97. The 10th Session of the CCRVDF requested[42] Australia to revise the document considered[43] in light of the Committee's discussion and comments submitted for circulation and comment prior to the current CCRVDF meeting. Due to time constraints, comments were not requested and therefore, comment summary paper CX/RVDF 98/8-Add. 1 was not issued.
98. In presenting the document, the Delegation of Australia noted that it included an executive summary of the Joint FAO/IAEA Expert Consultation on Validation of Analytical Methods for Food Control[44] (Vienna, Austria, 2-4 December 1997). It was also noted that the conclusions and recommendations of the Consultation were discussed at the ad hoc Working Group on Methods of Analysis and Sampling immediately prior to the current meeting.
99. The Delegation of Australia suggested that two recommendations of the Consultation concerning full collaborative studies for methods used for determining compliance with international and other standards as well as matters related to the suitability of laboratories undertaking validation were important points for the Working Group on Methods of Analysis and Sampling. Those systems specifically mentioned were good laboratory practice and the ISO/IEC Guide 25. The equivalence of method criteria, accreditation of personnel and the lack of expertise and confirmatory technology in developing countries were felt to be other important issues to be considered by the Working Group.
100. Several delegations were of the opinion that the Committee should focus its efforts on other priority issues directly applicable to its terms of reference, especially in consideration of the work undertaken by other international bodies and Codex committees. The status of such texts under the WTO Agreements was also questioned.
101. The Delegation of Australia agreed to prepare a revised version of the discussion paper based on the above discussions for consideration by the Working Group and the full plenary Session at its next meeting. The delegations of Canada, France, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the representatives of OIE and WVA agreed to assist Australia in this effort.
102. The Committee agreed that the Working Group should more thoroughly examine the above document, the Consultation report and the work of other international organizations and Codex committees (i.e., CCMAS, CCPR) when discussing this issue.
