PFA to ban wastewater use for edible crops

Spokesperson of food watchdog says coordinated efforts are needed for this goal

LAHORE: After hotels and restaurants, Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has decided to introduce food safety regulations in the fruit and vegetable supply chain. The authority has recently started issuing licences to food and vegetable shops and now it will bar wastewater irrigation for agricultural production.

A PFA spokesman told The Express Tribune that water is one of the most precious inputs in agriculture production.  He said the maintenance of quality standards is highly critical to the provision of safe and healthy produce for the general public of the province.



Providing the background to the situation, he highlighted that many areas in the country are facing a major crisis as cultivators are resorting to the use of wastewater for irrigation. “This poses a direct threat to the health of consumers who are exposed to elevated levels of toxic and poisonous elements present in wastewater,” he maintains.

He also underlines that while the challenge is being addressed directly by PFA, it needs effective cooperation from the Punjab Agricultural Department, Industry Department, private businesses, Water and Sanitation Agencies (WASAs) as well as social activists. The food watchdog spokesperson stressed that these steps are crucial to tackle the potential public health crisis.

He also points out that provincial regulations bind industries to ensure that all waste water is treated before it is disposed in any way. “It has been a common point of discussion for the past many years that industrial estates and zones should provide integral effluent water treatment plants to provide complete treatment of waste water. However, there have been hardly any practical steps taken in this direction.

The PFA aims to create an active liaison with industrial estates and government agencies to take action in an expeditious manner,” he added.

Punjab Agriculture Department former director general Dr Anjum Buttar welcomed the move as a positive step, but underscores the need to back up the initiative with a comprehensive awareness campaign to highlight the danger posed to public health.



He is of the opinion that a straightforward ban will not be sufficient without such efforts. “It should be considered as a single step in a long-term strategic shift. This will include the assessment of water quality of different sewage lines, given there is a marked contrast between the water discharged from households and factory units. It will require considerable planning to execute properly, he stresses.

PFA Director General Noorul Amin Mengal highlights that a recent report of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council has revealed that the use of sewage water for cultivation of vegetables as well as for wheat and other crops is hazardous to human health. It says sewerage water is not only hazardous, but the discharge of acids and chemicals from factories make it more dangerous.

He said the authority believes this water can have alternative usages like irrigation of non-edible crops, e.g. bamboos, flowers and indoor plants.

PFA has been taking practical steps to improve the standards of edible items available to the public. The authority has also decided to restrict the quantity of trans fats (trans-fatty acids) up to 0.5%.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 26^th, 2017.