Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore

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Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore
AVA Singapore Logo.png
Agency overview
Formed1 April 2000;23 years ago (2000-04-01)
Preceding agency
  • Primary Production Department (PPD)
Dissolved1 April 2019;4 years ago (2019-04-01)
Superseding agencies
Jurisdiction Government of Singapore
Headquarters52 Jurong Gateway Road, #14-01, Singapore 608550
Annual budget S$125.75 million (2014) [1]
Agency executives
  • Lim Neo Chian, Chairman
  • Lim Kok Thai, CEO
Parent agency Ministry of National Development
Website www.ava.gov.sg

The Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) was a statutory board under the Ministry of National Development that regulated food safety, safeguarded animal and plant health, and facilitated the agri-food and fisheries trade sectors. AVA was disbanded on 1 April 2019, with duties being transferred to other statutory boards, Singapore Food Agency, National Environment Agency, Health Sciences Authority, and National Parks Board.

Contents

History

In June 1959, the agriculture, co-operatives, fisheries, rural development and veterinary divisions of various ministries were reshuffled to form the Primary Production Department, under the new Ministry of National Development. [2] The department was restructured into a statutory board, the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, on 1 April 2000. [3] The Food Control Division (formerly part of the Ministry of the Environment) was added to the AVA in July 2002. [4] It regulated food safety, safeguarded animal and plant health, and facilitated the agri-food and fisheries trade sectors. [5]

AVA was disbanded on 1 April 2019 with its food related duties absorbed by Singapore Food Agency (SFA) which also absorbed the duties of two other statutory boards namely National Environment Agency (NEA) and Health Sciences Authority (HSA). All non-food plant and animal-related functions of the AVA were transferred to the National Parks Board (NParks) under Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS). SFA is a stat board under the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources. [6]

Functions

The components of AVA's food safety system includes:

The food safety system is backed up by enforcement of food safety standards through a legal framework as well as through food safety public education on the collective responsibility of AVA, the food industry and the public in ensuring food safety.

Ensuring resilience in food supply

AVA helps to provide Singapore with an adequate and stable supply of food. It achieves this by diversifying the sources of supply to Singapore through efforts in the following areas:

Singapore's local farms provide a small measure of the nation's vegetables, fish and egg supply. AVA helps local farms to optimise their production by assisting them to employ intensive farming systems and safe food production practices.

On 19 May 2015 AVA stated that so far they had not received any feedback about fake rice, made of plastic. [7]

Safeguarding animal and plant health

The AVA works to ensure that Singapore is free from exotic animal and plant health diseases.

Animal health

As the national authority for animal health, AVA administers a programme to prevent the introduction of animal diseases.

The programme entails:

Plant protection

To safeguard the health of plants in Singapore, AVA administers a programme to control or prevent the incursion of diseases and pests.

The plant health programme includes:

Safeguarding animal welfare

The AVA safeguards the welfare of animals in Singapore by enforcing regulations to protect animals against cruel treatment and educating the public on responsible pet ownership. The Responsible Pet Ownership Public Education Programme was launched in 2004 to attain the two objectives of promoting responsible pet ownership and to tackle the strays issue. Working closely with animal welfare organisations, AVA aims to drive home the message of "A Pet is for Life".

Promoting agrotechnology

The challenge of maximising productivity from limited agricultural land and sea is addressed by agro-technology and agri-biotechnology. By providing technical expertise and consultancy services, AVA is making investments in new sources of food supply for Singapore.

Investment in research and development

AVA engage in R&D projects on production systems, breeding, nutrition, disease control, aquaculture and vegetable production. AVA develops testing capabilities to detect food contaminants, food pathogens and animal and plant diseases. AVA works in collaboration with institutes of higher learning, research centres like the Institute of Molecular Agrobiology, Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, the Tropical Marine Sciences Institute, and the private sector.

Protecting endangered wildlife

The AVA protects wildlife by controlling their trade and preventing their exploitation. AVA have been appointed as the national authority responsible for the implementation and enforcement of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Related Research Articles

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The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is a regulatory agency that is dedicated to the safeguarding of food, plants, and animals (FPA) in Canada, thus enhancing the health and well-being of Canada's people, environment and economy. The agency is responsible to the Minister of Health.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Environment Agency</span> Government agency of Singapore

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central Science Laboratory</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Health Sciences Authority</span> Statutory board under the Ministry of Health of the Singapore Government

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Food safety</span> Scientific discipline

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Parks Board</span> Statuary board of the Singapore government

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Singapore Food Agency</span> Statutory board in Singapore

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The Nevada State Department of Agriculture is the department of the Nevada State government responsible for managing the welfare of Nevada citizens and regulating Nevada's agriculture and related industries.

The National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI) is a research institute in Nigeria that was established in 1924 and has the mandate to conduct research into how to ably identify, treat and control animal diseases as well as the development of vaccines for such and training and the provision of support services to livestock and poultry farmers. The institute is under the supervision of Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The chief executive is Maryam Muhammad, a veterinary doctor with research interests in the molecular epidemiology of Salmonella in poultry, public health and environment and development.

References

  1. "Head T: Ministry of National Development" (PDF). Budget 2014: Revenue and Expenditure Estimates. Ministry of National Development. February 2014. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  2. "Ong sets up seven-man team to hear grouses from the public". The Straits Times. 21 June 1959. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  3. "Restructuring of the Primary Production Department into the Agri-food and Veterinary Authority (AVA)". NAS. 22 February 2000. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  4. "Who We Are". Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  5. "Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority Act". Singapore Statutes Online. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  6. "New stat board to oversee food safety and security; AVA to be disbanded". CNA. Archived from the original on 3 April 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  7. "Fake rice made of plastic reported to have reached Asian shores but not Singapore's". The Straits Times. 19 May 2015. Archived from the original on 22 May 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2015.