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SINGAPORE: The government has assured Singaporeans that all food products here are safe for consumption, but it plans to set up a forensic unit to study possible sources of food contamination in the future.
National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan told reporters this after visiting a public health lab on Wednesday.
Channel NewsAsia understands that the forensic unit, under the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA), will likely be operational in one month. This comes on the back of the melamine scare, originating from China.
No one in Singapore has fallen ill from eating melamine-tainted products. But in China, four children have died and over 50,000 infants are sick from drinking melamine-laced infant formula.
Laboratory staff in Singapore have been working tirelessly since mid-September, testing about 100 samples every day. Mr Mah said Singapore has a very tight food security and safety system, but there is no guarantee that such a contamination will not happen again.
He said: "What we need to do is to strengthen our vigilance system. Meaning, not just depend on what we read but also perhaps our intelligence on the ground, with our overseas partners, and to strengthen our information gathering so that the chances of such things happening can be reduced. In other words, we keep our eyes and ears on the ground more."
Mr Mah added that it is impossible to test every single food product that comes into Singapore as this would require many more laboratories and manpower, which could eventually drive up food prices.
Presently, Singapore already conducts tests on more food samples compared to other countries.
Mr Mah said AVA has also spoken to 160 importers and manufacturers to withdraw their advertisements in the newspapers stating that their products do not contain milk ingredients from China and are safe for consumption as that has not been fully verified, and such advertisements confuse Singaporeans.
To date, Singapore has identified ten products which contain melamine that is used to make plastics. But the minister called on Singaporeans not to over-react.
"Being vigilant does not mean we go into a panic, so let's just stay calm. In a few months' time, hopefully we'll be able to complete the testing and sampling of all the various products and with discussion with our overseas partners, and also with the Chinese food authorities, we should be able to manage the situation," said Mr Mah.
So far, the authorities have tested 600 out of 1,000 products. Aside from milk and dairy items from China, they are also testing products from other countries like the US and even Singapore-made ones to give the public greater assurance that the food products sold here are safe for consumption.
- CNA/so
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