The Agricultural Department has embarked on a project with the National Standards Authority to establish a quality mark for local produce striving also to obtain European certification for these products.
Announcing this during the second reading of the Bill setting up the Fair Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority, Resource Minister George Pullicino told Parliament the NSO had already carried out a survey among local consumers on their perception of local products.
The Resources Ministry and the NSO were working on a final document which would establish the criteria that had to be reached for local products to achieve the quality mark. This would be of assistance to consumers who would be in a better position to differentiate and choose between local and imported products.
Mr Pullicino said that his ministry and the NSO would be establishing a framework on protected designation of origin, protected geographical indication and traditional speciality guaranteed products. Local products such as Gozo cheeselets, sundried tomatoes, olive oil, Maltese honey and Maltese bread could be certified under the protocol.
He thanked the pig breeders’ cooperative for promoting the quality of local pork products, adding that other producers should assert their own mark so that consumers would be better informed. He said that a case in point was the processing of tomatoes which, in Malta, were processed within 24 hours from being extracted from the fields.
Minister Pullicino said that new codes of practice had been introduced at the abattoir and new policies were implemented. Guidelines conforming to hazard critical control points had been issued. This was being practised in the process of deboning of beef, the traceability of beef and pork and refrigeration.
On a point of order, Mr Noel Farrugia (PL) claimed that the minister was not telling the truth because non-sterilized product crates were being washed in the same chillers where meat was washed. He said that the trucks transporting these crates were not certified.
Mr Pullicino countered that the company responsible for the cleaning of the Pitkali crates had ignored calls for using a standard system of hygiene. He added that it was not fair defending those who were abusing consumers and added that today these crates were clean. He said that there were the responsible authorities who supervised the cleaning process and invited Mr Farrugia to go and observe the process whenever he liked.
There were private chicken abattoirs which had applied EU funds to invest in processes of high hygienic standards, offering quality products to Maltese consumers.
Mr Pullicino added that milk products had gained the oval mark. This meant that milk was now up to EU standards. This had been difficult to achieve because the milking plant and the farms had been inspected. The Danish Commissioner visiting the milking plant was impressed with the high standard level achieved.
Concluding Mr Pullicino said that in a free market economy it was important that consumers be given the necessary and correct information when buying products. He believed that the amalgamation between the National Standards Authority and the Consumer Affairs Department would ensure better regulation and responsibility.