Pakistan FMCG Importers Association (PFIA) felicitating the Customs Department on the occasion of International Customs Day has urged for making the role of the department more effective to curb smuggling especially the packaged food items.
In a joint statement issued here Saturday, PFIA Patron in Chief Naseem Chawla, Chairman Anjum Nisar, Senior Vice Chairman Nafees ur Rehman Barry and Zia ul Haq said that the customs department is doing good but there is a need that a coordinated strategy should be devised taking law abiding importers and departments like Punjab Food Authority (PFA) on board to check the smuggled food items besides discouraging the marketing of counterfeit, smuggled and expired packaged food items.
They said that import of such items discourages those importers who believe in paying the due taxes and smuggling runs them out of the competition in the market. They said that counterfeit or expired items causes harm to the health of the consumers.
They said that coordinated efforts would ensure that people get duty paid and quality food items. 'We can bring down the budget being spent on health sector to almost half in two years if we can ensure provision of quality food items imported through formal channel to the consumers,' said the PFIA leadership.