Agenda Item 4	Conference Room Document 37 English only

second fao/who global forum of food safety regulators

Bangkok, Thailand, 12-14 October 2004

Regulatory Roles Responsibilities and Structures - Issues for the Future New Zealand Food Regulatory Regime

(Prepared by New Zealand)

Introduction

The shape of the food safety regulator in any jurisdiction is dictated to greater or lesser degrees on a range of factors that includes the provision of related services (public health/communicable disease) and the levels of government already involved in delivery such as regional and local government. The New Zealand Food Safety Authority has identified a description of roles and responsibilities and identified factors that would need to be considered in guiding the future shape of the New Zealand food safety regulator. These are of a more general nature rather than New Zealand specific and are discussed in light of developments in this area worldwide.

Context

The roles and responsibilities of the regulator in the past have involved many of the following areas:

• the setter of standards and requirements
• systems audit
• registrations and approvals
• inspection of businesses
• enforcement
• food complaints
• emergency and recall response
• monitoring and surveillance
• verification that the relevant standards are being met
• education
• training.

In New Zealand, many of these roles have been undertaken at all regulator levels (central, regional and local) and in different ways both across and between levels. In the push for efficiency and effectiveness, these roles are being examined for continued appropriateness and rationalisation, in order to concentrate expertise and provide for clarity and consistency in application.

The problems faced by New Zealand are not unique. The most significant are:

Direct accountability

In a number of areas of government involvement in the food sector, accountability is direct. However, in other areas the accountability is indirect and at times several times removed. Experience and evaluation of government structures has shown that lengthy accountability chains can lead to:

• non-achievement or only partial achievement of government priorities or objectives
• redirection of resources to other areas where results may be more easily achieved, or where a problem is easier to identify or is more obvious (i.e. has a higher profile).

Consistency

Achieving a consistent, practical and efficient approach to food regulation in New Zealand is a major goal. Achieving consistency across 12 regional facilities and 74 local government authorities is important.

Coherence and seamlessness

A coherent and seamless food regulatory programme across New Zealand's food industries is important but is not achieved in a number of respects, producing inconsistent and inequitable effects on businesses. For example, businesses operating across more than one food regime must comply with multiple registrations and audits even for comparable issues.

Extent of support from central government

Central government's support for regional and local government food-safety efforts needs to be consistent.

Future roles and responsibilities

At the central government level, the specified role and functions are proposed to be:

• provide for food-related legislation to be national to the greatest extent possible thus avoiding the additional costs to industry of meeting different requirements in different regions
• administer all national food-related legislation, including reviewing and establishing policy, standards setting; and undertaking the science necessary to set standards and other requirements. This is intended to contribute to consistency and focus expertise and areas of excellence
• design and coordinate food safety and suitability implementation, application, education and training including coordinating recalls
• design and coordinate monitoring and surveillance programmes
• coordinate compliance operate systems audit
• undertake enforcement
• provide oversight of the services provided at a regional and local government level

It is not expected that inspection will remain a key activity although clearly a transition period for both industry and government in the shift from inspection to audit will be important.

At a regional level, in New Zealand's case, the expectation is that the working relationship with central government will be much closer and that there will be a greater sharing of the activities in all areas particularly in relation to implementation, education and training, recalls, monitoring and surveillance programmes and compliance and systems audit.

At a local government level, the proposal is to provide a single entry point for business so that in the main, registrations and some approvals, food complaints, assistance with emergencies and recalls and some audit, education delivery and monitoring is undertaken.

Criteria to apply in assessing structural options

Criteria that might be used to identify the best regulatory structure for the domestic food supply in New Zealand were developed to specifically to address a number of features sought in the New Zealand system of the future. Many of these would be common across countries and include:

• must deliver on food safety and suitability outcomes
• must be cost effective and efficient
• should provide a single point of contact for business and consumers as far as possible
• must promote consistency and equity
• must promote a seamless and coherent regulatory programme
• should remove duplication in roles, responsibilities and activities as far as possible
• must maximise the effectiveness of the resources available across New Zealand
• must provide clear lines of accountability and transparency of operation
• must provide accessibility and geographical spread across New Zealand
• must ensure competencies and capacity for delivery
• must maximise the connections and links among the communicable disease and public health outcomes required to be delivered
• must ensure ease and low cost of implementation and transition to any new regime.

Current status of developments

New Zealand is currently considering a number of structural options that deliver to a greater or lesser extent on the roles and responsibilities so the regulator. Depending on submissions, recommendations are expected to be with government in the first half of 2005 for implementation thereafter.