Canadian Food Inspection Agency's On-site Assessment Report of Mexico's Food Safety Control System for Fresh Fruit and Vegetables – 2017
2. Assessment objective, scope, and methodology
The key objectives of the assessment were to:
- confirm our understanding of the roles, responsibilities, and authorities of the CA in the oversight of food safety as it relates to the CRRS
- observe the implementation of the CRRS
- increase awareness of Canadian import requirements and to observe how the controls applied by Mexico's fresh produce industry meet these requirements
- discuss the status of the ongoing assessment of Mexico's Organic system for the purpose of negotiating an Organic equivalency arrangement
2.1 Methodology
The assessment was comprised of 3 phases.
Phase I – A desk review of information provided to the CFIA through Mexico's response to the Canadian Assessment Standard tool.
Phase II – An on-site visit to observe the implementation of the CRRS.
Phase III – Drafting of the assessment report to summarize the assessment team's understanding of the CRRS and to highlight opportunities to further strengthen the system.
2.2 Assessment scope summary
The visit focused on primary producers and packers of fresh produce who were recognised/were in the process of being recognised under the CRRS. The number and variety of units visited provided a representative sample of commodities, diversity in size, complexity, and geographical location to allow the team to draw an unbiased conclusion about the implementation of the system as a whole. In addition, the assessment team met with the CA, several CBs and the NRCPC as outlined in Table 1.
Site visited | No of sites visited | Location |
---|---|---|
CA | 1 | Mexico City |
Primary production units | 10 | Various locations |
Packing units/exporters Table Note 1 | 8 | Various locations |
CBs | 5 | Various locations |
Laboratories | 1 | Tecamac, state of Mexico |
Table Notes
- Table Note 1
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Some operations had both farms and packing facilities at the same location. In addition, some operations had more than 1 farm and/or packing facility at the same location. A total of 12 locations were visited.
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