ESC presses for results-based approach to ensure food safety
The European Economic and Social Committee (ESC) adopted two opinions on food safety on 28 March, both of which call for action founded on a results-based approach as well as preventative measures. Concerning the proposed establishment of a European Food Authority, rapporteur Mr Verhaeghe from the Committee's Employers' Group told the assembly that the setting up of such a body was a 'fundamental topic'. The Authority needs to get off the ground as quickly as possible and evolve towards being an arbiter in food safety matters, he said. The ESC also feels that the new body should have the power to act as a final arbiter in the case of a conflicting scientific opinion, or at least take precedence in cases of conflict concerning issues within its realm of responsibility. In its opinion on the 'proposals on the hygiene of foodstuffs of animal origin', the ESC gave the Commission its broad support, although claimed that the exclusion of the retail trade from the new regulations is unwarranted in the case of supermarkets and hypermarkets.