of changes is rising. An objective of this study is to evaluate problems that the domestic agri-food safety management holds and present a plan for improving agri-food safety management system.
Risk analysis, composed of risk assessment, risk management, and risk communication, is crucial for an efficient agri-food safety management and for systematic response to unexpected food accidents, according to the scientific outcomes.
The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries(MIFAFF) and Korea Food and Drug Administration(KFDA) conduct a risk assessment as well as a risk management, resulting in a variety of problems including a lack of continuity and efficiency of work, redundant regulations, and so on.
Food and Agricultural Organization(FAO)/World Health Organization (WHO) recommend that an institution for risk assessment be separated from it for risk management, securing transparency and objectivity of analysis outcomes. Advanced countries, in addition, operate a dedicated organization for risk assessment and show a movement to integrate institutions for risk management with agriculture ministry as the center.
Noticing the global trends about reorganization of agri-food safety management, reestablishment of agri-food safety management system in Korea should be progressed with basic four principles: i)from farm/ocean to table, ii) expansion of precautionary principles, iii) strengthening of functions of risk analysis, iv) division of risk assessment from risk management.
Improvements of risk assessment are as follows: i) establishment of a dedicated organization for risk assessment in the national level, ii) a construction of risk assessment infrastructure for hazard substances, iii) an expansion set of residue standard, iv) recruitment of professionals. In addition, risk management should be developed in several sectors, including an unification of risk management institutions, increase of labor force, an introduction of advanced system, and so on.
An effective and efficient risk communication needs a construction of trust among stake holders, an establishment of organization for risk communication, an introduction of automatic analysis system for information, activation of information disclosure, and strengthening of social net work service.
Short-term reorganization for agri-food safety management system is that an independent institution under the Ministry of Health and Welfare accomplishes risk assessment, while an institution under the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries performs risk management.
In the long-term it is desirable that a new independent agency is responsible of risk assessment, and risk management is unified to the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. It is expected that an establishment of a dedicated organization for risk assessment brings about transparency and objectivity of evaluation outcomes, eventually obtaining consumers' trust toward agri-food safety management.
Researchers: Jae-Hwan Han, Ji-Hyeon Choi and Kyei-Im Lee
Research period: 2010.6. - 2010. 12.
E-mail address: jhhan@krei.re.kr
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