FoodSHAP® Events

FoodSHAP® is now ISO/IEC 17020:2012 Accredited for Food Safety Inspection by DTI-PAB. FoodSHAP® was assessed last November 25-26, 2019 by the Philippine Accreditation Bureau (PAB), complying with the requirements of the certification such as competence, impartiality, and consistency. The certificate issued on January 21, 2020 is valid for four years (2025) provided that FoodSHAP® adheres to the requirements and standards of PAB. The International Organization for Standardization 17020 (ISO 17020) or the General Criteria for the Operation of Various Types of Bodies Performing Inspection is an internationally recognized standard for the competence of inspection bodies. As of today, FoodSHAP® Food Inspection Service is the first inspection body for food safety in the Philippines under ISO/IEC 17020:2012 accredited by the Department of Trade and Industry’s Philippine Accreditation Bureau to issue certificate of inspection for food establishments demonstrating strict compliance to food safety, hygiene, and sanitation standards. Before the certification, the Philippine Accreditation Bureau assessed the inspection team and personnel through a series of interview on the company’s policies and their respective roles. An actual inspection by FoodSHAP®’s Inspection Team was also observed by PAB. The Philippine Accreditation Bureau (PAB) earned its signatory status for Asia Pacific Accreditation Cooperation (APAC-MRA) for the scheme on ISO 22000 – Food Safety Management System on 21 February 2019. By virtue of Executive Order 802 PAB as the national accreditation body that accredits inspection bodies, certification bodies, testing and certification laboratories and other bodies offering conformity assessment services. As of December 2019, PAB has accredited a total of 248 conformity assessment bodies comprised of 170 testing laboratories, 46 calibration laboratories, 6 medical laboratories, 8 inspection bodies and 18 certification bodies. (Source: Philippine Accreditation Bureau)

FoodSHAP® Food Inspection Division conducts its first Food Safety Risk-based Inspection for Catering/Retail with The Bellevue Manila (FB: @thebellevuemanila) . The Food Inspection Division conducted a complete scope of inspection from purchasing to serving of food and beverage; this includes The Bellevue Manila’s food and beverage outlets such as Pastry Corner (coffee shop), Café D’ Asie (International Buffet), Phoenix Court (Chinese Cuisine), Hatsune (Japanese Cuisine), Vue Bar, in-room dining, outside catering, and banqueting. FoodSHAP® Food Inspection Division was founded with the goal of reaching out to food establishments, hotels, and resorts in establishing the implementation of food safety requirements in compliance to RA 10611 or the Food Safety Act of 2013, PD 856 or the Code on Sanitation of the Philippines and International Standards based on Codex Alimentarius. FoodSHAP® believes that it is also important to bring out the confidence and competency of our food business owners and food handlers through identification and assessment of effectivity of the existing safety measures for continual improvement. FoodSHAP® Food Inspection Division caters to those who are concerned in applying a positive food safety culture in their establishment such as hotels, resorts, restaurants, bars, fast food chains, canteens, supermarkets, convenience stores, hospitals, nursing homes, and more. For more information regarding the food safety inspection services, you may contact us through inspection@foodshap.com.

The Philippine Women’s University School of Food Science and Technology houses exemplary students with knowledge on food safety management and food technology. The graduate students of the School organized a research colloquium last September 24, 2019 inside the University’s Conrado Benitez Hall with the theme “Global Trends in Food Safety and Quality Management”. The seminar aimed to further share the knowledge and expertise of PWU’s Food Safety Advocates and Food Scientists to other sectors of the food industry such as Food Business Owners, Food Safety Professionals, students, SMEs, and other interested individuals. The whole day research seminar is filled with professionals that shared different topics ranging from food manufacturing, processing, catering, and retail—all with the goal of presenting solutions to problems arising in the food industry. Attendees surely learned something new as the seminar composed of discussions, video presentations, and a forum to answer the guests’ concerns. Booths were also set-up outside Philippine Women’s University Conrado Benitez Hall for sponsors to exhibit their businesses. Food Safety and Hygiene of the Philippines is one of the sponsors of the colloquium. For the afternoon session of the seminar, FoodSHAP® Vice President for Training and Program Development Mr. Glenn Hyde Dela Cruz presented a 40-minute talk with the topic “Food Safety Control: Proactive and Reactive Approaches to Food Service Establishments (Hotels, Restaurants, and Catering Establishments)”. The discussion focused on the global food safety concerns in hotels, restaurants, and catering highlighting the prevalence of food borne disease outbreaks backed up with the analysis by the Epidemiology Bureau of the Department of Health. Mr. Dela Cruz also discussed the challenges and issues on food safety implementation and how to prevent it through the elements of Food Safety Management System. He also mentioned the importance of complying with the legal requirements in the country—the PD 856 or Code on Sanitation of the Philippines and RA 10611 or the Food Safety Act of 2013. Other subtopics discussed were the Universal Risk Factors and Risk-based Inspection, Behavior-based Food Safety Management System, Effect of Social Media on your Food Business, Handling Food Safety Related Customer Complaints, and Food Safety Investigation. At the end of his talk, the FoodSHAP® Vice President concluded that food poisoning in establishments can be reduced by having a good food safety management system and implementing good hygiene and food safety practices in the kitchen.

Food Safety plays a vital role in our daily lives. People need food to survive, so it is a must that the food we prepare and serve is safe to avoid illnesses. Nowadays, most people often forget the importance of food safety. We seem to value the appearance of food rather than ensuring its safety. Although other social issues become prevalent in the world and the country, the number of cases of foodborne illnesses is still alarming. To highlight the importance of Food Safety, the World Health Organization (WHO) and Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations organized a day where people can celebrate the importance of food safety. Every 7th of June, every member of the United Nations celebrate World Food Safety Day. The theme for the first World Food Safety Day is “Food Safety is everyone’s business”. It highlights the importance of food handling in all stages—from purchasing, receiving, storing, preparing, cooking, and up to serving. The celebration calls for everybody. Government officials, producers, business operators, and even consumers should take responsibility to ensure that every food served is safe and fit for consumption. Food Safety and Hygiene Academy of the Philippines gladly participated in the celebration by doing their part in the awareness of food safety around the Philippines. The institution traversed on the different groups that cover the parts of the flow of food. The following are the events where FoodSHAP® celebrated World Food Safety Day 2019: June 7, 2019 –Grow it safe – Agriculture and food producers need to adopt good practices. The first step to having safe food is by proper production. Animals and harvests must first be taken care of properly. Good hygiene must be observed. It is through our food producers that we ensure that our food will be safe to eat. They must follow good agricultural practices to manufacture products that are free from danger to avoid food poisoning. FoodSHAP® conducted a farm visit and had an orientation on Good Agricultural Practices with the Central Visayas Food Safety Technical Working Group. Some of the activities prepared were the inspection of agricultural farms and a field trip to some facilities handling fresh produce. June 17, 2019 –Food Safety is a shared responsibility. Consumers have the right to purchase safe food. This entails a duty to prepare food safely. Majority of foodborne illnesses might come from food establishments but there is also a large number of people who suffered from foodborne illnesses from home-cooked food. As food safety is everyone’s responsibility, each one of us must learn how to prepare food safely. The knowledge to ensure the safety of food is essential in avoiding foodborne illnesses. FoodSHAP® presented FoodSHAP® Moms, a community-based workshop training for parents. It was conducted in the Sacred Heart Parish Shrine in Quezon City. Attendees experienced interactive learning on the Basic Foundations of Food Safety to help them prepare a hazard-free food at home. World Food Safety is only done once a year. Always remember to ensure food safety every day!

Food lovers unite! One of the most celebrated Food & Beverage events here in the country is the Manila Food and Beverage Expo (MAFBEX). With over 500 booths to visit and 9 event highlights to bask in, the expo surely is a paradise to the food industry and food enthusiasts as well. Every June, MAFBEX can be found at the World Trade Center Metro Manila Building, Pasay. Aside from the entertaining cooking and product demos, competitions, franchising opportunities, and food fairs, MAFBEX also offers an event highlight for those who want to learn more on the industry. MAFBEX Seminars are organized by the Worldbex International Organization and De La Salle – College of Saint Benilde’s Young Hotelier’s Exposition. The seminars are free of charge. It covers a wide array of topics that are relevant to the food industry. The Food Safety and Hygiene Academy of the Philippines proudly participates in the 2019 MAFBEX Seminar. FoodSHAP® Vice President for Training and Program Development Mr. Glenn Hyde Dela Cruz conducted a seminar and talked about Handling Food Safety Related Complaints in Food Service Establishments. The seminar guides food service establishments on how they would handle food safety related complaints by customers. Included in the topic is the statistics of foodborne disease outbreak in the Philippines as well as the places of food poisoning, common signs and symptoms, and risk factors. The speaker also talked about the challenges and issues on Food Safety Implementation in Food Service Establishments and the impact of social media in the fast spread of news on food poisoning incidents. The highlight of the topic is the proper handling of complaints of customers, the use of incubation period-based interview in identifying food poisoning cases, and the root-cause analysis and investigation for continual improvements of food service establishments.