SGS Institut Fresenius supports EU-Funded SADC Food Safety Project

June 29, 2011 - PRLog -- Since 2008, SGS INSTITUT FRESENIUS has been providing technical support to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Food Safety Capacity Building on Residue Control Project. The project, which is funded by the EU, is scheduled to finish by the end of 2012.

Consulting and training measures by SGS INSTITUT FRESENIUS help improve food safety and monitoring, and increase the level of cooperation in the SADC region. The project focuses on the international requirements for agricultural products, fruits, vegetables, grains, meat and fishery products.  In order for SADC countries to access export markets all these products should be tested for compliance on a number of hygiene and safety parameters and for contaminants, such as antibiotic residues, heavy metals and microbiological pollutants.

With the help of SGS INSTITUT FRESENIUS (http://www.institut-fresenius.de/index.shtml), the first step for SADC was to identify the status quo in the different countries and set up coordinating committees for all sanitary and phyto-sanitary (SPS) matters, which includes food safety.

SGS staff has trained about 30 employees from reference labs in the SADC Member States, training them to develop quality assurance systems based on ISO 17025. In the months ahead, SGS INSTITUT FRESENIUS will continue to support the implementation of appropriate food monitoring systems in the SADC Member States.

About SGS Food Safety Services

SGS provides efficient services to help safeguard food quality and safety (http://www.foodsafety.sgs.com/food-safety-services.htm). Our experts assist in sustainable development throughout the whole food supply chain including raw and semi-manufactured foodstuffs and final products in all principal food segments.

For more information about the project and SGS food safety services, please contact:

SGS Consumer Testing Services
Kirsten Hennige
SGS Institut Fresenius
Im Maisel 14, 65232 Taunusstein, Germany

t: +49 6128 744 270  
E-mail: cts.media@sgs.com
Website: www.sgs.com/foodsafety

SGS is the world’s leading inspection, verification, testing and certification company. SGS is recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. With 64,000 employees, SGS operates a network of over 1,250 offices and laboratories around the world.

# # #

SGS Consumer Testing Services ensures the quality and safety of every kind of consumer products, from textiles, electronics and furniture to food and automotive.
For more information, please visit: http://www.sgs.com/cts