What are the powers of the Mauritius Food Standards Agency?

• To enter into any contract or other arrangement, in accordance with good governance practices.
• To set up advisory committees.
• To enter into any contract in accordance with the Public Procurement Act.
• To sell or exchange any property.
• To receive grants and donations, and raise funds.
• To do such acts and things as may be necessary for the purposes of the Mauritius Food Standards Agency Act 2022.

What are the objectives of the Mauritius Food Standards Agency?

• To ensure a high degree of consumer confidence in the safety and nutritional quality of food produced, processed, imported, sold in, or exported from Mauritius.
• To ensure an effective, transparent, and accountable regulatory framework within which the food industry can work efficiently.
• To provide appropriate information relating to food to enable the consumer to make informed choices regarding food safety and nutritional quality.
• To provide appropriate information to food businesses of different scales for the purpose of assisting in the implementation of the Mauritius Food Standards Agency Act 2022 and ensure that the food regulatory measures are complied with.
• To promote the consistency between domestic food regulatory measures and the international and regional food regulatory measures for the purpose of promoting food trade, without reducing the safeguards to public health and consumer protection.
• To develop standards and procedures for the certification of vegetarian food, halal food and such other food as may be prescribed with such standards as the Agency may determine.

What are the functions of the Mauritius Food Standards Agency?

• To provide advice, technical support and recommendations to the Minister on standards and regulations under the Food Act 2022 for the manufacture, processing, import, export, distribution, and sale of food so as to ensure that the food is safe, wholesome and of required nutritional quality.
• To be responsible for implementing the objectives of the Mauritius Food Standards Agency Act 2022 and to cooperate with any other organization, including the private sector, having objectives wholly or partly similar to ours.
• To develop draft standards and guidelines in relation to the articles of food regulated under the Food Act 2022.
• To develop procedures and systems to facilitate compliance and enforcement of the Food Act 2022.
• To develop or revise food standards, having regard to relevant international standards and recommending maximum limits for food additives, microbiological counts, pesticide residues, veterinary drug residues, heavy metals, processing aids, mycotoxins, and irradiation of food.
• To develop guidelines for certification of anybody engaged in audit of food safety management systems.
• To develop regulatory requirements applicable to specific articles of food imported into, or exported from Mauritius.
• To develop procedures and guidelines for the accreditation of laboratories undertaking food analysis and the examination conducted for the purpose of determining if the provisions of the Food Act 2022 are complied with.
• To conduct food hazard monitoring surveys, food borne disease surveys and audits for the purpose of implementing performance measures to test the effectiveness of the food control system.
• To develop draft labelling standards for food claims on health, nutrition, and special dietary uses.
• To develop procedures under which risks shall be assessed, analyzed, communicated and managed by using developed protocols, where available.
• To provide scientific advice and technical support to the Minister in matters of policy and rules in areas which, directly or indirectly, affect food safety and nutrition.
• To search, collect, collate, analyze, and summarize relevant scientific and technical data relating to food consumption and the exposure of consumers to risks related to the consumption of food, incidence and prevalence of food borne risks, contaminants and residues in food, identification of emerging food risks, food fraud and deception and the introduction of rapid alert system for food borne disease outbreaks.
• To promote, coordinate and issue guidelines for the purpose of developing methods of risk assessment in accordance with international standards.
• To monitor and communicate messages on the safety, health and nutritional risks of food to the Government and any external stakeholder.
• To provide scientific and technical advice and assistance to the Minister in the implementation of emergency management procedures on food safety and draw up a plan for food borne disease emergency management, with the assistance of such Government agency as may be necessary.
• To facilitate scientific cooperation by coordinating such activities as may be required; the exchange of information; and the development and implementation of joint projects, with stakeholders, both local and foreign.
• To provide scientific and technical assistance to the Minister in matters related to cooperation with international organizations.
• To provide to the public, rapid, reliable, objective and comprehensive information on food safety and the nutritional value of food by such method and means of communication as may be appropriate.
• To provide appropriate training programmes related to food safety and standards for every person who is or intends to be involved in food business, whether as a food business operator, an employee or otherwise.
• To undertake such other task as the Minister may assign to carry out the objectives of the Food Act 2022.
• To contribute to, and support the development of, international technical standards for food, sanitary and phyto-sanitary standards, as set out in any relevant international standard.
• To assist in the development of agreements on food trade, including food equivalence matters.
• To promote the coordination of such task in respect of food standards by the Government and any non-Governmental organization.
• To ensure that any food produced, processed, imported, distributed or sold is in accordance with the international food standards.
• To promote general awareness related to food safety and food standards.
• To advise the Minister, from time to time, on matters pertaining to food safety, compliance and enforcement.