QUALITY OF FOOD:

Food quality is the quality characteristics of food that is acceptable to consumers.

This includes external factors as appearance (size, shape, colour, gloss, and
consistency), texture, and flavour; factors such as federal grade standards (e.g.
of eggs) and internal (chemical, physical, microbial)

Food quality is an important food manufacturing requirement, because food

consumers are susceptible to any form of contamination that may occur during the
manufacturing process.

Food quality in the United States is enforced by the Food Safety Act 1990. Members of
the public complain to trading standards professionals, who submit complaint
samples and also samples used to routinely monitor the food marketplace to Public
Analysts. Public Analysts carry out scientific analysis on the samples to determine
whether the quality is of sufficient standard.

Besides ingredient quality, there are also sanitation requirements. It is important to

ensure that the food processing environment is as clean as possible in order to
produce the safest possible food for the consumer. A recent example of poor
sanitation recently has been the 2006 North American E. coli outbreak
involving spinach, an outbreak that is still under investigation after new information
has come to light regarding the involvement of Cambodian nationals
Food quality also deals with product traceability. It also deals
with labeling issues to ensure there is correct ingredient and nutritional
information.

There are many existing international quality institutes testing food

products in order to indicate to all consumers which are higher quality
products. Founded in 1961 in Brussels, The international quality
institute Monde Selection is the oldest one in evaluating food quality
From farm To fork

Sale of Sale of food

commodities Manufacturin
product
Agriculture / raw material g packaging
local, of food
import
production
national, products wholesale
international retail trade

Stakeholder’s responsibility for food and quality

GAP GDP GMP GDP

GHP (eg. HACCP)

GAP: GOOD AGRICULTURE PRACTICES GDP: GOOD DISTRIBUTION PRACTICES
GMP: GOOD MANUFACTURING PRACTICES GHP: GOOD HYGIENE PRACTICES
HACCP: HAZARD ANALYSIS CRITICAL CONTROL POINT
INTRODUCTION:

• The Bureau of Indian Standards, empowered through a legislative Act

of the Indian Parliament, known as the Bureau of Indian Standards
Act, 1986, operates a product certification scheme, and has till date
granted more than 30,000 licenses to manufacturers covering
practically every industrial discipline from Agriculture to Textiles to
Electronics. The certification allows the licensees to use the
popular ISI Mark

• The Bureau's predecessor, the Indian Standards Institution began

operating the product certification Scheme in 1955. Presently more
than 19000 licenses are in operation covering about 1000 products
OPERATING PRINCIPLE

• BIS product certification scheme operates in an impartial, non

discriminatory and transparent manner

• Procedure for operating a license are given in another document called

the scheme of testing and inspection (sti)

• Certification advisory committee: reviews the performance of the

scheme and advises on key policy issues. Composed of persons from
varied sectors like manufacturers, consumers, government agencies,
industries associations.

• 'Additional director general (marks)' is responsible for ensuring that the

scheme operates within the framework of rules and procedures
established.
POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE BUREAU

• Grant, renew, suspend or cancel a license for the use of the standard
mark

• Levy fees for the grant or renewal of any license

• Makes inspection

• Establish, maintain and recognize laboratories

• Appoint agents in India or outside India for the inspection, testing and
such other purposes as may be prescribed

• Establish branches, offices or agencies in India or outside

CERTIFICATION SYSTEM

BASED ON ISO GUIDE 28

All BIS certifications are carried out in accordance with Indian Standards

TYPES OF LICENSING

BIS continues to grant licenses on application, the enforcement of

compulsory certification is done by the notified authorities

• Special certification schemes

• Lot inspection scheme.

• BIS Foreign Manufacturers Scheme and Indian Importers Scheme.:

This is for Overseas applicants and Indian Importers
OPERATIONAL AREAS

• Textiles
• Chemicals and Pesticides
• Rubber and Plastic products
• Cement and concrete products
• Building materials
• Pumping, irrigation, drainage and sewage equipment
• Pipes and fittings for water supply
• Basic metals and fabricated metal products
• Machinery and equipment
• Electrical, electronics and optical equipment
• Automotive components
• Agriculture, food and tobaccos
• Black tea and beverages
• Packaged drinking water and Natural mineral water
• Leather products
• Wood products
• Paper and pulp products
• Testing instruments
PROCEDURE FOR GRANT OF BIS LICENCE FOR DOMESTIC
MANUFACTURERS

Normal Procedure : In this the applicant is required to submit the filled in application
along with required documents and requisite fee to the nearest BIS branch office.
Subsequently, after recording of the application, a preliminary factory evaluation is
carried out by BIS officer to ascertain the capability of the applicant/manufacturer to
produce goods according to the relevant Indian Standard and to verify the availability of
complete testing facility and competent technical personnel. Samples are tested in the
factory and also drawn for independent testing. Grant of licence is considered by BIS
provided the samples pass during independent testing, preliminary evaluation is
satisfactory and the applicant agrees to operate the defined Scheme of Testing &
Inspection and pay the prescribed marking fee
Simplified Procedure: In the simplified procedure, applicant is required to furnish the test
report(s) of the sample(s) got tested by him in the BIS approved laboratories, along with
the application. If the test report(s) and other documents are found satisfactory, a
verification visit is carried out by BIS. The licence is granted thereafter if the verification
report is found satisfactory. The applicant also has the option to get the documents and
other details as specified in the application, certified by a Chartered Engineer and submit
the same to BIS. The licence then shall be granted after scrutiny of the documents and
report submitted by Chartered Engineer. By this procedure the licence is expected to be
granted within 30 days of receipt of application by BIS, provided all required documents
are furnished and found satisfactory
ASSOCIATION WITH INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS BODIES

BIS is a founder member of International Organization for Standardization

(ISO)

It represents India in ISO,

the International Electro technical Commission (IEC),
the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and
the World Standards Service Network (WSSN)

STANDARD FORMULATION & PROMOTION

Major functions of the Bureau is the formulation, recognition and

promotion of the Indian Standards

LABORATORIES

To support the activities of product certification, BIS has a chain of 8

laboratories. Approximately, 25000 samples are being tested in the BIS
laboratories every year.
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM CERTIFICATION

Quality Management System Certification Scheme IS/ISO 9001

Environmental Management System Certification Scheme IS/ISO 14001
Occupational Health and Safety Management System Certification Scheme IS
18001
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Scheme IS/ISO 22000
Service Quality Management System Certification Scheme IS 15700

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TRAINING FOR STANDARDIZATION (NITS)

It is a training institute of BIS which is set up in 1995. It is functioning from

Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India.

The primary activities of NITS are:-

In-House and Open Training Programme for Industry
International Training Programme for Developing Countries (commonwealth
countries)
Training Programme to its employees
GRIEVANCE CELL

If any customer reports about the degraded quality of any certified

product at Grievance Cell, BIS HQs, BIS gives redressal to the customer.

SMALL SCALE INDUSTRY FACILITATION CELL

SSI Facilitation Cell became operational since 26 May 1997. The aim of
the Cell is to assist the small scale entrepreneurs who are backbone of
the Indian industry.

It has an incentive scheme to promote such units to get certified with ISI
Mark
AGMARK

• Agmark began operations in 1977 as a commodities brokerage firm

is certification mark employed on agricultural products in India

• The term agmark was coined by joining the words 'Ag' to mean agriculture and
'mark' for a certification mark

• FOLLOWS set of standards approved by the Directorate of Marketing and

Inspection

• The AGMARK is legally enforced in India by the Agricultural Produce (Grading

and Marking) Act of 1937

AGMARK LABORATORIES

• Agmark certification is employed through fully state-owned agmark

laboratories located across the nation which act as testing and
certifying centres

• There are regional agmark laboratories

• Regional laboratories is equipped with and specializes in the testing of

products of regional significance
In addition to the central AGMARK laboratory (CAL) in nagpur, there
are regional AGMARK laboratories (RALS) in 11 nodal cities
(mumbai, newdelhi, chennai, kolkatta, kanpur, kochi, guntur, amritsar,
jaipur, rajkot, bhopal)

COMMODITIES AND TESTS

Testing done across these laboratories include

• Chemical analysis, microbiological analysis, pesticide residue,

and aflatoxin analysis on whole spices, ground spices, oil cake,
essential oil, oils and fats, animal casings, meat and food products

• Vegetable oils

• Foodgrains

• Seed
Hides, skins, Goat Hair, Animal Casings, Bristles, Wool, Raw meat
(chilled and frozen), Handpicked selected groundnuts, Cashew Kernels,
Ambadi seeds, Rape and mustard seeds, Taramira seeds, Groundnuts,
Walnuts, Vegetable oil cakes, Ghee, Vanaspati Creamery butter,
Essential oils, Vegetable oils, Tobacco, Bura, Sugarcane, Gur (Jaggery),
Lac, Arecanuts, Myrobalans, Tendu (Bidiwrapper Leaves), Senna
Leaves and pods. Tapioca products (Animals feed) Table Eggs, Honey,
Seed less Tarmarind, Daried Edible Mushrooms, Saffron, Sheekakai
powder, Kangra Tea, Agar Agar, Papain, Rice, Wheat Atta, Puhes,
Cercals, Besan (Gramflour), Basmati Rice (Export), Suji and Maida,
Grapes, Apples, Alphonso Mangoes-Export, Plants, Alphonso Mangoes
Homeconsumption, Canned, Bottled fruits and fruit products citrus,
Table potatoes, William Pears, Kanchan (Bathua), Mangoes, Home
consumption, Seed potatoes, Table potatoes Table potatoes (Export),
Water chestnuts. Coconuts, Curry Powder, Chillies, Cardamom,
Coriander, Garlic, Ginger, Onions, Chillies powder, Poppy seeds,
Turmeric, Pennel, Fenugreek and Clery seeds Cumin seeds, Pepper,
Ajowain Seeds, (Whole), Sannhemp, Palmyra Fibres, Cotton, Aloe
Fibres, Jute.and other products.
REQUIREMENT OF AGMARK APPLICATION PROCEEDINGS
Copy of test report(s), duly authenticated, from independent Agmark
recognized laboratory.
• Document authenticating establishment of the firm, such as Registration
by Company Registrar
• State Authority or Memorandum of Article in case Applicant Firm is a
Limited Company
• Partnership Deed in case the applicant firm is under Partnership.
• Name of the products .
• Name of the applicant
• Name of the Firm/ Company
• Address of the Firm/ Company
• Sample of the product (in pouch of 500gm or 1kg )
• Starting Time period of product(specify exact Date/Month/year)
• Total gross product in K.g.(for last year) and Turnover of last year
SPECIFICATION OF PADDY UNDER AGMARK:

Grade Specification (quality) of paddy.

A) General characteristics :
Paddy shall:-
a) be the dried mature grains (with husk) of Oryza sativa L.;
b) have uniform size, shape and colour;
c) be hard, clean, wholesome and free from moulds, weevils,
obnoxious smell, discolouration, admixture of deleterious substances
and all other impurities except to the extent indicated in the under
special characteristics;
d) be in sound merchantable condition; and
e) not have moisture exceeding 14 percent.
B) Special characteristics :
Grade Maximum limit of tolerance
Foreign matter Admixture Damaged, immature, weevilled
designation
(% by wt.) (% by wt.) (% by wt.)
I 1.0 5.0 1.0
II 2.0 10.0 2.0
III 4.0 15.0 5.0
IV 7.0 30.0 10.0
C) DEFINITIONS :

• Foreign - It includes dust, stone, lumps of earth, chaff, stem or

straw and any other matter Impurities

• In case of admixture of other foodgrains in paddy, 0.5 percent of other

foodgrains shall be treated as free tolerance and any thing above 0.5
percent shall be treated as foreign matter
Admixture - Presence of inferior varieties shall be considered
admixture

• Damaged- Grains that are internally damaged or discoloured, damage

and discolouration materially affecting the quality. The proportion of
damaged grains shall not exceed 5.0 percent for grade IV

• Immature - Grains that are not properly developed.

• Weevilled - Grains that are partially or wholly bored or eaten by

weevil or other grain insects.
FOOD SAFETY AND STANDARDS AUTHORITY OF INDIA (FSSAI)

• It has been established under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 which
consolidates various acts & orders that have handled food related issues in
various Ministries and Departments.

• FSSAI has been created for laying down science based standards for articles of
food and to regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to
ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption.

Highlights of the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006

• Various central Acts like Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 , Fruit
Products Order , 1955, Meat Food Products Order , 1973, Vegetable Oil Products
(Control) Order, 1947,Edible Oils Packaging (Regulation)Order 1988, Solvent
Extracted Oil, De- Oiled Meal and Edible Flour (Control) Order, 1967, Milk and
Milk Products Order, 1992 etc will be repealed after commencement of FSS Act,
2006

• The Act also aims to establish a single reference point for all matters relating to
food safety and standards, by moving from multi- level, multi- departmental
control to a single line of command. To this effect, the Act establishes an
independent statutory Authority the Food Safety and Standards Authority of
India with head office at Delhi
FSSAI HAS BEEN MANDATED BY THE FSS ACT, 2006 FOR PERFORMING
THE FOLLOWING FUNCTIONS:

• Framing of Regulations to lay down the Standards and guidelines in relation to articles
of food and specifying appropriate system of enforcing various standards thus notified.
• Laying down mechanisms and guidelines for accreditation of certification bodies
engaged in certification of food safety management system for food businesses.
• Laying down procedure and guidelines for accreditation of laboratories and notification
of the accredited laboratories.
• To provide scientific advice and technical support to Central Government and State
Governments in the matters of framing the policy and rules in areas which have a direct
or indirect bearing of food safety and nutrition .
• Collect and collate data regarding food consumption, incidence and prevalence of
biological risk, contaminants in food, residues of various, contaminants in foods products,
identification of emerging risks and introduction of rapid alert system.
• Creating an information network across the country so that the public, consumers,
Panchayats etc receive rapid, reliable and objective information about food safety and
issues of concern.
• Provide training programmes for persons who are involved or intend to get involved in
food businesses.
• Contribute to the development of international technical standards for food, sanitary
and phyto-sanitary standards.
• Promote general awareness about food safety and food standards
ISO 9000
What is ISO 9000?
• ISO 9000 is a set of standards and criteria regarding quality control for
companies specializing in manufacturing and services. Its purpose is to
provide a means for a company to demonstrate a commitment to quality to
their customers.

• The International Standards Organization represents 140 countries around

the globe.

• The Organization was founded in 1947 as a non-governmental organization

to promote the development of standards in quality.

• The ISO 9000 standards were introduced in 1987.

• The presence of ISO can be seen in our lives every day. The consistency in
dimensions of products such as cassette tapes and credit cards are the
result of ISO standards. These standards are necessary to insure quality
products that serve their purpose.

• Most ISO standards are measurement oriented and consist of dimensions.

OBTAINING ISO CERTIFICATION

The initial step for obtaining the ISO certification is to have an in-depth analysis of the
company’s own quality procedures and compare them to the ISO 9000 standards. If
the company’s procedures and job training are poorly documented and there is proof
of poor communication with management, then compliance to ISO 9000 standards will
be very difficult to obtain (Emporia).

Next, an external consultant is hired to assess the original procedures and take the
necessary steps to conform them to ISO 9000 standards. To ensure that these
measures are kept, a quality assurance program is created and implemented. This will
often require some description of the system, evaluation of new training needs,
calibration of equipment, and a corrective/preventive system to stop recurring
problems.

The assessment process is the next step, which involves a system of audits by a third
party. This involves inspection of the organization, documentation, employees, and
their knowledge of the quality system.

Finally, a third party registration agency will issue certification, assuming the
company complies with the standard of ISO 9000. The ISO 9000 certificate will usually
expire after three years which forces companies to annually audit their processes
The cost of obtaining an ISO certification will vary from among
companies. An estimate of the implementation cost can be found by
brining into account factors such as

· Employee size
· Multiple locations
· Degree of “closeness” to ISO 9000 standards
· Needed steps to re-engineer quality procedures (Cost)
ISO 9000 VARIATIONS

Although many companies strive to attain ISO 9000 certification, there are
many different ISO certifications available. ISO 9002 1994, ISO 9003 1994,
and ISO 9001 are just a few variations of ISO program that tailor to the
individual quality needs of competitive companies.

The differences in versions relate to various tasks a company performs.

The 9001 version covers requirements for businesses whose operations
include the entire production process, from design through manufacturing
to service. ISO 9002 is aimed toward a company that does not design its
product. This version mirrors 9001, except that the design requirements are
excluded.

The most popular upgrade from ISO 9000 is ISO 9001, which has now made
9002 and 9003 obsolete.

ISO 9000 can be described as a “plant standard,” while ISO 9001 can be
though of as an “enterprise standard,” with the addition of management
principles
The following are examples of the new management principles required to
become ISO 9001 certified: (Praxiom, 2001)

• Support quality
• Promote the importance of quality
• Develop a quality management system
• Implement your quality management system
• Improve your quality management system
• Define responsibilities and authorities
• Appoint management representative
• Support internal communications
• Perform management reviews
• Review quality management system
• Examine management review inputs
• Generate management review outputs
• Provide quality personnel
• Use competent personnel
• Support competence
• Control realization planning
• Plan product realization processes
• Develop product realization processes

To get ISO 9001 certification, a third party auditor must “conduct an on-
site audit of a company’s operations against the requirements of the
appropriate standard” (ASQ, 2001). Once certification is attained, the
company receives a registration certificate that their quality system is in
compliance with ISO 9001. This process is similar to the certification
program for ISO 9000
ISO AND FOOD:

ISO food standards create confidence in the products we eat and drink

ISO food standards provide benefits for all participants in the supply chain,
from farm to transportation and logistics, from manufacturing to retailing
and services, from consumers to regulators and analytical laboratories

ISO brings all stakeholders on board to share best practice, promote state-
of-the-art technology, and ensure safety and quality

ISO STANDARDS FOR FOOD:

From agricultural machinery to logistics, from transportation to

manufacturing, from quality and safety to management and traceability,
from labeling and packaging to storage – ISO standards cover every step
of the food and feed supply chain. Some 1 000* ISO standards out of a
current total of some 19 000* are specifically dedicated to food, most of
them developed by the following technical committees (TCs)
• Food products (ISO/TC 34) – Covers the food and feed chain from
primary production to consumption for practically all products, from
cereals to coffee, from spices to milk and cheese. Nearly 800* standards
provide terminology, tests, analysis and sampling methods (including
for sensory analysis), product specifications, quality management and
requirements for packaging, storage and transportation for food and
animal feed. Its recent work addresses food irradiation, detection of
genetically modified organisms and molecular biomarkers.

• Essential oils (ISO/TC 54) – Focuses on essential oils used in food

products, perfumes, cosmetics, phytotherapy, aromatherapy, and so on.

• Its more than 120* ISO standards help ensure quality in testing,
transport, labeling, nomenclature, terminology etc.

• Starch and its by-products (ISO/TC 93) –Found in foods like potatoes,
maize and wheat, starch provides about half of the world’s daily calorie
intake, and its extraction is one of the most important agro-industries
worldwide. ISO standards provide valuable methods of analysis for the
industry.
Fisheries and aquaculture (ISO/TC 234) – Aims to promote sustainable
development of the sector ; outline specifications for technical
equipment adapted to local environments ; improve surveillance and
management of marine resources ; generate international agreement
on terminology and sampling methods ; and ensure safety. Examples
of standards under development include environmental monitoring of
the seabed impacts from finfish farms (ISO 12878) and methods for
calculating fish-in/fish-out ratios (ISO 16566).

Melamine and milk

In 2008, a number of children died and many became seriously ill after
drinking milk contaminated by melamine. In response to this crisis,
ISO and the International Dairy Federation prepared technical
specification ISO/TS 15495, which provides a robust internationally
recognized means for regulatory authorities, Manufacturers and
producers to determine the presence of melamine, in order to ensure
the integrity and safety of milk products and prevent future incidents.
WHO BENEFITS FROM ISO STANDARDS ?

Industry : Farmers, manufacturers, retailers and service providers

benefit from not having to comply with multiple specifications and
requirements for different markets. ISO standards make industry more
competitive and promote global trade. They disseminate best practice
and innovations so that industry does not need to reinvent the wheel,
while at the same time facilitating market access to the latest
technologies.

Regulators : Regulators can rely on trusted internationally harmonized

solutions, which are continually reviewed and improved, as a technical
basis for market-friendly regulations that meet the expectations of
citizens.

Consumers : ISO standards ensure the safety and quality of products

to protect consumers worldwide. They address issues of concern to
consumers such as nutritional value, labeling and declaration, taste,
hygiene, genetically modified organisms, limits on additives,
pesticides, contaminants, and so on.
ISO’S PARTNERS

The development of International Standards cannot take place in

isolation. The value of ISO standards relies heavily on its multistake
holder approach, which consolidates contributions from industry,
government, research, academia, international organizations and NGOs
representing all stakeholders including consumers and small
businesses.

ISO works closely with key organizations for the food industry such as
the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), the Food and Agriculture
Organization, the Global Food Safety Initiative, the International Dairy
Federation, and the World Health Organization.

ISO’s observer status to the CAC provides an opportunity for the

coordination of issues related to a variety of ISO standards that are
adopted and used by Codex in its work. ISO also has observer status at
the World Trade Organization’s Committee on Technical Barriers to
Trade and Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures.