PROJECT ACTIVITIES
EU FSP project focuses on strengthening food safety and animal disease crisis preparedness in line with EU standards. Activities are designed to inform, assess, involve all key stakeholders—from farmers and food business operators to laboratories, local bodies, and the wider public.
Component I: Food Safety
1. Training and Awareness: We provide customised trainings, workshops, and consultations to raise awareness and build practical skills in food safety. Topics include among others:
- Food safety hazards and risks along the production and supply chain.
- Good hygiene practices, structural and operational requirements for dairy and meat establishments.
- Step-by-step preparation of HACCP plans.
- EU requirements for imports, use of veterinary medicines, antimicrobial resistance, and feed hygiene.
- Microbiological criteria, residues monitoring, animal disease surveillance, and integrated food safety data management.
- Topics relevant to food-chain safety incl. processed food of non-animal origin and composite food
These efforts are supported by study visits and tailored guidance materials.
2. Assessments and Analysis: We conduct in-depth assessments to map roles, responsibilities, and capacities in food hygiene and safety. This includes:
- Evaluating procedures, staffing levels and knowledge, and available resources.
- Assessing food establishments to identify gaps and propose tailored improvement plans.
- Reviewing HACCP systems, zoonosis monitoring, residue testing, and traceability practices.
- Exploring the introduction of farm certification and a milk channeling scheme allowing a controlled supply of milk from “certified” farms to designated milk processing establishments (taking into account EU standards on identification and registration, biosecurity, veterinary medicinal products usage and animal welfare).
3. Stakeholder Engagement and Support: EU FSP actively supports local bodies and businesses in:
- Developing and implementing monitoring and surveillance programmes for residues, Salmonella, TSEs, zoonosis, and antimicrobial resistance.
- Planning and implementing food safety checks, categorising establishments, and upgrading hygiene and HACCP practices.
- Establishing registers, audit plans, sampling protocols, and data management systems.
- Piloting innovative approaches such as a milk channeling system.
4. Monitoring and Communication: The EU FSP ensures continuous oversight and transparency by conducting independent monitoring of project outcomes and recommendations. Among the EU FSP activities is the establishment of the present online food safety platform to host resources, tools, and a register of all trainings delivered and facilitate the ongoing communication, data sharing, and knowledge exchange among stakeholders.
Component II: Animal Disease Crisis Preparedness
1. Building Capacity and Sharing Knowledge
- We deliver targeted training on EU legislation, animal disease prevention, farm hygiene, and crisis preparedness. Stakeholders also take part in workshops on surveillance, exotic disease risks, and public awareness campaigns about prevention and emergency response.
2. Strengthening Crisis Management
- Current contingency plans and manuals are reviewed and upgraded. Human and material resources are assessed, and practical solutions are proposed to reinforce response capacities.
3. Simulation Exercises
- To ensure crisis preparedness, simulation exercises are organised. These test the suitability of contingency plans, identify gaps, and allow for continuous improvement of crisis response mechanisms.
Cross-Cutting Activities
The project also addresses broader issues that affect both food safety and animal health:
- Risk assessments on the introduction of major animal diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease.
- Development of an interactive data information system for disease surveillance.
- Evaluation of equipment and consumable needs to align with EU standards.
- Drafting a general crisis management plan for food and feed safety.
- Foster collaboration with EU and OIE reference laboratories, including participation in proficiency testing schemes.