JANAAC Gets FDA’s Accredited Third-Party Certification

The Jamaica National Agency for Accreditation (JANAAC) has received authorisation from the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) as an accreditation body under its Accredited Third-Party Certification programme.

Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Senator the Hon. Aubyn Hill, presented the entity’s Chief Executive Officer, Sharonmae Shirley, with the validation certificate during a semi-virtual ceremony held at The Jamaica Pegasus hotel in New Kingston on Tuesday (July 19).

Accredited Third-Party Certification is a voluntary programme under which the FDA recognises accreditation bodies that will have responsibility for validating third-party certification entities.

These bodies will be authorised to conduct food safety audits and certify foreign food facilities, such as farms and factories.

This certification may also be used in situations where the FDA requires that imported products are validated before entering the US.

It can also establish eligibility for participation in the Voluntary Qualified Importer Programme (VQIP), which offers expedited review and entry of food.

JANAAC, in this regard, has been recognised by the FDA, as having the authority to accredit certification bodies to conduct food safety audits under 10 of the 11 possible scopes.

These are: acidified foods, dietary supplements, low acid canned foods, Juice Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (Juice HACCP), Medicated Feed Current Good Manufacturing Practices (Medicated Feed CGMPs), Preventive Controls for Animal Food (PCAF), Preventive Controls for Human Food (PCHF), Produce Safety, Seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (Seafood HACCP), and Shell Eggs.

The agency is one of four FDA-approved accreditation bodies globally and the sole such entity in the English-speaking Caribbean.

Senator Hill, who delivered the main address, noted that the FDA’s approval of JANAAC represents a major achievement for Jamaica and the wider region.

He noted that the manufacturing and export industries across the region “will benefit from job creation, market access and product diversification for exports to the US”.

“It’s important for us to… understand that Jamaica is changing, and you can’t change and be successful… unless you have very clear standards,” the Minister said.

Senator Hill pointed out that JANAAC’s Mutual Recognition Agreements with regional and international accreditation corporations enable those entities to have their results accepted worldwide, underscoring that “that is important”.

JANAAC’s Chief Executive Officer, Sharonmae Shirley, in her remarks, noted that the entity’s mandate is to ensure Jamaica’s compliance with the United Nations World Trade Organization (WTO)

Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement (TBT).

This is by providing transparent, accredited conformity assessment services that conform to international standards “effectively levelling the playing field”.

The TBT establishes rules and procedures regarding the development, adoption, and application of voluntary product standards, mandatory technical regulations, and the procedures (such as testing or certification) used to determine whether a particular product meets such standards or regulations.

While noting that JANAAC is a small agency, Mrs. Shirley emphasised that “we have a big mandate, and we are proud to stand beside the best in the world”.