76. The 31st Session of the CCFAC agreed on the goals and terms of reference of the ad hoc Working Group on Contaminants and Toxins and decided to reconvene the WG prior to its 32nd Session.[41] The ad hoc Working Group on Contaminants and Toxins was chaired by Dr. Torsten Berg (Denmark) and co-chaired by Dr. Cecilia Toledo (Brazil). Dr. Luba Tomaska (Australia) and Mr Niels B. Lucas Luijkx (The Netherlands) acted as rapporteurs.
77. The Codex Secretariat reiterated previous decisions of the Codex Alimentarius Commission that continued priority should be given to the Commission's horizontal science-based work and that it would continue to reduce its work on commodity-specific standards in favour of horizontal or general standards.[42]
78. The Chairman of the Working Group briefly summarized its discussions and proposed several general recommendations to the Committee, as follows:
Summary Schedule of Proposed Draft (Step 4) and Draft (Step 7) Maximum or Guideline Levels for Contaminants
79. The Committee agreed with the recommendation of the WG to create a new Schedule 1 to the Codex General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Foods (GSCT) containing proposed draft and draft maximum or guideline levels for contaminants in foods as well as an indication of their Step status. It was noted that Schedule 1 would not be added to the GSCT itself until the relevant levels were adopted by the Commission.
Future Status of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Contaminants and Toxins
80. The Committee decided to reconvene the ad hoc Working Group on Contaminants and Toxins prior to its next Session under the Chairmanship of Denmark.
