Hi Everyone
Coming from industry, I'm convinced that is my job to know the regulatory
and market access requirements of the countries I'm aiming to export better
than the inspectors, just because if something goes wrong, is my money on
the line and not the salary of someone in the regulatory agency.
But now, being on the capacity building side with many Competent Authorities
(CAs) and Industry organisations, I have seen that the people in charge of
regulatory compliance issues in regards seafood safety and market access
come from various backgrounds.
I have worked with veterinarians, microbiologists, chemists, fisheries
people and some food scientists, and while knowledge of each is important,
the sum is what make sense.
Many training initiatives (particularly in developing countries) focus on a
week of HACCP, or Risk Management or specific country requirements (such as
the EU), not many (if any) cover all other aspects that are important
(seafood Microbiology and biochemistry, on board handling, post harvest best
practices, seafood processing, fisheries technology, general records and
data management, and so on)
I had the chance to talk this issue informally with colleagues over the
years, but never confronted it "formally"
Hence, I wanted to post the following questions:
Is it worth to discuss it, or is just too wide, complicated and with to many
variables to be useful?
Has any CA set a minimal standard syllabus or training that potential
seafood inspectors need to comply before starting the field work?
Is there some educational institution that provides specific training to be
a "seafood inspector"?
I will be happy to hear comments
Francisco Blaha
(now at FAO in Rome)
-- Francisco Blaha www.franciscoblaha.com
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