KUANTAN: The Pahang government has established a committee to ensure that vegetables and fruits in the markets in the state are safe for consumption and comply with the prescribed legislation, said Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail.
He said the establishment of the state’s Safety Control Committee on the Use of Pesticides in Vegetables and Fruits, which controls the use of pesticides in the vegetable and fruit farming sector in the state, was agreed upon in the state executive council (MMK) meeting yesterday.
The committee, according to Wan Rosdy, will be chaired by the state Public Works, Transport and Health Committee chairman Ir Razali Kassim with eight committee members namely the state Health director and deputy state secretary (Development).
Other members are the state police chief; state Agriculture Department director; state Land and Mines director; Cameron Highlands district officer; Cameron Highlands district council president and state Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) director.
“The objective of this committee is to coordinate and regulate the activities of monitoring the use of pesticides, ensuring the control of the use of pesticides, from the farm to the market.
“In addition, implement a training programme among pesticide operators, increasing cooperation between the agencies involved along the supply chain starting from the farm to the market,“ he said in a statement here today.
He also said that the committee will also coordinate and improve enforcement activities according to the functions of the respective agencies, therefore, it is hoped that with the existence of the committee, the state government will be able to ensure that vegetables and fruits in the market are safe for consumption.
