Dubai: Customers will soon be able to view a food safety grade on the entrance of Dubai food outlets as part of an upcoming “Name and Fame” scheme, an official said on Sunday.
The scheme will reveal whether the outlet has passed, failed or obtained a conditional pass in official food safety inspections.
It will also assign what will probably be a letter grade indicating the level of compliance, with “A” being the highest and “E” the lowest.
The scheme was announced during the ninth Dubai International Food Safety Conference, which lasts until Tuesday.
“We want to let consumers know who’s doing well. It’ll invite people to make food safety their priority,” Sultan Al Tahir, head of inspections at Dubai Municipality’s food control department, said.
“The grade will be posted outside the place. We’ll implement this in the future.”
Al Tahir said more than 200 out of 13,000 food establishments in Dubai are of A-grade standing. Those falling in the E category are 430.
It is understood the grades will be revised if necessary after scheduled and spot food safety inspection results.
“Those in A and B grades will be very high. For grade E, we’ll put them in a Food Safety Clinic. Giving fines and closing them is not a solution. We’ll meet owners and PICs [Persons in Charge] and discuss how they can improve,” he added.
“We’re promoting food safety culture… The traditional role of inspectors was to check the end product. There’s no use of that when it’s after the problem has happened. That doesn’t improve food safety.
“We want to look at risks along the whole food chain, from farm to table. Our aim’s not to fine and punish people. Today, the emphasis is on prevention.”
Al Tahir said the comprehensive farm-to-table checks are even more relevant to Dubai as the emirate imports a staggering 90 per cent of its food.
Smart code
Also planned for consumers is a smart barcode system which will let smartphone users scan the product information on the packaging of all food products in the UAE, said Khalid Mohammad Sharif, the municipality department’s executive director.
Using an app in their smart device, customers will be able to scan a code that will reveal a catalogue of information, such as nutrition facts, expiry date, ingredients, and country of origin.
The code will also reveal if the product has ever been flagged by authorities.
“Consumers will know if it has had any previous history. It means more control and transparency, which is good for everybody. All of that will be on your smartphone,” Sharif added.
The system will also reveal if the product is registered with federal authorities, which will become mandatory some time in 2015, he said.
With tens of millions of visitors expected for Expo 2020, Sharif said the smart system will provide an additional reassurance on the food safety of imports and local products.
Safety index
Inspectors will be able to use the federal system to digitally view the compliance report of the product on the spot and take any necessary action.
The UAE Ministry of Environment and Water and the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority is also involved in the federal scheme.
Also taking shape on the national level is a Federal Food Safety Index that will score each emirate’s food control authority on a 100-point scale on how well it is doing its job, a ministryofficial told the conference.
The inaugural session of the conference was on Sunday opened by Hussain Lootah, the municipality’s director general.
