As part of the continuous support of Tarlac State University to the MSMEs, the Food and Technology Research Center (FTRC) extended their expertise on Food Safety and Quality Control among Food Business Operators on the third day of the MSME Caravan. The Department of Trade and Industry spearheaded the said activity which was held at Bulwagang Kanlahi ng Diwa ng Tarlac.
One of the expert resource speakers, Dr. Lea B. Milan, asked a question to MSME owners and employees to begin her discussion about Food Safety Essentials, of what their respective enterprises products are, which the participants responded to as bread, garlic chips, chili garlic paste, and mushroom chips, then continued to talk about how essential food safety is to both day-to-day life and the food business sector. Also, she tackled about the difference of quality food and safe food where she emphasized the danger of contaminants and hazards. Additionally, she also cited real life cases for the participants to fully understand the importance of Food Safety and briefly discussed about Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) which led to discussing the importance of complying to Food and Drug Authority (FDA) when it comes to Food Production facilities. Moreover, Dr. Milan promoted the services and assistance of TSU Food Technology and Research Center that offers free consultation if an MSME decides to seek FDA approval, then continued to put emphasis on the importance of FDA approval and license to operate, where she pointed out that licenses are not an option but a compliance.
On the other hand, Dr. Leah T. Matias started her talk with the phrase “Quality is always at cost” to further know the understanding of the participants about the topic, she proceeded to ask the participants what the meaning of quality and its importance in the food business sector, most especially in Food Processing. Also, differentiated quality assurance and quality control where she explained that quality assurance is focused on the process while quality control is focused on the product. Also highlighted the significance of sensory evaluation as a part of product making, where physical and chemical methods were distinguished, followed by the analysis of microscopy methods. Furthermore, to truly capture the essence of the talk, Dr. Matias enumerated food quality attributes which includes external factors, texture, flavors, and more. There are also basic tools of quality control namely: ingredient, specifications, approved supplier list, product formulas, critical control point identification, manufacturing procedures and product standards.
At the end of the seminar, the participants had the chance to ask the ESPs questions in order to get more information and gain a better understanding of the topics discussed. Also, right after the talk, the participants were provided with an evaluation for the overall activity for the ESPs to further enhance their community services.
The extension activity conducted contributed to the Sustainable Development Goals specifically SDG 08 which is Decent Work and Economic Growth which aimed to help SMEs to increase the knowledge they have about the sector they are in. Also, SDG 12 entitled Responsible Consumption and Production was one of the goals that was targeted, most especially in the topics of Food Safety and Quality Assurance which is directed to improve the production services of the selected MSMEs.
