REPORT OF THE WORKSHOP ON RISK ANALYSIS AND FOOD STANDARDS[10] (Agenda Item 9)

52) The Chairman of the Workshop reported on the FAO/ILSI Workshop on "Risk Analysis and Food Standards" held on Monday 7 December 1998 in Montevideo, Uruguay, immediately prior to the 11^th Session of the Codex Coordinating Committee for Latin America and the Caribbean.

53) The principal objectives of the workshop were to provide the participants with an overview of the current status of risk analysis in Codex, the application of risk analysis principles in a number of Codex committees dealing with food safety, and the outstanding issues related to this subject. Presentations were made in the Workshop by speakers from the Codex Secretariat, the FAO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, a FAO Consultant and the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI).

54) The Committee recognized:

• The need to exchange general information in the area of Risk Analysis, application of HACCP and Codex Alimentarius, through the intensification of information activities and strengthening of national Codex structures such as National Committees and Codex Contact Points;

• The need to have Codex documents in Spanish in a timely manner, with an appropriate translation corresponding to the original initially presented (the same document), to be studied by countries in order to determine their national positions;

• The need to train trainers not only in HACCP as has been the case so far, but also including risk analysis in training programmes. In this sense, it was pointed out that the organization of common activities between FAO and other international organizations would be useful in the development of such courses. The Representative of ILSI expressed the willingness of the ILSI Risk Institute to participate in these efforts;

• The problems of the application of HACCP in small and medium-sized industries were stressed, with special emphasis on micro-industry, as well as the need for a concerted position on this question at the regional level. In this respect, the necessity to initiate work to develop Good Manufacturing Practice in this type of industry was emphasized;

55) The Committee recommended:

• That governments should update national legislation in order to incorporate Risk Analysis in their revision;

• The establishment of integrated programmes for the Region to evaluate microbiological risks, beginning with Salmonella sp. (focus of contamination, recounts, etc.).