BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: The Brunei Darussalam Food Authority (BDFA) is currently hosting the Asean’s Working Group Meetings on Prepared Foodstuff Product (PFPWG) from Nov 2 to 6, 2026 following the opening ceremony held Thursday (Nov 5).
The meeting is attended by officials from eleven member states, the Asean Secretariat, and dialogue partners organisations.
Chief Technical Officer of BDFA Dr Noraskhin Mohd Fadillah was the guest of honour. In her opening address, the guest of honour extended her welcome to all participants.
She highlighted the importance of harmonisation of food standards and the recognition for inspection and certification systems on food hygiene for prepared food stuff products within AMS.
She also reaffirmed Brunei Darussalam’s commitment to work closely with Asean member states, the Asean Secretariat and regional partners to advance the regional food safety agenda and support a more integrated, inclusive and resilient Asean economy.
These meetings to be held back-to-back over the five days include the following committee meetings namely the 29th Meeting of the Asean Food Testing Laboratory Committee (AFTLC); The 16th Meeting of the Joint Sectoral Committee on MRA for Inspection and Certification Systems on Food Hygiene for Prepared Foodstuff Products (JSC MRA on PF); and the 14th Meeting of the Asean Committee on Harmonisation of Prepared Foodstuff Standards (ACHPFS).
Established under the Asean Consultative Committee on Standards and Quality (ACCSQ) in 2003, the PFPWG remains significant with an overarching purpose of removing technical barriers to trade.
Furthermore, with the adoption of the Asean Food Safety Policy in 2015 and the Asean Food Safety Regulatory Framework (AFSRF) in 2016 by the Asean Economic Ministers, Asean Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry and Asean Health Ministers, the PFPWG has been tasked to coordinate the development of a Task Force on the AFSRF, consisting of official representatives from trade, agriculture and health.
The meeting also serves as a platform to discuss mutual recognition arrangements, cooperation on food safety regulatory frameworks and strategies to address emerging issues and challenges in the prepared foodstuff sector.
It also deliberates on the ACCSQ Sectoral Plan 2026–2030, which will serve as a roadmap for continued harmonisation and resilient food safety regulatory systems in the region.
The PFPWG meeting is expected to shape the future of prepared foodstuff standards in Asean, reflecting the region’s collective effort towards assuring food safety, whilst removing technical barriers to trade in support of a more integrated, inclusive and resilient Asean economy. - Borneo Bulletin/ANN
