Food Standards Agency to keep crucial safety role

Jul 21, 2010

The Government has confirmed its intention to retain the Food Standards Agency (FSA) with a renewed focus on food safety.

The Department of Health will become responsible for nutrition policy, and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will become responsible for Country of Origin Labelling, and various other non-safety-related food labelling and food composition policies in England.

The FSA was established as a non-ministerial Government Department in 2000. Its primary purpose was to secure food safety and provide vital advice to Government and to the public; a role that the Government believes must remain independent.

Secretary of State for Health, Andrew Lansley, said:

“It’s absolutely crucial for the Food Standards Agency to continue providing independent expert advice to people about food safety. But bringing nutrition policy into the Department makes sense. It will enable a clear, consistent public health service to be created, as our Public Health White Paper later this year will set out.

“I believe – in the-long term – we’ll have a clearer and less bureaucratic system for public health. The end result will focus on turning expert advice and support into better health.”

Ministers and officials at the Department of Health and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs are working closely with the FSA to implement the following changes:

Food Standards Agency

• Retains a clearly defined departmental function focused on its core remit of food safety. This means that on crucial issues of food safety, the independent advice from FSA experts would be final.
• Retains current responsibility for nutrition and labelling policy in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
• Approximately 2,000 staff will remain at the FSA.

Department of Health

• Nutrition policy will be transferred to the Department of Health. This includes front of pack nutrition labelling, such as Guideline Daily Amounts.
• Approximately 70 policy posts will move to the Department from the FSA.

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

• Country of Origin Labelling will transfer to Defra.
• Other policy areas that will transfer to Defra include composition policy which is about agreeing the components and standards for characterising products such as honey, jam, chocolate, ice-cream or meat content of sausages).
• Approximately 25 policy posts will move to Defra from the FSA.

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