Life Sciences and Materials Sciences Company DSM hosted 41 trainee food safety officials from 20 developing countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and America on a visit to DSM’s Headquarters and R&D Centre in China. Following an introduction to DSM’s approach to food regulations, which showcased the company’s commitment to quality, reliability and traceability in the food chain, the trainees visited the R&D and application labs.

The Seminar on Food Safety Management for Developing Countries is sponsored by the Ministry of Commerce of the People’s Republic of China and organised by the China National Research Institute for the Food and Fermentation Industries. As a training programme funded by the Chinese government, the seminar targets government officials from developing countries and provides them with one month’s training in the field of food safety macro-management. In addition, the Ministry of Commerce also organises a regular two-month seminar on product quality and food safety inspection and quarantine for technicians and officials from developing countries. Since 2005, eight successful courses have been held which were highly commended by officers from the Ministry of Commerce, the trainees as well as by international associations such as the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation. The two seminars are becoming a platform for communication on the issue of international food safety.

In addition to a theoretical element, the programme also encourages enterprises to become their partners, in particular leading local and international companies in the food safety area. Trainees are expected to get practical hands-on food safety experience with a visit to the company. As the world’s leading supplier to the nutrition industry, DSM has worked closely with the Chinese government on this programme, hosting visits plus sharing and exchanging its food safety experience.

DSM believes that implementing a ‘whole food chain' concept and increasing the quality and traceability of foodstuffs and additives is an effective approach to food safety. DSM's products are used in foodstuffs ‘from farm to fork’: from their source, through the entire food production chain, until their inclusion in a final product. DSM has vast experience in managing the control and traceability of each segment in the whole food chain. The DSM R&D centre explores a range of diverse activities in the nutrition area, including product and process innovations in food safety. In addition, the newly launched Quality for Life™ seal in nutrition conveys DSM’s commitment to product safety and quality, as well as assuring customers that the ingredients they buy have been manufactured to the highest quality, using optimum safety standards and sustainable practices.

Dr Weiming Jiang, President of DSM China, says: “We are keen to share our sustainable quality concept and principles, via mutual communication and learning, with all stakeholders. This joint activity with government is one piece of evidence showing DSM’s commitment to sustainable development in the food safety area in China. It is a major responsibility of DSM to promote food safety and sustainability, and we will keep supporting and participating in this kind of program in the future.”