Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority (ADFCA), said the ADFCA's organisational efforts had resulted in a tangible drive to attain a high degree of food safety in the emirate. 

This came during a message from Shaikh Mansour on the occasion of the release of ADFCA's annual report of 2009.

"One of our principal objectives at this stage is to alter the widespread impression � shared by food distributors, owners and workers at outlets � that ADFCA's activities centred around imposing fines and punishments," said Shaikh Mansour.

"We have always stressed that our foremost concern is food safety for the consumers. The Authority, in fact, has been sincerely spreading awareness and sensitising people on the importance of food safety. We have been trying to make an impression upon our target audiences that we are trying to enhance the quality of their businesses by instilling in them the fine nuances of food-related laws in the country," he said.

Shaikh Mansour expressed hope that the report would offer a glimpse into successes and accomplishments in 2009. Shaikh Mansour also said that the ADFCA had, over the past five years, achieved substantial successes in its diverse fields of engagement and will pursue its ideals further in the years to come.

High point

"The decision to bring agriculture under ADFCA's purview as per Law No.9 of 2007 is a high point in the new stage. The Governing Board employs all its powers and resources to put the emirate on par with the best in the world in terms of the food safety standards followed here. The aim is to ensure that, internationally, ADFCA is among the most advanced and effective organisations in the field of food safety," he said.

"The purpose is to ensure placing Abu Dhabi on the map of the world's premier centres for research and development ," Shaikh Mansour added.

Gulf News, July 29, 2010