A) General Standard on Foods Produced Through Biotechnology
B) Consideration of Food Control Problems of Small Island Developing Countries in the Region
C) Report of an FAO Workshop on Risk Analysis Relative to Codex in the Region
76. The Delegation of the United States introduced an information paper[21] that outlined the historical development of discussions surrounding the issue of biotechnology in the context of Codex work. The Committee noted that the Draft Medium-Term Plan to be submitted to the 23rd Session of the Commission included consideration of work in this area. It was also noted that work in certain other forums was taking into consideration aspects of the use of biotechnology in food and agriculture, particularly environmental concerns. It was suggested that Codex should proceed rapidly with the development of guidance for governments in relation to the safety evaluation of foods produced through biotechnology, using the new mechanism of an ad hoc Intergovernmental Task Force for this purpose.
77. The proposal to address the food safety and nutrition issues surrounding foods developed though biotechnology was supported by the Committee. It was noted that several countries in the regions had developed or were in the process of drafting standards and guidelines in this area. It was furthermore noted that while Codex had been working on the labelling issues surrounding foods produced through biotechnology, labelling was not a substitute for safety evaluation. The Committee noted that the mechanism of establishing an ad hoc Intergovernmental Task Force was now available to the Commission. It was noted that such Task Forces were required to report to both the Commission and the Executive Committee on the progress of their work thus ensuring adequate supervision and coordination with the work of other Codex bodies.
78. In the light of the above discussion, the Committee expressed the opinion that work on the food safety and nutritional aspects of foods produced though biotechnology was appropriate for the Commission to undertake. It also endorsed the idea that the nature of such advice should be through the development of a general Standard covering these areas as was envisaged in the Medium-Term Plan. It recommended that an ad hoc Intergovernmental Task Force, reporting to the Executive Committee and the Commission and established for a limited duration, should be established for this purpose. It suggested that the preparation of an initial draft could be undertaken by those countries that had experience in this matter, including several of the countries of the regions and of Europe.
79. It was noted that this matter had been effectively discussed under Agenda Item 5.
80. The representative of the FAO Sub-regional for the Pacific Islands reported on the FAO Workshop on “Risk Analysis and Food Standards” held on 5 October 1998 immediately prior to the present session. The workshop, jointly sponsored by FAO and the Foreign Agriculture Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, contributed to ensuring the participation of the Codex member countries from the Pacific Region.
81. The principal objectives of the workshop were to provide the participants with an overview of the current status of risk analysis, the application of risk analysis principles in Codex work and the outstanding issues related to this subject. Presentations were made to the Workshop by speakers from the Codex Secretariat, the FAO Sub-regional Office for the Pacific Islands and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) office for the North West Pacific (Seattle District).
82. The Workshop examined a wide range of subjects related to Risk Analysis and Food Standards, including: definition of risk analysis terms; risk assessment; risk management; risk communication; difference between risk analysis and the HACCP system; the HACCP system and its application to seafood; risk analysis and Codex; and risk analysis and international food trade.
83. During the panel discussion that concluded the Workshop, the following observations were made:
84. The Codex Secretariat commented that the workshop was a very valuable and useful experience. The participants, despite risk analysis being relative new and complex, were able to grasp the subject well at the end of the workshop. Thanks were expressed to the Foreign Agriculture Service of the United States Department of Agriculture and to the FDA for their contribution to the workshop.
85. The Samoan delegation expressed its appreciation for the support received that allowed participation of the Pacific Island Countries to become more familiar with risk analysis and to participate in the 5th CCNASWP session.
86. The Committee noted the observations made at the conclusion of the Workshop.
