33. The Committee recalled that the Proposed Draft Amendment to the labelling provisions in the Standard for Quick Frozen Fish Sticks had been adopted at Step 5 of the Procedure at the 22nd Session of the Commission, which had not confirmed the Accelerated Procedure.
34. Several delegations and the Observers from the European Community, Consumers International and Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) expressed the view that mandatory declaration of the proportion of the fish core would allow consumers to make an informed choice. It was also suggested that the term "fish core" included other ingredients such as water and additives and therefore, the designation of the "fish content" was more appropriate. The Delegations of Japan, the United States and Canada stated that the labelling should be voluntary, as the composition of the product was already defined in the Standard, and it was difficult to maintain an exact percentage of fish core, and to ensure enforcement of such a requirement.
35. In reply to a question on the method for the determination of fish core, the Secretariat indicated that this question would be considered by the next session of the Committee on Fish and Fishery Products (June 1998).
Status of the Draft Amendment to the Labelling Section of the Standard for Quick Frozen Fish Sticks, Fish Portions and Fish Fillets - Breaded or in Batter
36. The Committee agreed to retain the mandatory provisions as proposed and advanced the Draft Amendment to Step 8 of the Procedure (see Appendix IV).
