23 February 2005 - Since 1 May 2004, the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (CAFIA) has a number of new competencies and obligations relating to them, with respect to accession of the Czech Republic to the European Communities.
The principal task since the accession is above all to protect the European single market against unsafe and some problematical foodstuffs of non-animal origin that originate in third countries and that were imported to the European Union through the Czech Republic. Particular new obligations that now pertain to the CAFIA are, for example, inspection of irradiated foodstuffs, involvement in the nationwide Radiation Monitoring Network, extended competencies in wine and wine products inspections and in inspections of cut flowers. Moreover, last year these duties included also checks of data notifying stocks of certain commodities. Furthermore, on 1 May 2004 the CAFIA became the official National Contact Point for the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) in the Czech Republic.
Despite sensible growth of new obligations, the CAFIA inspectors were carrying out regular inspections in 2004 and the CAFIA was monitoring adherence both to microbiological requirements for foodstuffs and to requirements for content of contaminants in foodstuffs. The CAFIA was also checking adherence to intellectual property rights.
In the course of last year, the CAFIA inspectors checked a total of 23076 producers, importers, warehouses, and retails and identified 4310 non-complying samples of foodstuffs. The CAFIA also investigated suggestions for inspections the number of which constantly increases (there were 1668 suggestions for inspection in 2004, which is by 219 more than in previous year), which gives evidence of consumers´ growing interest.
The CAFIA experts were nominated to the EU working groups and committees. As one of the first from among the new Member States, two CAFIA experts were chosen to participate in the FVO (Food and Veterinary Office) missions to Poland and to Rumania. On the other hand, there were FVO missions to the Czech Republic concerning the CAFIA activities. The results of these inspections showed that the CAFIA had successfully addressed its new tasks.
This list of tasks and obligations the CAFIA accomplishes is far from being complete. Nowadays, it employs 500 employees out of which 240 work as inspectors of foodstuffs.
Detailed results of the CAFIA activities in 2004 can be found at the CAFIA website at www.szpi.gov.cz.
Article by: D. Kolejková - CAFIA spokesperson