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The food safety policy and legislation are a multi-ministerial responsibility and the control of food safety and quality falls under the jurisdiction of 6 ministries. The roles and responsibilities are still overlapping with each other. Clear roles and responsibilities and an excellent coordination mechanism are required.

TOPIC 3. Challenges and benefits of implementation of food safety management system There are both challenges and benefits in implementation of food safety management system including the HACCP, ISO 22000, and organic standards. Practical challenges as shared by the private sector include: the lack of awareness, motivation and capacity by the management and staffs to implement the requirement of the standards; the cost of implementation which include the consultancies, trainings, modification of production process flows, building, new equipment, certification fee and additional staff cost; sta... Read moreff complaint (at the initial stage) of difficulties to implement; difficulties to maintain the standard throughout. The implementation of organic standards is challenging as it also needs to deal with farmers and small-scale producers. Lots of trainings and refresher trainings need to be conducted to raise awareness and build their capacities. The implementation of the food safety management system offers lots of benefits in return such as: increase quality of the products, improve quality consistency and product shelf-life; improve productivity as staffs and workers fully understand their role and responsibility and reduction of the product defect; improve commitment of management and staffs on food safety; increase consumer and government confidence and support; build brand and reputation; gain trust and is the door to super market and export; reduce wastages; and reduce the production cost. To successfully implement the food system management system, it is imperative that everyone at the company is sensitized to its benefits, understand what is required of them, and that everyone is on board with the system, including both existing and new staff and workers. Training should be provided to raise awareness and build capacity of the management, workers and staff and should be refreshed regularly. The successful implementation of the food safety management system is only possible with commitment, perseverance, patience and teamwork. Despite the obvious benefits of the food safety management system, lots still remains to be done to scale up. Support is needed for both technical and financial assistance including capacity building for staffs and management. There are also needs for greater awareness among the consumers and general pubic on food safety and generate the demand for safe foods. Read less

TOPIC 2. Policy and legislation Food safety and quality from farm to table are managed by 6 ministries namely Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology and Innovation (MISTI), Ministry of Commerce (MoC), Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), Ministry of Health (MoH) and Ministry of Tourism (MoT). The roles and responsibilities of each Ministry are defined in the inter-ministerial Prakas 868. A draft Food Safety Law is under review and long-awaited. MAFF is responsible for all registration and/or permission to establish and operate food b... Read moreusiness at primary production and primary processing. MAFF has developed several voluntary standards such as CAM GAP, CAM Organic, Good Livestock Practices, Good Aquaculture Practices, and a Participatory Guarantee System. Any primary production or primary processing firms can apply for a certificate of compliance with the above standards by following these four steps: 1) registration; 2) audit/inspection by MAFF official; 3) Sample analysis; and 4) Issuance of certificate. MAFF also provides regulatory support, trade facilitation, facilitates contract farming, provides public services and goods and promotes agriculture modernization for primary production and primary processing. The Law on Sanitation and Phyto sanitation is also implemented by MAFF. MISTI is responsible for all registration and/or permission to establish and operate food business at secondary processing. The Institute of Standards of Cambodia (ISC) of MISTI has adopted and produced standards to support SMEs and industry so that they can produce safe, quality and environmentally friendly products that are good for humans and the environment. So far more than 300 standards related to food have been developed, both voluntary and mandatory. More than 900 standards in total were produced and adopted. Government policy is to promote quality and environmentally friendly products. Standards were developed with input from all stakeholders, including the private sector so they must be respected. Food must be safe to consume and improve quality of life and contribute to economic development. The Directorate-General of Consumer Protection Competition and Fraud Repression of the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) is the responsible agency and lead for coordination in promoting effective and efficient implementation of market surveillance of businesses trading in the market. The Law on Food Safety first drafted in 2016 is expected to be enacted by the end of 2021. The development of the Law on Food Safety is spearheaded by MoC. Other regulations include the Consumer Protection Law, committee on consumer protection. The Competition Law to be enacted this year. The MoT is responsible for all registration and/or permission to establish and operate food business at the tourist canteens and restaurants and inspection of compliance to the tourist standards and norms. The MoH is responsible for leading effective and efficient coordination in the implementation of the following tasks related to food safety in the consumer sector: 1) preparation of policy, legal framework on hygiene and sanitary standards; 2) providing input to standardization regarding consumer health perspective; 3) monitor and inspect hygiene and sanitation of food and food business dealing with consumers; 4) prepare and implement programs promoting compliance with hygiene and sanitation requirements; 5) implement verification programs and issue hygiene and sanitation assurance certificates for food business selling to consumers; 6) prepare and implement a general plan for crisis management and emergency response to address, minimize or to prevent risks predicted or arising at the final stage of consumption. Read less

TOPIC 1. Status of food safety in Cambodia and the role of private sector Thousands of people are affected by foodborne illnesses because of improper practices in food preparation such as the use of unsafe water or raw materials and cross-contamination. The burden of foodborne diseases to public health and welfare and to the economy is substantial. Consumer violations or misuses of chemicals and preservatives by food processors or retailers. The food safety issues have a negative impact on the nutritional outcome especially for vulnerable and marginalized population. The current food productio... Read moren systems in Cambodia are mainly relying on a multiplicity of micro- and small-scale producers, operators or businesses, make it challenging to assure the delivery of safe food. Uncontrolled use of pesticides and antibiotics, poor infrastructure such as cold chain and handling practices including hygiene and sanitation, inadequate value addition- packing, labelling etc. making the products non-competitive in markets. Poor food safety compliance is leading to poor market access. Poor handling, transportation and processing conditions lead to 15 to 25% of post-harvest losses. The current food safety policy and legislation are not fully risk-based and are fragmented - it is a multi-ministerial responsibility. Food safety is a partnership endeavor and a shared responsibility between all stakeholders including the private sector, public institution, academia and consumers. The private sector needs to embrace a market-driven approach and improve their operating practices to improve their productivity, lowering the production cost through better management. The regulatory system needs to be fully risk-based in its operation. Coordination and linkages between relevant agencies and their capacity need to be strengthened. Universities have greater role in supporting both private sector and the regulating agencies. University-government-private sector linkages and collaboration can lead to innovative models and food safety solutions. Consumers and civil society have a very important role in contributing to food safety culture. Journalists and media can create greater awareness of the importance of food safety. The private sector is a key player in ensuring food safety as it underlies the entire food system. The majority of foods are produced, handled, processed, distributed, and sold by private sector. The private sector has the responsibility to ensure their products are nutritious and safe for consumption. The implementation of food safety management systems brings lots of benefits to the private sector, including increased consumer and government confidence, ensuring safe food, reduced legal and insurance cost, reduction in production cost, improved product consistency, improved staff and management commitment to food safety, decreased business risk, and costs associated with due diligence defense in court. Read less

Food safety is a very complex challenge which come from both the supply and demand sides. Dealing with unsafe foods requires a holistic approach that involves every stakeholder to address the issues in the supply side, demand side, and regulatory framework and official control. While food safety has steadily improved in Cambodia, more needs to be done. Food safety is vital for achieving many SDGs particularly SDG 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, and 11 and closely linked to the achievement of positive nutrition outcomes. Food safety has profound impact on the effort to end poverty. The following are the main... Read more finding from the dialogue: 1) Food safety requires more attention, greater investment, and support in term of infrastructure and human capital, better regulatory frameworks, and measures that promote behavior change 2) Further need to strengthen the enforcement of regulations, define clearly the jurisdiction and responsibility of relevant technical ministry in implementing the guidelines, rules and regulation and the participation of all relevant stakeholders 3) Private sector is a key actor in driving and promoting food safety and needs further support, both in term of technical assistance, including capacity building for staff and management, and finance are needed to support them to implement food safety management system. 4) There are sound business cases for implementing a food safety management system. The benefits outweigh the cost of the implementation of such a system and have been further highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read less

The dialogue brought together 93 participants from private sector, government, development partners, civil society, academia and research center, small-scale farmers, indigenous people who are involved either directly or indirectly in implementing or supporting the improvement of food system. The focus of the dialogue was to discuss the status of food safety in Cambodia and the roles and responsibilities of relevant stakeholders, especially the private sector in improving food safety practices and ensuring that their foods are safe for consumption. The discussion covered the effort by relevant... Read more technical ministries in terms of regulatory frameworks, the importance of standards, the need for support to ensure effective implementation of the guidelines and standards, and compliance by the private sector with food safety guidelines. The discussion also covered strengthening the roles and responsibilities and contribution of stakeholders relevant to food safety. Perspectives from the private sector addressed the challenges and benefits of implementing international and national food safety management systems such as HACCP, ISO 22000, organic standards etc. The importance of understanding the behavior of the food consumer was also discussed. The results of the discussion will be important inputs to the development of Cambodia food systems roadmap toward 2030, the Cambodia SDGs agenda and to prepare for the upcoming global food systems summit in September 2021 Read less