In September 2021, a Tahini factory located in Lebanon needs to be removed from the automatic detention list due to the presence of Salmonella during exporting Halawa and Tahini products to US. MEFOSA provided HACCP consultation to the factory in order to help them in updating their FSMA plan. The procedure included consultation on FSMA and HACCP implementation, auditing and implementing Salmonella detection protocol, addressing corrective actions and refilling as per FSMA requirements. The worthy progress in this project was after contacting FDA regulatory office affairs, which indicated that the FDA’s inspection that was being conducted was for the FSVP Importer not their factory, since FSVP (foreign supplier verification form) is one of the requirements of FSMA rule which requires the importers in the United States to verify their foreign suppliers follow food safety standards equivalent to the standards established by the FDA. FSMA plan of the products in the factory need to be updated to meet the requirements of FDA.

On the other hand, MEOFSA is a member of Global Harmonization Initiative GHI. The Global Harmonization Initiative (GHI) is the international non-profit network of individual scientists and scientific organizations working together to promote harmonization of global food safety regulations and legislation. We have participated in several virtual meetings organized by GHI concerning MENA region in food safety, risk assessment.

SPC department/ project officer

Rim El-Khatib