BINIGYAN ni Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel “Manny” Piñol kamakailan ang Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Standards (BAFS) na magtakda ng pamantayan para sa mga manggagawa ng suka, na ang may halong asim na ginawa sa natural na fermentation process ay dapat lagya ng label na “vinegar” o “suka.”
“As Secretary of Agriculture and a consumer, I will not dip my fingers into the health issues involved in using ‘non-biogenic vinegar’ because those are beyond my competence. But there are legitimate issues which I have to raise to protect our local vinegar-makers and the consumers as well,” sabi ni Piñol sa isang panayam.
Napansin ni Piñol na laging iniisip ng DA na ang suka ay gawa at dumaan sa natural fermentation process gamit ang produktong agrikultura tulad ng gamit na coconut sap o water, at sugar cane juice bilang pangunahing halo para sa paggawa ng suka.
“The dictionary defines vinegar as ‘a sour-tasting liquid containing acetic acid, obtained by fermenting dilute alcoholic liquids, typically wine, cider, or beer, and used as a condiment or for pickling.’ The definition does not say — ‘or any other sour condiment produced from synthetic materials which are by-products of fossil-fuel processing’,” sabi niya.
Anumang iba pang produkto na naghahandog ng “maasim” na lasa pero hindi produkto ng natural fermentation process ay dapat lagyan ng tamang label kung ito ay — synthetic acetic acid or “sour non-biogenic” condiment, dagdag niya.
Kaya, sinabi ni Piñol na bilang Secretary of Agriculture, “sour condiments made out of synthetic or non-biogenic acetic acid should not be labeled as ‘vinegar’ or ‘suka’.”
Pinangunahan ng DA ang isang inter-agency meeting noong Lunes para matugunan ang isyu ng acetic acid-based commercial vinegar na ibinibenta sa merkado ang nakabuo ng tatlong resolusyon:
— Base sa testimonya ng isang chemist at toxicologist na si Dr. Flerida Carino, at ng Department of Health (DOH), ang synthetic acetic acid-based vinegar is “not totally unsafe”;
— Ang classification standards para sa commercial vinegar na ibinebenta sa merkado ay “biogenic” ngayon para doon sa mga gumagamit ng acetic acid na prodyus sa pamamagitan ng natural na fermentation process at “non-biogenic” para sa mga gawa sa synthetic compounds;
— Sinabi ng Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) na wala silang mandato para mag-release ng pangalan ng brands na nakitang mayroong “non-biogenic” acetic acid habang sinabi ng Food and Drug Administration (FDA) na hihintayin nila ang submission ng PNRI ng kanilang kumpletong pag-aaral ng validation bago nila i-release ang listahan ng mga brand ng suka.
Samantala, naniniwala si Piñol na wala namang basehang legal para sa FDA na pigilin ang pag-release ng “sour condiment” brands na nakita ng PNRI na gumagamit ng non-biogenic acetic acid.
“The release of the names will not only be in compliance with the Consumer Protection laws but also the observance of that very basic provision in the Philippine Constitution which bestows upon every Filipino the Right to Know,” sabi niya.
“The list of the ‘non-biogenic sour condiments’ being passed off as vinegar in the market, whether they are safe for human consumption or not, should be released now, otherwise, government could expect a lot of lawsuits,” dagdag pa nito. PNA
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