BWI: Industry Leaders Call for ‘Standardisation of Food Safety Norms’ at the TÜV SÜD and ASSOCHAM Summit on Food Safety

Press release from Business Wire India
Source: TÜV SÜD South Asia Pvt. Ltd.
Thursday, September 12, 2013 03:45 PM IST (10:15 AM GMT)
Editors: General: Consumer interest, Food & drink, People, Social issues; Business: Advertising, PR & marketing, Business services, Hospitality, Major diversified industrial groups; Healthcare
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Industry Leaders Call for 'Standardisation of Food Safety Norms' at the TÜV SÜD and ASSOCHAM Summit on Food Safety


Gurgaon, Haryana, India, Thursday, September 12, 2013 -- (Business Wire India) -- Event inaugurated by Shri Tariq Anwar, Hon'ble MoS, Agriculture and Food Processing Industries

The recently concluded TÜV SÜD - ASSOCHAM summit on food safety was a congregation of government, regulatory and industry representatives on food safety in India. Close to 20 leaders representing food regulators and businesses like PepsiCo, Coca Cola, GSK and Wrigley, addressed an audience of over 300 at the summit. The agenda of 'self-regulations' was addressed by the government and businesses through in-depth discussions about increasing the minimum levels of safety and quality of food in India.

Speaking at the event, Mr.Niranjan Nadkarni, CEO, TÜV SÜD South Asia stated that, "Food safety is an issue that needs urgent attention from all stakeholders of the food chain from farm to fork. It is heartening to see that experts from the industry have responded positively to our call for a collaborative approach to food safety in India. It is a moment of pride for all of us at TÜV SÜD to have hosted a successful summit that witnessed holistic participation from the food processing industry. We thank our partners ASSOCHAM for their support along with MOFPI, EIC, APEDA, QCI and NBQP."

The event focused on the different challenges posed by globalization on food safety and the impact of the same on the Indian food industry. Experts opined that there is an immediate need for regulators to create voluntary food safety initiatives for businesses, since 90% of the food consumed in India is from the unorganized and unpackaged sector. However, given the expanse of the Indian food market, a collaborative effort of regulators, businesses as well as third party quality players such as TÜV SÜD will act as a catalyst to address the food safety issues faced by the country.

A panel dedicated to optimizing supply chain processes, discussed the health of the existing backend infrastructure for food. Speakers at the panel concluded that while India has a system in place to enable efficient supply chain management, there is need for a more proactive approach from the industry and the government to mitigate related risks. It was identified that focus on five key factors can help ensure safety of perishable foods - package design, procuring raw materials, process controls, sales and distribution and listening to consumer feedback.

The summit concluded with a panel discussion focused on the 'effective implementation of new age media strategy' that highlighted the need for business to constantly speak to consumers and other stakeholders and implement real time course correction with regards to safety of food - in order to win consumer confidence and manage brand reputation.

Key panelists and speakers at the event included Mr. Siraj Hussain (Secretary-MoFPI), Dr. S.K. Saxena (EIC), Mr. Anil Jauhri (NABCB), Dr. K.L. Gaba (AIFPA), Mr. Shaminder Pal Singh (PepsiCo), Mr. Prabodh Halde (Marico), Mr. Navneet Mehta (Coca Cola), Dr.-Ing Axel Stepken (TÜV SÜD), Mr. Maharaj K Pandita (Abbott Nutrition), Dr. Prabhakar Kanade (Mother Dairy), Mr. T Srinivasan (PepsiCo), Mr. Partha Gangopadhyay (Wrigley), Mr. Ishan Palit (TÜV SÜD), Ms. Kishi Arora (Foodaholics), Mr. Max Hegerman (Edelman Digital), Mr. Samir Kuckreja (NRAI) and Ms. Liz Fendt (TÜV SÜD).

For more details on TÜV SÜD, log on to www.tuv-sud.in

About TÜV SÜD South Asia

TÜV SÜD South Asia is the leading certification, auditing, inspection, testing and training company with a stronger presence across India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. TÜV SÜD South Asia has an extensive network of over 29 offices including 11 labs across the three countries. The company caters to a client base of over 10,000 companies from the field of auto, plant engineering, environmental technology, food safety, textile & hardlines like toy testing, infrastructure consultancy and technical as well as soft-skills training. As of December 2012, TÜV SÜD AG has a talent pool of over 18,800 staff and has reported a turnover close to EUR 1820 million.

To view the photograph, please click on the link given below:

Shri. Tariq Anwar, MoS, Agriculture and Food Processing Industries being facilitated by Mr.Niranjan Nadkarni, CEO, TUV SUD South Asia at the ASSOCHAM - TUV SUD Safe Future Now summit on Food Safety
For picture(s)/data to illustrate this release click below:

http://www.BusinessWireIndia.com/attachments/1(281).jpg
Shri. Tariq Anwar, MoS, Agriculture and Food Processing Industries being facilitated by Mr.Niranjan Nadkarni, CEO, TUV SUD South Asia at the ASSOCHAM - TUV SUD Safe Future Now summit on Food Safety


CONTACT DETAILS
Siddharth Panicker, Edelman India , +91 9820857522, siddharth.panicker@edelman.com
Shyamli Biswas, TÜV SÜD South Asia, +91 7738055071, shyamli.biswas@tuv-sud.in

KEYWORDS
CONSUMER, FOOD, PEOPLE, SOCIAL, MARKETING, BUSINESS SERVICES, HOSPITALITY, GROUPS, HEALTHCARE

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