About
Food Safety Cooperation Forum Partnership Training Institute Network
Concerns about food safety in the Asia Pacific region have risen sharply, and spurred a high level, collective mandate from APEC Leaders to improve food safety standards and practices. In 2007, after the establishment of the APEC Food Safety Cooperation Forum (FSCF), APEC Leaders agreed on the need to develop a more robust approach to strengthening food safety standards and practices in the region, using scientific risk based approaches and without creating unnecessary impediments to trade. To this end, they called for increased capacity building to improve technical competence and understanding of food safety management among stakeholders in the supply chain, which include regulators, growers, packers, handlers, storage providers, processors, manufacturers, retailers and food service providers.
The Food Safety Cooperation Forum's Partnership Training Institute Network (FSCF PTIN) was created specifically to address the need to engage the food industry and academics with the regulators, to strengthen capacity building in food safety. The FSCF PTIN initiative was endorsed specifically by APEC Leaders in 2008; work began in July 2009 and the PTIN has organized and is now planning several events. The formal launch of the FSCF PTIN is expected to occur in May 2011.
FSCF PTIN Strategic Goal
To facilitate trade and protect public health by building the capacity of stakeholders in the supply chain in the use of international best standards and practices in food safety management from production to consumption. In doing so, the PTIN will help APEC Member Economies anticipate, prevent and manage incidents, and thus better assure the safety of the food supply chain in the Asia Pacific region.
The FSCF PTIN will accomplish its strategic goal by:
- Creating a network of food safety institutes, trainers and practitioners in the APEC region that communicates and exchanges scientific and technical information related to food safety and strengthens and expands food safety management curricula through developing a set of curricula and training tools that support the use and understanding of international standards and best practices
- Supporting the development and implementation of additional training sessions, seminars, and workshops on food safety, such as those developed by of Codex, OIE and IPPC, in a manner consistent with the obligations of the WTO SPS Agreement
- Utilizing the unique expertise provided by the members of industry and academia to fulfill the critical capacity building needs and goals identified by APEC Member Economies
Outcomes
Over time, the FSCF PTIN's activities will help build an APEC-wide network which could work more rapidly to manage urgent food safety issues and help prevent food safety incidents. APEC Member Economies will benefit from supporting and working with the FSCF PTIN, as FSCF PTIN programs will assist Members in their efforts to improve their domestic food safety regimes. Member participation in the PTIN will also send a strong signal to domestic consumers and international customers that improving food safety is of high priority to their governments.
Background Documents and Reports
Briefing Note on the Linkages Between Food Safety and Food Security
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APEC-World Bank MOU
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