• Entrepreneurs
• Business information
• Certification
• CAFIA laboratories
• CAFIA opinions
• More information
• Consumers
• How to know the food market
• Results of CAFIA inspections
• Consumer rights
• List of risky sites
• Hoaxes
• Other visitors
• Press Releases
• Internships at CAFIA
• Public contracts

12. INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL COMMUNICATION

12.1 External communication

During 2003, the concept of external communication, i.e. communication of the CAFIA with the public, extended the concept initiated already in preceding years. This concept is based on a principle of openness, truthfulness and timeliness, so that both consumers and entrepreneurs were informed in a reliable way of the results of inspection activities. At the same time, the CAFIA tries to provide the public with information beyond the scope of its duties stipulated by Act No. 106/1999 Coll., on free access to information, as amended, and Act No. 146/2002 Coll., on the Czech Agriculture and Food Authority, as amended, and/or other regulations.

In 2003, a total of 37 press releases were released and a press conference was organized about the initiation of a Phare project (April 2003). The General Manager of the CAFIA also actively participated in a press conference of the Minister of Agriculture concerning the result of meat product inspection (October 2003). The CAFIA staff responded in the course of the year on 617 registered inquiries, of which the most common were questions of journalists (235), businessmen (201), consumers (138) and various institutions and authorities (43). This list is far from being complete, because the CAFIA staff solves a number of queries operatively on the phone or in person.

In 2003, national and regional mass media published or broadcasted 845 articles, reports, reportages and discussions, in which many office staff members participated. In addition to the official information that the CAFIA published by means of press releases, many articles dealt with advices to consumers. The CAFIA also continued its co-operation with special-interest press.

In 2003, there was also a big interest in educational visits to specialised workplaces of the CAFIA (10 groups of students), as well as in consultancy and co-operation on solutions of grade and seminar essays and diploma thesis (16 student works) at such universities as e.g. University of Economics, Prague, Czech University of Agriculture in Prague, Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry Brno, Masaryk University Brno, Palacky University, Olomouc, and others.

Website

The CAFIA posts all important pieces of information on its website. The most visited sections in 2003 were: Information for Consumers – Food Corner, Press Releases, News, Information for Consumers Concerning Chemical Substances in Foodstuff, Acts & Decrees, General Advice for Consumers and Information on illnesses from food, allergies and intolerances.

The most read was Act No. 106/1999 Coll., on free access to information, then an article On the Principles of the Inspections of CAFIA, the CAFIA’s Organizational Structure, Hypersensitiveness to Food, What Can Food Packing Reveal and How to Understand Information Stated on Packing. It may be judged from the statistics that the website is mostly visited by consumers and mass media. There is a big interest in informational and educational consumer articles. From data available on the website visitors, it is obvious that the website is visited regularly by a certain group of readers who return to given problems (in appended tables stated as “visits”).

Website Visit Statistics in 2003

12.2 Internal communication

In 2003, the CAFIA also started to deal with its internal communication. An anonymous poll in which 70 p.c. of all employees participated on a voluntary basis revealed a need to pay a greater attention to the issues of information flows inside the Authority, information noses, but also e.g. staff motivation.

Throughout the year, the concept of internal communication was based on several basic steps:

• Meetings of the Director General with employees of all inspectorates, owing to which open dialogue could have been established;
• Creation of an anonymous mailbox on the corporate intranet designed for any questions addressed to the management (with the answers being published); and
• Launch of work on an internal electronic corporate newsletter.

In future, further series of personal visits of other top management members to individual workplaces are planned, as well as regular publication of an internal newsletter and a preparation of a company-wide meeting of all employees.