SCOPE
Official control and monitoring of foodstuffs for quality and safety assessment as regards their Composition, Adulteration and Nutritional claims, so as to promote consumer’s health and interests as well as fair trade and Good Manufacture Practices (GMPs), in order to assist the promotion of healthy diets, based on sound laboratory data.
ACTIVITIES
Monitoring and compliance programmes
They are carried out in cooperation with the Health Inspectors of the Ministry of Health and the Municipalities, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism and the Ministry of Agriculture (Veterinary Services and Department of Fisheries & Marine Research).
The monitoring for compliance with the relevant food legislation (covers a wide range of foodstuffs such as Dairy products (i.e. chaloumi & cheese), Fats & Oils (is margarines & olive oil), Honey, Fish, Jams etc. for their composition. Besides the usual micro - and macro components, additional parameters have been included in the programmes, which are thought to either promote (e.g. ω3-ω6 fatty acids, aminoacids, total dietary fibre, minerals, trace elements, phytosterols) or adversely affect (e.g. cholesterol, saturated fatty acids) the human health.
The data collected is also used to enrich the National Food Composition Database (FCD) and Food Composition Tables (FCT). This need has been recognized as a result of the increased concern, given to healthy diets, the gaps and inaccuracies in existing FCD and the high prevalence in Cyprus of coronary heart diseases and cancer, which are both related to unhealthy nutrition and unsafe food consumption. As a result of this work, the laboratory has published the Food Composition Tables in 1994 and in 1999. In 2012 the SGL has published the 3rd edition which includes traditional Cyprus dishes and desserts.
RESEARCH
Through the financing of either European programs or the Cyprus Research Foundation. The main objectives of the research projects are:
- To fill in the existing gaps in knowledge concerning new technologies and new products, necessary to Health professionals who provide nutritional guidance. An example is the possible use of carob flour in the production of bread for people intolerant to gluten
- To develop new methodology to satisfy the new demands. To that effect the most recent methods developed are:
- Development of in-house method for the determination of total fat and ω-fatty acids in fish
- Development of in-house method for the determination of sugars in honey and carob syrup
- Development of methodology for the determination of cholesterol in foods
- Development and detection of milk powder in haloumi cheese etc.
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
Participation in International Working groups – such as the EFSA and European Commission as well as Local Technical Committees for quality and adulteration.
The scope of accreditation of the Laboratory according to ISO/IEC 17025:2017 can be found on the web page CYS-CYSAB (Accredited Bodies, Laboratories of the State General Laboratory of Cyprus).