The single police taking charge of food safety checks and placed under the supervision of the Ministry of Agriculture is now a reality, after the publication on Thursday of the decree of attribution and the outline of the policy of each ministry in the Official Journal.
This policy, which will integrate some of the agents of the Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Prevention (DGCCRF) was announced on May 12, in response to the food scandals concerning Buitoni pizzas and Kinder chocolates. .
Recent food scandals
The decrees specify, however, that the DGCCRF remains under the control of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, "subject to the competences of the Minister of Agriculture in terms of food safety control", it is specified.
The management also sees its missions placed in part under the supervision of the Ministry of Ecological Transition, which may dispose of them within the framework of its policies.
For the Solidaires CCRF & SCL union, "this arbitrary decision announces the coming dismemberment of this management whose staff is responsible for consumer protection", estimating in a press release that "the DGCCRF serves as a scapegoat for the repeated failures of giants of food industry ".
This is an important development for the DGCCRF, hitherto under the exclusive supervision of Bercy, but which comes after the recent food scandals.
A total of 56 cases of E. coli contamination were caused by the consumption of Buitoni pizzas, while more than 300 cases in Europe, confirmed or probable, have been identified as linked to the presence of salmonella in chocolates Kinder.
Justice
Lactalis indicted for fraud for having falsified foodstuffs
Economy
Food security: How can Kinder and Buitoni bounce back from their health scandal?
Health
Kinder
Feed
Contamination
E.coli bacteria
Salmonellosis