ISLAMABAD: The government has proposed the regulation of all packaged milk to ensure its quality and bind companies to follow hygiene standards.

`All milk producing companies would have to obtain a licence from the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) to produce and sell milk in the market. All milk producers would be subject to quarterly inspection by the government, PSQCA Director General Khalid Siddig told Dawn.

He said the regulation of numerous other food items was also being proposed to ensure their quality.

Under the science and technology ministry, the PSQCA is mandated to monitor the quality of products, including food items. The authority monitors 103 articles under the Compulsory Certification Mark Scheme, of which 37 are food products.

Packaged liquid milk is not a regulated item.

Concerns were raised by Muttahida Qaumi Movement MNA Sajid Ahmed in the National Assembly on Thursday that companies producing packaged mill< were not following hygiene standards.

Mr Siddig said the authority has a complete mechanism to monitor the quality of products through quarterly inspections of manufacturing units and market surveillance.

`The draft statutory regulatory order (SRO) has been forwarded to relevant ministries or divisions and provincial governments for their comments. The draf t SRO will then be sent to the law and justice division for vetting. Then PSQCA will be in a position to carry out inspections and certifications of manufacturers,` PSQCA Director General Khalid Siddig said, adding that the draft SRO has already been approved by the Ministry of National Food, Security and Research.

PML-N MNA Shakila Lugman also raised concerns about tinned food items available in the market that are not being sold in accordance with the prescribed rules of quality and hygiene.

In a written response, the Ministry of Science and Technology said that for tinned food, particularly edible oil, the government only checks the quality of the tin plate, and this standard was limited to tin plates used to pack cooking oil.

However, there are several food items that were packed in tin plates and were not regulated. If the PSQCA is given the mandate to regulate all food items, the quality and hygiene would be checked under standards set by the government.

Mr Siddig explained that several companies producing quality oil have compromised on the quality of tin packaging. `At least nine ghee manufacturing companies have been shut down by the PQSCA. It was found during inspections that there companies were using low quality tin plates for packaging,` he said.

PSQCA has closed down 21 bottled water companies, a tyre manufacturer and oil manufacturing companies in Lahore, Karachi, Olcara, Swabi and DG Khan, among other areas, for producing goods of inferior quality.

`We have been sending clear messages to all food producing companies to follow quality and hygiene standards set by the PSQCA, and avoid violating the law,` Mr Siddig said.