Just as reference the following is the EC Syllabus:
"ANNEX II
COMPETENT AUTHORITIES
Chapter I : Subject matter for the training of staff performing official controls
1. Different control techniques, such as auditing, sampling and inspection.
2. Control procedures.
3. Feed and food law.
4. The different stages of production, processing and distribution, and the possible risks for human health, and where appropriate for the health of animals and plants and for the environment.
5. Assessment of non-compliance with feed and food law.
6. Hazards in animal, feed and food production.
7. The evaluation of the application of HACCP procedures.
8. Management systems such as quality assurance programmes that feed and food businesses operate and their assessment in so far as these are relevant for feed or food law requirements.
9. Official certification systems.
10. Contingency arrangements for emergencies, including communication between Member States and the Commission.
11. Legal proceedings and implications of official controls.
12. Examination of written, documentary material and other records, including those related to proficiency testing, accreditation and risk assessment, which may be relevant to the assessment of compliance with feed or food law; this may include financial and commercial aspects.
13. Any other area, including animal health and animal welfare, necessary to ensure that official controls are carried out in accordance with this Regulation."
[REGULATION (EC) No 882/2004 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
AND OF THE COUNCIL of 29 April 2004 on official controls performed to ensure the verification of compliance with feed and food law,animal health and animal welfare rules]
The Syllabus is more or less in line with the "standard series" of workshops we had in the FAO/DANIDA Project till 1999: (i) HACCP sytem and HACCP-based regulations; (ii) HACCP Implementation and (iii) HACCP Audit (one week duration each one). In general (i) and (iii) were the most popular; very few countries asked for (ii) (one of the few was Cuba). Personally, I think that (ii) was absolutely necessary for inspection services and industry, because both had to re-organize and implement the HACCP system. Now, I suppose many people would agree with me.
The HACCP sytem was ill implemented in a lot of places, because one thing is to arrive to draft a proper HACCP plan (something not easy to learn in a week course anyway) and a completely different thing to implement it in plant.
For developing countries exporting to more than one market, then regulations (other than the EC) can be necessary (e.g. FDA HACCP regulations and Canadian regulations). Please do not forget national regulations.
Other subjects of importance are the WTO Agreements (in particular the SPS and the TBT), something more than a brief introduction to Risk Analysis, Codex Alimentarius (& related material) and some specific subjects like traceability.
A syllabus containing all that will take not less of 4-6 coordinated intense weeks (including practical works in plant and at fish inspection services) depending on the knowledge of participants. In any case it will be just the starting point of a career.
Kind regards.
Hector M. Lupin
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