Over the last three years, the Ministry of Health has prosecuted 35 cases where people were not following the Food and Safety Act, and a total of about $25,000 in fines have been issued, however the Act is quite limited in its scope for penalising offenders, as it does not include provisions for enforcing fixed penalties or spot fines.
Minister for Health, Doctor Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu has made these comments while responding to Opposition MP Jone Usamate’s question in parliament on what health inspectors are doing to ensure that the meat sold in supermarkets meets quality criteria.
Dr Lalabalavu says cases can only be prosecuted in a court of law, a process that can take months or even years.
He says the Ministry is currently reviewing this Act with the aim of introducing spot fines for these offences.
The Minister highlighted the summary of offences in Parliament, with 32 cases reported against various food premises, including coffee shops, takeaways, supermarkets, dairy shops and street food vendors, leading to a total fine of $20,000, and three cases were identified for selling, preparing, packing or conveying food under unsanitary conditions.
He says this further emphasises the need for stringent oversight and adherence to safety standards in retail and catering operations.
Dr Lalabalavu says in the last fiscal year, they conducted inspections of over 2,600 food establishments and these inspections resulted in the issuance of 372 Abatement Notices and six closing orders, illustrating their commitment to upholding health standards.
He adds that it is essential to address emerging risks involving food systems and gaps in regulatory enforcement.
When questioned by Opposition MP Rinesh Sharma on how they can inspect meat products with some supermarkets turning off their freezers overnight and then turning them back on, Dr Lalabalavu says they do it on a case-by-case basis and most of the time they do surprise checks on shops and supermarkets.
He says they usually target situations such as when there is inconsistent power supply throughout the country, where they conduct spot checks in the various supermarkets.
He adds that they continue to do unscheduled checks whenever needed.
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