Singapore on Tuesday launched a Food Safety Program which is based on the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP), an internationally recognized food safety management system.

"Through this program, HACCP consultants will work closely with the companies to understand, assess and improve their operations and food safety practices," Minister for Trade and Industry Lim Hng Kiang said when announcing the program at the opening of this year's Food and Hotel Asia trade show.

Regarding food safety as a competitive advantage for Singapore's food sector, Lim pointed out that HACCP can help local food and beverage (F&B) players expand overseas and assure visitors and local people that the food is safe for consumption here.

The Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board (SPRING Singapore), which initiated the program with the Restaurant Association of Singapore, has earmarked 1 million Singapore dollars (about 629,000 U.S. dollars) to help another 200 F&B companies become HACCP-certified in the next three years, according to Lim.

About 60 percent of food manufacturers with more than 10 employees have been HACCP-certified so far in Singapore.

The city state aims to attract 17 million visitors, gain 30 billion Singapore dollars (about 19 billion U.S. dollars) in tourism receipts and create 100,000 new tourism-related jobs by 2015.

More than 2,300 exhibitors from some 70 countries are participating in this year's Food and Hotel Asia trade show, the biggest one since its inauguration in 1978.

Source: Xinhua