MSMEs in Agriculture Sector Urged to Adhere to Hygiene and Food-Safety Practices

Operators of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) within the agriculture sector are being encouraged to consistently adhere to hygiene and food-safety standards and practices.

Director General for the Hazardous Substances Regulatory Authority (HSRA), Dr. Cliff Riley, says adherence is critical to the export potential of these businesses.

“We often find some of the gaps being related to the hygienic practices of manufacturers and the frequency [with] which most of these institutions go through the process of seeking certification,” he said.

This, the Director General added, “whether it be in food-manufacturing practices, certification from our Ministry of Health and Wellness or even going further to the CGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations) from the US (United States) or the EUGMP (European Good Manufacturing Practice) for the European Union.”

He was speaking during a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) ‘Think Tank’ at the Agency’s head office in Kingston on Tuesday (March 19).

Dr. Riley maintained that entities need to improve their quality management and control systems to meet these requirements.

“We want our local businesses to ensure that their internal quality control processes involve testing of different batches and testing of the products that they produce before they enter the market space. We also want them to utilise the facilities that have the accreditation and the history in terms of undertaking and facilitating those tests,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dr. Riley, who also advises the Geneva, Switzerland-based International Trade Center on matters relating to product innovation, food safety as well as agro-production, also noted significant improvement within the sector.

“We have seen significant growth in the testing capabilities or laboratories and we have seen a number of companies in Jamaica, primarily some of the small and medium enterprises, establishing robust quality management systems and quality control systems within their spaces which allow them to trade internationally. The gaps that we tend to find mostly are in the micro enterprises,” he said.

Dr. Riley further indicated that providing interventions through training and capacity-building programmes is critical to compliance.

“That’s one of the things that the Coconut Industry Board and International Trade Center are working with these micro enterprises on. We want to build good manufacturing practices, quality control procedures and protocols and improve their overall food safety and procedures.

“So far, we have been seeing some significant benefits from the coconut sector… from the coconut producers in terms of meeting local requirements and entering the global market space,” he said.