Spokesman Report

Peshawar: The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) held a prize distribution ceremony to successfully conclude a meat processing competition in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, as part of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)-funded Project for Agro-Food and Agro-Industry Development Assistance (PAFAID).

The competition formed a pivotal component of a year-long initiative aimed at identifying women and men meat processors across selected districts of KP, namely Peshawar, D.I Khan, and Abbottabad. These processors underwent comprehensive training sessions covering product development, value addition, packaging, marketing, and food safety. The top performers, mostly the businesswomen, who demonstrated notable improvements were awarded with value-adding processing equipment to enhance their operations further.

Mr. Muhammad Wasif Saeed, Director General of KP Food Safety & Halal Food Authority (KPFS&HFA), commended UNIDO’s efforts and congratulated the top performers. He emphasized the significance of embracing good hygiene practices to uphold food safety and public health standards. “Our goal is not to levy fines, but to facilitate and collectively ensure food safety and safeguard public health,” stated Mr. Saeed.

Earlier, Mr. Rehan Ali, UNIDO National Project Coordinator, provided a concise overview of the competition, covering selection criteria, women’s involvement, and achieved milestones. He also acknowledged the essential partners who collaborated closely to advance food safety, hygiene, business licensing, marketing strategies, and product and technology development.

PAFAID is a four-year JICA-funded project being implemented by UNIDO in close coordination with the Government of Pakistan. It aims at improving pilot applications of compliance capacities and value-addition practices in the cattle meat value chain in KP province and the apple value chain in Balochistan province