ABU DHABI, April 28, 2022: The Central Testing Laboratory of the Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (QCC) has developed new inspection services using latest technology and in line with international standards to ensure the quality of food products in the market.
The new programs developed by a team of QCC’s National workforce will check contaminants and pesticide residues in food, to preserve the health and safety of consumers in Abu Dhabi. The service, which is provided to QCC partners, was launched by testing pesticide residues in water and eggs. The new inspection service has an expanded scope of technical capabilities in detecting a greater number of pesticide residues in food items such as vegetables, fruits, honey, dates, meat, milk, fodder, baby food and other products.
Bader Al Shehhi, Director of Communication and Community Service Department and spokesperson for the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority, said: "We are working in cooperation with QCC to limit the circulation of products that do not conform to the norms in Abu Dhabi markets. This will ensure that food and agricultural products are safe for consumption.”
He said this was being implemented by collecting food samples from various outlets and sending them to the Council for testing to ensure that they are free of harmful substances, mitigating risk to the health of community members.
Al Shehhi said that relying on scientific methods to detect pesticide residues would enhance consumer confidence in the local vegetables and fruits market, in turn supporting the sustainability of the agricultural sector, while achieving higher levels of food safety. He said the agriculture sector in the emirate follows standards that guarantee the quality and conformity of products. In the agriculture sector, thanks to the Council, good practices are followed, tightening controls on pesticide factories and commercial stores, and rolling out awareness programs for farmers on pesticide use.
Dr. Maryam Al Shamsi, Director of the Life Sciences Department in the Central Testing Laboratory Sector said: “Our pesticide residue analysis service uses the latest and fastest scientific methods with accuracy at even low concentrations. They comply with the requirements of the UAE standards, and decisions on which control measures are based.”
Al Shamsi said the Central Testing Laboratory always seeks to build and expand its technical capabilities to keep pace with the scientific and technological developments in testing services. This empowers QCC to provide testing services with the latest technologies using specialized devices, helping food processing industries grow with expanding global economy. The laboratory workers are also highly efficient, enhancing consumer and market confidence.
"The laboratory's strategy is to support key sectors of the emirate by providing testing services that could monitor products offered in the market, thereby protecting and sustaining food and biological security and enhancing the competitiveness of high-quality local products," she said.
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