Welsh Food Advisory Committee Chair's Report 21 April 2022

WFAC 22/04/02
For discussion

Welsh Food Advisory Committee (WFAC) Chairman's report

Executive Summary

1.    The attached report provides a brief summary of matters considered at the last Board meeting, held on 9 March 2022, and other activities relevant to the FSA remit in Wales. 

2.    Members of the Committee are invited to:

• note the Board discussions
• invite the Chair to expand on any issues for further discussion.

Contact: Lucy Edwards
Lucy.Edwards@food.gov.uk 

 
WFAC 22/04/02
For discussion
WFAC Chairman's Report – April 2022

1. Board Meetings

1.1    The last open Board meeting was held in Birmingham on 9 March 2022. The Board considered the following matters: 

• Strategic Risk Management: This paper reflected the FSA’s strategic, corporate and management approaches to risk, including identifying which responsibilities lie at Board, Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (ARAC) or Executive level, and also provided the Board with the latest Strategic Risk assessment. I raised that WFAC discussions focussed on prevention, in terms of response to incidents the need to look at root causes, and consider if more focus is needed on how we adopt methods that look at the causes and future prevention.
• FSA Strategy: This paper described the development and proposals for the FSA’s new strategy, covering the period 2022-2027. I pointed out the absence of food hypersensitivity in the Strategy. I highlighted that the committee welcomed the reference to Wales with the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act and commented that the committee were very supportive of this paper. 
• Annual Review of Risk Analysis Process: Focus on Overall Performance and Risk Management: This paper outlined the delivery of the FSA's risk analysis process in the first twelve months of operation since the end of the Transition Period in January 2021, focusing on overall performance and risk management.
• Review of retained Regulation 2016/6 on importing food from Japan following the Fukushima nuclear accident: The paper informed of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/6, which was retained in Great Britain (GB) law following the United Kingdom’s (UK) exit from the European Union (EU) and applies enhanced controls on certain food imported from Japan as a result of the Fukushima nuclear accident in March 2011. I reported that the WFAC were assured by the risk analysis undertaken in this report and supported writing to Ministers.
• Annual Report from the Chair of the Science Council: This paper provided an overview of the work of the Science Council over the past year and reflected on its successes and challenges as well a forward look into the future activities.

1.2  A recording of the 9 March meeting is at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37oO9vO0T1o&t=2s and the minutes of the meeting, when available, will be posted on: https://www.food.gov.uk/about-us/our-board#meetings.  

1.3   The next Board meeting will be held on Wednesday 15 June 2022. 

2. Other Meetings

2.2   On 8 April, I participated in the Board’s two online sessions – one to discuss key topics and the other in a series of meetings with staff ‘over coffee’ to discuss their areas of responsibility.  In this case, the staff were from our veterinary teams. 

2.3   The ARAC Committee last met on 1 March and will have a long meeting on 17 May to consider the draft annual report and accounts, with the NAO and others in attendance.  It will come close to finalising the accounts for Wales, ahead of scheduled adoption on 7 June. 

2.4   Other online meetings were in preparation for this themed session of the Committee.

Peter Price
Board Member for Wales and Chair of the WFAC