EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS )
REPUBLIC UF 1c eee,
First Regular Session )

4102

House Bill No.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Republic Act No. 10611, otherwise known as the Food Safety Act of 2013”, is a
general law which vests upon the Department of Health/Food and Drug Administration
jurisdiction over processed meat products, among others.

Prior to its enactment, jurisdiction over processed meats was exercised by the
National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) under the Department of Agriculture.

Jurisdiction over processed meats was transferred from DA/NMIS to DOH/FDA on
February 20, 2015 under a Joint DA-DOH Administrative Circular detailing the implementing
rules and regulations of the Act.

FDA jurisdiction is derived from a broad provision of RA No. 40611 which gives it
responsibility for the “safety of processed and prepackaged foods” as provided in Section
45 (b) Art. V of the said Act

Unfortunately however, the said provision caused the unintended, indirect and
implied repeal or amendment of the charter of NMIS, specifically Section 5 of RA 9296 as
srvonded. RA 9296, also known as the “Meat Inspection Code of the Philippines’, is a
special law which created NMIS for the sole purpose of regulating meats and meat products.

Section 5 of RA 9296 vests NMIS with the power and responsibilty to be the “sole
ational controlling authority on all matters pertaining to meat and meat product inspection
na meat hygiene” as a specialized regulatory agency attached to the Department of
Agriculture.

‘The transfer of jurisdiction has led to confusion and complaints by stakeholders in the
meat processing industry who pointed out that they now have become overregulated as they
fave to simultaneously deal with two regulatory agencies in the manufacture of meat
products.

To illustrate the incongruity of dual jurisdictions in a simple meat processing facity
‘The cold storage and the preparation area where frozen meat raw materials are thawed and
prepared for processing, are under the jurisdiction of NMIS; a few meters away in the same
building are the manufacturing and packaging areas which are under the supervision and
aad of FDA. After packing, the finished products which are under FDA are then moved
Sn kept in cold storage under NMIS prior to delivery to customers.

By way of reference, in other jurisdictions such as the US Department of Agriculture
after which many of our food safety policies are patterned, supervision and control over
meats and meat products rest with the Food Safety Inspection Service of the USDA, not with
FDA.


When it comes to certification of facilities that they are compliant with good
manufacturing practices or with food safety protocols and the like, the issue of who issues
which certification becomes muddled.

Certifications are usually issued for the whole facility, not just for portions of it. Should
the issuer be NMIS or FDA?

Taking cognizance of the problem, in 2016, the Department of Agriculture under then
Secretary Emmanuel Pinol and the Department of Health under Secretary Paulyn Rosell-
Ubial signed a joint memorandum asking the President to defer the transfer of jurisdiction
cover processed meats from NMIS to FDA

However, the Office of the President advised that since the transfer had already been
effected, it would be best for both agencies to just ask Congress to amend the Food Safety
Act.

Stakeholders also pointed out that under the set-up, another bureaucratic layer has
been added which is not in consonance with the recently passed RA 11032, otherwise
known as the “Ease of Doing Business and Efficient Government Service Delivery Act of
2018”.

The meat processing industry has been steadfastly asking the government to simplify
regulations and unify control and supervision over their sector.

This Amendment aims to do just that by restoring jurisdiction over processed meats
to NMIS under the Department of Agriculture.

In view of the foregoing, approval of this Amendment is most earnestly sought,

Vy
RUFUS B. ROD! UI


EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS )
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES )
First Regular Session )

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Introduced by Representative Rufus B. Rodriguez aa
4102

House Bill No.

AN ACT
AMENDING SECTIONS 15 AND 16 OF ARTICLE V OF RA NO. 10611, OTHERWISE
KNOWN AS THE “FOOD SAFETY ACT OF 2013”

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress
assembled:

SECTION 1. Section 15 subsections (a) and (b) of RA No. 10611, otherwise known as the
“Food Safety Act of 2013", hereinafter referred to as the “Act” are hereby amended to read
as follows

“SEC. 15. Principal Responsibilities of Government Agencies — 00x

(a) The DA shall be responsible for food safety in the primary
production, post harvest stages of food supply, and in the
processing and distribution of meat and meat products whether
locally produced or imported;

(b) The DOH shall be responsible for the safety of processed and
prepackaged foods, except processed meat products; foods locally
produced or imported under this category and the conduct of
monitoring and epidemiological studies on food-borne illnesses;

2000
SEC. 2. Section 16 subsection (c) of this Act is hereby amended to read as follows
“SEC. 16. Specific Responsibilities of the Department of Agriculture — 00%

~(©) The National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS), for meats and
processed meat products;

SEC. 3. If, for any reason, any provision of this Act is declared to be unconstitutional or
invalid, the other sections or provisions hereof which are not affected shall continue to be in
full force and effect

SEC. 4. All laws, decrees, executive orders and other administrative issuances and parts
thereof which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby deemed repealed,
amended or modified accordingly

SEC. 5 This Act shall take effect after fifteen (15) days from its publication in the Official
Gazette or in two newspapers of general circulation

Approved,