“There is no dearth of rules, regulations or laws in India to protect the health of consumers or to ensure fair practices in the food trade. But, laxity or some sort of `misfiring’ at the implementation level has been identified as the key problem facing the State in terms of food safety,’’ says Dr N. Anandavally, Food Safety Consultant of the World Health Organisation.

Talking to The Hindu, Dr Anandavally who is also a member of many expert committees of the WHO and Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), said the reported move to emulate Dubai-model food safety in Kerala was nothing short of a ‘ridiculous’ idea.

As the maker of KitKat bars, Hot Pockets microwaveable sandwiches and Haagen-Dazs ice-cream, Nestle SA has long sold products associated with obesity and diabetes. Now, the company is aiming to build a business on foods that might help treat those conditions.

Nestle’s offerings include Boost shakes designed to help diabetics manage blood glucose levels and Peptamen Bariatric Formula, a tube-fed concoction for critically ill obese patients. Nestle aims to convince governments that it’s cheaper to deal with chronic diseases by preventing or treating them with food rather than medications.

It comes after a gap of eight years succeeding the UP Industrial and Service Sector Investment Policy 2004

The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet, in its pursuit to iron out regional industrial imbalance and attract fresh investment, on Tuesday gave its nod and cleared the New Industrial & Infrastructure Investment Policy 2012. The policy is aimed at ameliorating the ills of traditional industries scattered across the state and energising the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) base estimated at over 3 million units.

Worried about large-scale imports, impact on kirana stores

The department of health, family welfare and food safety, Andhra Pradesh, has issued notices to four fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) firms for violation of provisions on misleading advertisements. “Misleading advertisements related to food items without scientific basis misguide the consumer. And, such advertisers attract penalty of up to Rs 10 lakh as per Section 53 of Food Safety and Standards Act 2006,” said Praveen Prakash, commissioner of health, family welfare and food safety.

Hoteliers in the state have taken a strong exception to the five conditions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, including the restriction on the chefs from wearing ornaments, as they are “not practical and feasible to the functioning of low and medium level hotels”.

The State Food Safety Commissioner had issued a circular the other day with 30 guidelines in the Act after the tragic incident of a youth’s death on July 10 after having ‘shawarma’ from Salwa Cafe in Thiruvananthapuram.

Agartala: The Northeast’s fourth mega food park will be set up in Tripura at a cost of Rs 72 crore to accelerate the growth of food processing industry in the region, a minister said here on Sunday.

It will be used to preserve fruits and vegetables coming from the country and abroad. According to Tripura Industries and Commerce Minister Jitendra Choudhury, Assam has two Green Field Mega Food Parks while another such park is being set up in Manipur.