Food Safety Express, a vehicle loaded with audio-visual equipment and awareness materials on prevention of food adulteration, began its journey in the district on Thursday to propagate the importance of food safety among consumers and food business operators.
The express was flagged off by Collector Anshul Mishra at Sairam Matriculation Higher Secondary School at Goripalayam here in the presence of senior district officials and representatives of consumer protection associations.
It will travel across the district from March 21 to April 8 covering urban and rural areas to create awareness of the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006.
A team of food safety experts and consumer activists will visit schools, colleges, markets, hospitals and important public places explaining the features of the Act. Trained personnel will also demonstrate detection of adulteration in food items by using a special kit called ‘annam,’ which was developed by CONCERT, a sister organisation of the Consumers Association of India. Consumers and Food Business Operators will get information through bilingual portal www.foodsafe.caiindia.org.
Kalyani Rajaraman, project manager for the mass awareness campaign, J. Suguna, Designated Officer for Food Safety, Madurai district, Ashok Kannan, secretary, Public Welfare and Consumer Protection Association, and Rajendran, District Consumer Officer, were among those who spoke at the flagging-off function.
Apart from Madurai, the express, which started its journey in Chennai on January 17, is reaching out to consumers in Chennai, Vellore, Coimbatore and Tiruchi.
