Welsh Food Advisory Committee Director’s Report – July 2022

1.    Summary

1.1    This report provides a brief summary of subjects introduced by the Chief Executive the last Board meeting, held on 15 June 2022, and other activities relevant to the FSA remit in Wales.  
1.2    Members of the committee are invited to: 

• note the update
• invite the Director to expand on any issues for further discussion

2.    Chief Executive’s Report to the Board

2.1    The Board received the Chief Executive's Report (FSA 22-06-03).

3.    FSA in Wales Senior External Engagement

3.1    Since the last WFAC themed meeting on 21 April, senior management have been involved in the following external engagement opportunities: 

• 26 April – Chair, Susan Jebb, meeting with the Deputy Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing, Lynne Neagle. Amongst the topics discussed were the labelling issues arising from the conflict in Ukraine and the FSA’s new Strategy. 
• 27 April – charitable giving: IT equipment. Both myself and Julie Pierce handed over recycled devices to charities in Cardiff as part of the wider FSA project in conjunction with Computers for Charity. 40 laptops and 40 smartphones were gratefully received across 4 charities: Noddfa Church, Llanfair Church, Oasis and Llamau.
• 17 May – Meeting of Safe, Sustainable, Authentic Food Wales (SSAFW) – Amongst the items discussed were a briefing on the FSA’s new strategy which had general support from the members and has provided an opportunity for further networking and discussions with organisation that have a shared interest. 
• 16 June – CTSI’s annual Conference in Bristol. I presented the CTSI Food Award to Felicity Broder from Brighton and Hove, and the Steve Whitehouse award to Sarah Thomas-Grant from Rhondda Cynon-Taf for being the best food standards student in Wales. At the event Dilys Harris from Caerphilly County Borough Council and the Greater Gwent Food Group launched multi-lingual allergen guidance in additional languages, we are pleased to have supported the production of this well received resource.  
• 21 June – meeting with Welsh Government, Directors for Public Protection Wales and other partners, a very positive meeting at top level. There was also a follow-up operational meeting with strategic leads to discuss sampling and the data project to replace LAEMS.
• 27 June – Food Hygiene Delivery Model LA engagement event. A webinar was hosted for local authorities in Wales, England and Northern Ireland to feed in their views and insights on the proposed headline approach and principles for the review of the Food Hygiene Delivery Model. Over 490 local authority officers attended the event. We will use the event feedback to help develop more details proposals for modernising the model.
• 5 July - Chief Medical Officer’s Health Protection Advisory Group meeting.

3.2    External engagement forward look: 

• 18 - 21 July – FSA in Wales will have a stand in the Royal Welsh Agricultural Show and I will be attending with the Chair of the FSA on one of these days. 
• 30 July - 6 August – FSA in Wales will have a stand in the National Eisteddfod, Tregaron.
• 4 August – FSA in Wales/Welsh Government quarterly liaison meeting
• 12 September – CMA Regulators meeting

4.    Matters of interest to WFAC pertaining to FSA in Wales

Food Standards Report
4.3 On 27 June the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS) launched Our Food: An annual review of food standards across the UK, an in-depth review of our food standards. This assessment will be published annually, as part of our ongoing commitment to transparency and so that Members of the Senedd, trading partners and consumers at home and abroad, remain aware of the changes and challenges to our food system. A launch event was held in the Senedd on 6 July. 

5.    Consultations

5.1 Live Consultations:

• Call for Evidence: Use of recycled plastic, originating from ocean-bound/cycle schemes and similar environmental collection, in food contact material products – Consultation seeking evidence in relation to how business operators propose to, or currently, carry out their own risk assessment to determine the safe use of recycled plastic that has been sourced from the open environment (ocean, ‘ocean-bound’ or land), in Food Contact Material products.  

Launched: 21 March 2022  
Closing date: 20 September 2022.  
 

• Amendments to Retained Regulation 2019/1793: Controls Applied to Imported Food and Feed not of Animal Origin – Consultation on proposed routine amendments to Retained Regulation 2019/1793 which applies a temporary increase of official controls and special conditions governing the entry into Great Britain of certain food and feed of non-animal origin from certain countries. 

Launched: 14 April 2022  
Closing date: 7 July 2022.  
 

• Enhanced Investigatory Powers for the Food Standards Agency – Consultation on the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) plans to seek enhanced investigatory powers for the National Food Crime Unit (NFCU) by way of regulations. 

Launched: 26 May 2022  
Closing date: 18 August 2022.  
 

• Supply of Qurbani Meat and Offal during Eid al- Adha in England and Wales- Consultation on the chilling requirements changes of Qurbani meat and offal supplied from slaughterhouses in England and Wales during the period of Eid al-Adha. 

Launched: 22 June 2022 
Closing date: 11 September 2022. 

5.2 Forward look: 

• Defra, FSA and FSS plan to launch a single four country 12-week consultation on proposed changes to the Bread and Flour Regulations 1998 – planned for late summer / early autumn 2022. 
• The FSA intends to launch three, eight-week consultation on the other legitimate factors of the novel food and flavourings, GM and feed additive applications included in the second tranche of regulated product applications. The first of these consultations is expected to be launched late summer / early autumn 2022.   
• The FSA intends to launch a consultation on proposed legislation to address EU exit deficiencies to retained EU law in the areas of food and feed hygiene and safety. The consultation is expected to launch July 2022. 
• The local authority approved premises guidance has been updated to reflect the position now that we have left the EU, the model approval forms have also be revised. This will be published later this year.
• The FSA intend to launch a twelve-week consultation on the proposed amendments to the Feed Law Code of Practice and Feed Law Practice Guidance. The consultation is expected to be launched Autumn 2022.

Nathan Barnhouse
Director, FSA in Wales