Food safety management law, passing the Diet session plenary session

Source: Ministry of Food and Drug Safety www.mfds.go.kr

 

□ The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (Commissioner: Seung Jeong) announced that 4 amended laws including the Framework Act on Food Safety which periodically reassessed food standards and standards reflecting environment and food dietary habit were passed the Assembly plenary session on April 29.

○ The amendment draft of the “Framework Act on Food Safety” sets the criteria and standard periodically as the exposure amount of harmful material can be changed according to the harmful material pollution level and food intake amount thanks to climate change, environmental change and food dietary habit change.

– As for re-evaluation, the hazardous material monitoring per food is carried out from 2015 onward to evaluate pollution level and hazardous level reflecting total intake change of food. In doing so, it is reflected to standard and criteria.

○ The amendment draft to the Act on Health Functional Foods and Livestock Hygiene Control Act introduces undue gain reimbursement system and lower limit of penalty system in the same manner as the Food Hygiene Act for the purpose of eradicating malicious and malicious food production.

–  If advertisement or mark is made to misunderstand or confuse illegal or harmful health food products and livestock products to have effect or efficacy for disease prevention or treatment in its manufacturing and sales, the penalty equivalent to the amount of sales to return the unfair advantage to recollect undue gain.

– In addition, if a person who violates this clause is sentenced to punishment with imprisonment or above, and if violation is repeatedly made within 5 years, the person can be punished with imprisonment for 1 year to 10 years and a fine up to 10 times of the sales amount can be imposed.

○ Furthermore, the Special Act on the Safety Management of Children’s Dietary Habits was revised so that the operation expenses of children’s preference food specialists supported by the Food Promotion Fund can be reliably supported in the national treasury.

– Currently, dedicated management members visit the cooking and selling places around the school in person and conduct activities to guide and manage hygienic and safe food to be cooked and sold.

□ MFDS remarked that this amendment will focus on reinforcing national safety on food by preparing a scientific basis for food safety management and by ensuring strict and fair law enforcement.