Evaluation of food safety policies in Turkey by food processors and food controllers

Food safety is based on public opinion created by consumers, legislation created by the state, and scientific and technological knowledge used by food producers and marketers. In our study, it is focused on the experiences of food control officers working for public and food sector managers who are responsible for safety of food that they produce or offer for sale regarding their practices in food safety and policies, which is a tripod structure. The data obtained from food business managers and food control officers on the determination of the failing aspects of food safety policies and official food control and what needs to be done for a better effective food safety were analyzed. The research was proceeded in two different populations and with two different methods. Hence, the data obtained by questionnaire from 299 food premises in Tekirdag, Edirne and Kırklareli provinces were subjected to explanatory factor analysis and hypotheses which were analyzed by anova test. According to the results; food business managers think that the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry does not organize enough training programs on food safety. Managers having 250 or more employees think that official food control is not carried out in as many as it needs and with the desired effect, and also they characterize food control officers with lower scores compared to other enterprises. In another part of the study, one-to-one interviews were done with 17 food control officers working in Tekirdag, Edirne and Kırklareli provinces. A total of 714 minutes of speech was recorded and 133 pages of interview transcripts were obtained. The data obtained from the interviews were analyzed by directed content analysis; and also 7 main categories, 22 subcategories were identified and a total of 308 coding was made with 39 different codes. Accordingly, the participants argued that significant progress has been made in food safety studies compared to previous years; however, they mentioned that there are still significant problems. Safety problems experienced during inspections, checklists that are not prepared according to the type and scale of the enterprise, vertical legislation deficiencies and the effectiveness of inspections are the prominent problems. Although the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has an important deterrent to declare businesses which is get involved in counterfeiting and adulteration, the process takes too long due to bureaucratic reasons. It is seen that food control officers have a positive approach in informing and guiding the businesses and the resulting rehabilitation of the enterprises is the most important source of motivation. Officers consider that doing inspections on a risk basis is beneficial in terms of both effectiveness and efficient use of resources.