AUV crisis: Inspective endangers food safety

The Food and Veterinary Agency made it clear that it is failing to fulfil the legal mandate for controlling food products, due to the inspectors' gross lack.

The agency's spokesman, Lamir Thaci, in an interview for the EO says the situation is urgent and requires immediate interference by institutions for adopting new positions, otherwise food safety and citizens' health are seriously jeopardised.

According to him, despite continued demands run by state institutions for approval of new positions, no formal approval has yet been received.

We are currently in an emergency situation to increase the number of inspectors because there are regions that are only covered by one-two inspectors, and this is highly insufficient because of the complexity it has and the mandate, and the agency that directly relates to the life and health of citizens, plant health and animal health. It's urgent that we recruit new staff. We've filed ongoing requests to other state institutions and mechanisms that have to make the permission and approval of these positions and so far we haven't received. We hope that as soon as the inspectors are hired so we can fulfil our legal mandate. Imagine we have to control all the slaughterhouses all the time that they have to slaughter and also the same inspectors have to control all the processing factories and packing all the products of animal origin. And at the same time, even selling points or markets for all these <x1 products, he said.

He added that, although by law the creation of the new food security inspectors has so far not been recruited by an inspector in this profile.

In lack of sufficient framework, AUV is being supported by inspectors from other sectors a practice Thaci considers insufficient.

The “on the other side is by law defined to create a new body that inspectors will be called food security inspectors who have so far not been recruited or employed in this area. We're relying on other inspectors such as the Sanitary Inspectorate within the Ministry of Health. But that is insufficient for us to succeed in fulfilling our legal mandate, that at any time products that come out on the market should be controlled and meet all the legal security criteria. So we demand that as soon as possible be offered opportunities for us to recruit new staff that will be in service of our customers”, he said.

According to Thaci, about 70 inspectors are in office, but a considerable part of them are engaged at border and customs points, where the situation is being kept under control. His biggest problems are in internal control, where there is a lack of resources for inspection of products, as required by law.

He estimated it is urgent to increase the number of inspectors in the phytosanitary, veterinarian sector, as well as to recruit 20 to 30 inspectors specialising solely for food safety and control of ready products on the market.