CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro (PIA) -- The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Oriental Mindoro provincial office encourages business establishments in the province to apply for Safety Seal Certification.

DTI Provincial Director Arnel E. Hutalla said the program aims to increase the confidence of the buying public in patronizing establishments that have safety and contact tracing protocols in place as required by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF).

In the official statement released by DTI, Hutalla said the Safety Seal Certification is a voluntary certification scheme which affirms that a certain establishment is compliant with the minimum health standards set by the government and uses or integrates its contact tracing with StaySafe.ph.

DTI issues the Safety Seal for groceries, supermarkets, construction supply/hardware stores, supermarkets, logistics service providers, service and repair shops as well as barbershops and salons.

During the recent conduct of on-the spot inspection of the Provincial Monitoring and Enforcement Team (PMET) of DTI on the products under mandatory certification, they checked and ensured that the products offered for sale by business establishments pass the standard for safety and quality.

PMET also informed and encouraged the monitored business establishments in Calapan City to apply for said Safety Seal Certification.

Products that were inspected include mechanical/building and construction materials, electric and electronic products, household appliances, and chemical and other consumer products.

The monitoring team found out that one firm was selling Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinders without the required markings while two firms were found selling fire extinguishers without the required DTI-issued license to engage in fire extinguisher business.

Hutalla advised the public to be vigilant in purchasing products by checking the Philippine Standard (PS) Mark or Import Commodity Clearance (ICC) stickers to ensure good quality of products and safety.  (LTC/PIA-OrMin)