FoodSHAP® participates in Philippine Women’s University Research Colloquium

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.