Kuwait moves to fortify food stocks

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CAMPAIGN PUSHES NEED TO RATIONALIZE FOOD UTILIZATION, CUT WASTAGE

KUWAIT CITY, Aug 13: In a government move to fortify the strategic food and commodity stocks from any shortage, and to increase reassurance in the long term, the Minister of Commerce and Industry and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Muhammad Al-Aiban issued 3 relevant decisions in this regard, within the framework of working on a comprehensive strategy for stores and warehouses at the level of Kuwait, reports Al-Rai daily. In this context, Al-Aiban formed a committee to develop mechanisms for preserving food and commodity stocks, headed by Tariq Al-Sharrah, Saleh Al-Dhafiri as Vice-Chairman, and the membership of Faisal Al- Ansari, Ghazwa Al-Anzi and Ibrahim Al-Sultan, and Saad Al-Adwani as a member and Rapporteur. The committee, whose work period was set by the decision at 3 months, is concerned with studying the mechanisms in place to preserve food and commodity stocks, and preparing a comprehensive vision for developing mechanisms for preserving and developing stocks in cooperative societies and parallel markets, and preparing a vision for an awareness campaign on the need to rationalize food consumption and reduce waste.

At the same level, the Minister of Commerce formed a committee of 11 members to follow up on what was stated in the report of the government performance follow-up agency regarding the provision of strategic storage areas for the establishment of stores and warehouses. Procedures guide to carry out the tasks of organizing and supervising strategic storage areas and lands available for storage.

According to the decision, the committee will develop a plan and an automated system to follow up on the strategic stock and link it with the Kuwait Flour Mills and Kuwait Catering companies, and coordinate with the Kuwait Municipality and the concerned authorities to allocate lands for the construction of multi-storey buildings for selling and distributing subsidized supplies, in addition to following up and facilitating the procedures for establishing a government company for strategic stocks.

In other news, the Public Authority for Food and Nutrition confirmed that all foodstuffs imported into the country, including flour, go through a series of control, scrutiny and examination processes by their specialists, before being released and allowed to be circulated, reports Al-Qabas daily. The authority stressed that allowing the circulation of foodstuffs is only done after ensuring that they comply with the internationally approved technical regulations, including the Gulf standard specifications. The Authority has called on the public not to publish clips that contain false allegations about the quality of foodstuffs, with the obligation to refer to documented scientific sources and statements of official authorities. The authority’s statement came in response to clips circulated on social media containing false allegations about the quality of flour in Kuwait.

In the same context, health sources told the daily that the authority applies strict procedures to ensure health and safety, and internationally approved technical regulations and Gulf standard specifications, revealing a strict mechanism to ensure that no products that may have been damaged during the process of transportation are supplied to outlets for distribution. The sources indicated that all food products imported to the country are subject to laboratory examination, to ensure their suitability for human consumption, and their conformity with the approved standard specifications and that they are free of any pollutants or harmful substances before declaring their suitability for sale.

The source added, after the arrival of the shipments, the authority makes a temporary release, according to which the person concerned is allowed to transfer the contents of the shipment from the port of entry to a place under his control, such as warehouses, in exchange for a pledge not to dispose of any part of it, except after the final release of the shipments that is taken by the Imported Food Administration of the PAFN, after ensuring that the incoming food conforms to the requirements, technical regulations and standard specifications, and after coordinating with the concerned authority, such as customs. The sources indicated that, according to the recent decisions, PAFN carries out all the necessary activities, which the state undertakes to ensure the safety and quality of food, during production, circulation, storage, processing, distribution, sale with the intention of dealing with it, importing and exporting, and ensuring its suitability for human consumption.

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