Malaysians take food very seriously, but are less concerned about food safety. This is not because of lack of incidents. In 1988 several children died from a combination of boric acid and aflatoxin poisoning. As late as 2008, boric acid could still be detected in many noodle samples.

As food safety has to be maintained from production to consumption, many ministries and agencies are involved in the process. Among them are the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Agriculture, local authorities and Customs (for import and export of food. Religious authorities are involved, but more for ritual purposes than safety per se.

The main legislation regulating food safety is the Food Act 1983. This, with its attendant Food Regulations, came into force in October 1985. It aims to protect the public against food related hazards and frauds, as well as to promote and motivate the preparation, handling, distribution, sale and consumption of safe, high quality food.

Among the strategies for ensuring food safety are the following:

• Review and update legislation and strengthen infrastructure

• Enhance collaboration between government agencies, consumer bodies, academia, industry and international organizations

• Develop and train manpower resources

• Educate consumers to raise their awareness of food safety issues.

Enforcement involves inspection and sampling. A Core Prosecution Team ensures effective court action, while a Crisis Alert Team deals with acute situations. Premises handling, processing and serving food are inspected regularly and food samples are taken for microbiological, chemical and physical tests. Laboratories for these tests have been established nationwide and are expected to conform to standards as outlined in ISO 17025.

Consumer education is recognized as being a cornerstone of food safety, because educated consumers function as food safety inspectors in their own right. Measures at present rely heavily on schools and the mass media, but it can safely be said that the effect has not been very marked.

Attempts are being made to use IT to educate consumers, but a cursory examination of the Food Safety Information of Malaysia website shows it to be dated, not user-friendly and not really an effective educational resource.

In 2001 a Food Safety and Nutrition Council was set up that functions as the highest advisory body to the government on food safety. It is made up of government agencies and non-governmental organizations. This indicates that the government both understands the importance of food safety and recognizes the gap that still exists in achieving it. For a nation that exports seafood and fruits all over the world, while also being dependent on imported basic foodstuff, food safety is a matter of national security as well as public health.