Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. (File)
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said food certification should be done only by government agencies and not by non-governmental organizations.
In a press conference, in response to a query to the Uttar Pradesh government banning the production, storage, distribution and sale of food products with halal certification, she said it is not appropriate for any organization other than the government to grant certification .
Food quality and food testing are essentially a government task. The government should do it. We have our Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI),” she said, adding that it is the government agencies that have to determine whether there are chemical additives, artificial or harmful colors and so on.
“They (government agencies) will have to have the authority to certify what constitutes quality food for people to consume. Non-governmental organizations doing this are not right, she said.
The Uttar Pradesh government on November 18 immediately banned the production, storage, distribution and sale of food products with halal certification, while exempting products manufactured for export.
In a statement, the state government alleged that there have been “malicious attempts” to discourage the use of products without halal certification in pursuit of “unfair financial benefits”, claiming that this is also part of a pre-planned strategy . to sow class hatred, create divisions in society and weaken the country ‘by ‘anti-national elements’.
Sitharaman was in the city to take part in polls for BJP candidates ahead of the November 30 Assembly elections.
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First print: November 21, 2023 | 10:34 PM IST