Ministry of Industry launches quality seal project

The Ministry of Industry (MoI) has launched a quality of manufacturing and food safety project, which aims at helping manufacturers improve food safety standards.

The project will help manufacturers improve the quality of production to comply with international standards as well as those of the Lebanese Standards Institution (LIBNOR), a public institution that sets the country’s national standards.

A team from the Ministry in collaboration with students from nine universities, including the Lebanese University, will supervise the factories. “The students will be selected from specialties related to food safety, and there will be priority for Master’s degree students,” said Dana Abou Reslan, a National Food Safety Expert.

The team will supervise the factories’ compliance with food safety standards based on a form that the factory owners will complete. The factories will then be issued a score out of 100. They will also give instructions and guide them on addressing any gaps and on meeting the required standards.

Abou Reslan said that factories that score more than 80 points will be inspected after two months to make sure that they are abiding with the standards. A sample from the factories’ products will be tested in the Industrial Research Institute (IRI). If the sample proved its compliance with LIBNOR standards then the factory will obtain the quality seal and food safety certificate.

“The quality seal can be used for the factories’ entire produce, and this will help it market its produce abroad easily, and gain the customer’s trust,” Abou Reslan said.