Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1510560
12 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 29 OCTOBER 2023 Ireland stops training for Maltese soldiers after staff shortages hit military college KURT SANSONE MALTESE soldiers will stop receiving officer training at the Irish Defence Forces Cadet School after staffing pressures forced the Irish military to end the 14-year arrangement. Since 2009, the Armed Forces of Malta has sent 59 person- nel, including seven women, to the military school in Cur- ragh, where they graduated as officers. There is currently one Mal- tese cadet training at the mil- itary college, and they are ex- pected to graduate at the start of the year. An AFM spokesperson con- firmed the cadetship training programme in Ireland has not been extended because of "in- ternal reviews and constraints" within the Irish Defence Forc- es. Nonetheless, she said the AFM maintains a collaborative relationship with the IDF. "The Armed Forces of Malta antici- pates continued support from the Irish Defence Forces in the form of alternative training and courses." The AFM will continue to provide overseas training op- portunities for cadets with oth- er foreign partners, the spokes- person added. Over the years the AFM has sent officer cadets for training in Italy, Britain and the US. According to The Irish Times, the AFM requested a training place for one cadet in the cadet class which began earlier this month but was informed that its request could not be met. The Irish Defence Forces are currently consolidating their operations because of a re- cruitment and retention crisis. The Irish army should have 9,500 personnel but currently has less than 7,700 members. The consolidation exercise has also impacted the resources available to the military college with some training roles being outsourced to contractors. The AFM has had a grow- ing relationship with its Irish counterparts and since 2018 a unit of Maltese soldiers has been attached to the Irish De- fence Forces battalion serv- ing with the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). The contingent is stationed in southern Lebanon along the border with Israel, which has seen multiple exchanges of fire between the Israeli Defence Forces and Hizbullah since 7 October. A Maltese officer cadet (third from right) at the Irish military school in Curragh Animal feed controls by Maltese An audit by the European Commission of animal feed traceability and safety controls in Malta reveals shortcomings • Maltese authorities acted after audit JAMES DEBONO THERE are "significant gaps" in Malta's enforcement of an- imal feed regulations that un- dermine the effectiveness of official controls, an audit by the European Commission has found. The audit exposed various de- ficiencies in the way commer- cial operators maintain sam- ples of animal feed products to ensure complete traceability. More strikingly, deficiencies noted during the audit had not been flagged during inspections by Maltese inspectors. Retaining samples from each batch of animal feed is crucial for guaranteeing product qual- ity and safety. In cases of safety concerns or potential contamination issues, these retained samples play a vital role in pinpointing the origin of the problem to a spe- cific batch. This traceability is essential for identifying and ad- dressing any potential hazards or contamination within the feed supply chain. The recently published audit was conducted last May by offi- cials from the Food and Veteri- nary Office. It reveals significant gaps in the local enforcement system. While many essential compo- nents for effective animal feed safety checks, such as training for inspectors, guidelines, pro- cedures, and checklists, are in place, the audit also highlight- ed critical issues. Specifically, Maltese inspectors exhibited shortcomings in evaluating lo- cal companies' adherence to the rules governing animal feed production, including iden- tifying potential hazards and checking for contamination. Additionally, the report brought to light deficiencies in the way samples are collected, significantly undermining the trustworthiness of lab results and decisions based on these findings. These issues collec- tively hinder Malta's ability to ensure the safety of animal feed. "Cumulatively, the many short- comings found undermine the effectiveness of official controls on feed," the report concludes. Deficiencies in sample collection During routine inspections by local authorities, an essen- tial aspect is assessing how well companies monitor their products, including taking samples of ingredients and each batch of products. These samples, known as "retained samples," must be handled according to specific rules. The audit team meticulous- ly examined how companies documented and stored these retained samples during their inspections. In two companies visited, op- erators failed to collect or store samples of all the ingredients they used as was the case with amino acids. In two companies, they found that the companies collected samples from the in- coming ingredients and used them for their own lab tests, and then they kept the rest as retained samples. This means that the samples had been changed in various ways before they were kept, which isn't al- lowed. In two companies that pro- duce feed materials, the com- panies consistently didn't col- lect retained samples from each batch they made. Remarkably, these infractions were not noticed in local in- spection reports reviewed by the audit team. Problems in inspections The report acknowledges that Malta's Veterinary Regulation Directorate (VRD), in collabo- ration with the National Veter- inary Laboratory, has devised a plan to regularly assess animal feed quality. The number of samples taken varies based on the number of companies, their production volume, and past inspection re- sults. The plan covers most cat- egories of harmful substances in animal food, but it omits two critical areas – natural toxins from plants and harmful plant impurities, along with pesticide residue testing, with no expla- nation provided for these ex- clusions. Challenges arose due to COVID-19 restrictions, with only half of the planned sam- ples taken in 2020. In 2021, all planned samples were collect- ed, but in 2022, staffing short- ages prevented the collection of 20% of the samples. During a visit to a compound feed manufacturer, the audit team observed an inspector miscalculating the number of samples and failing to use a di- vider, as required. Moreover, the sampling protocols lacked An EU audit of animal feed controls in Malta found significant gaps in the enforcement system causing problems of traceability