Analysis of the impact of Better Training for Safer Food (BTSF) Programme : executive summary

Training is considered to be an important tool to promote a harmonised approach to food safety rules and compliance with EU food law. The Better Training for Safer Food (BTSF) programme was established in 2005 to provide training for EU and non-EU officials on EU food law. The programme aims to help ensure a high level of consumer protection, harmonise approaches to control systems, ensure a level playing field for operators and enable fair trade in safe food. The BTSF programme has expanded substantially since its initial introduction. The number of thematic areas widened from seven in 2006 to 37 in 2015; the budget increased from 3.5 million EUR to 15.5 million EUR over the same period. By the end of 2015, some 54 038 participants had been directly trained by BTSF training with 28 638 of these benefitting during the 2012-15 period. This study was commissioned to analyse the impact of the BTSF programme over the period 2012-15 in order to assist the European Commission to make informed decisions on the future running of the programme. Previous ex-post evaluations had looked in detail at the training activities and outputs over preceding implementation periods, and found that BTSF was providing high quality training to the satisfaction of its beneficiaries.