4) The Committee was informed of the conclusions and action taken by the Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Dietary Uses (scientific basis for health claims) and the Committee on Fish and Fishery Products (declaration of fish content) in reply to the requests of the CCFL, as presented in the working document.
Committee on Methods of Analysis and Sampling
5) The Committee noted that the CCMAS had considered its request concerning methods of analysis for foods derived from biotechnology and agreed that it should exercise a general coordinating role as regards methods for the detection or identification of such foods, taking into account also the work of relevant international organizations in this area. The Chair of the CCMAS (Professor Biacs, Hungary) indicated that the next session of the Committee (November 2002) would consider methods for foods derived from biotechnology as required, including the proposals that would come from the Intergovernmental Ad Hoc Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology.
Committee on Natural Mineral Waters
6) The Committee noted the request from the CCNMW concerning fluoride content and agreed that the Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses would be more competent to address this question from the nutritional point of view in a first stage, and that the CCFL might consider labelling aspects later if required.
7) As regards the question concerning water used in the preparation of infant foods and formula, the Committee noted that the CCNFSDU was currently revising the Codex Standard for Infant Formula and agreed that the questions raised by the CCNMW should be addressed in the revision of the Standard, which included a section on Information for Use.
8) The Delegation of Senegal pointed out the problems related to infant feeding in Africa, especially in relation to water use and contamination, and the Committee recognized the importance of addressing these questions in the revision of the Standard for Infant Formula.
9) In reply to questions concerning the presence of contaminants, and especially lead in water and infant formula, the Secretariat informed the Committee that the Committee on Food Additives and Contaminants had advanced to Step 8 several maximum levels for lead in foods, including infant formula (0.02 mg/kg).[2] The Committee also noted that the Draft Standard for Bottled/Packaged Waters Other than Natural Mineral Waters provides that “all packaged water shall comply with the health-related requirements of the most recent WHO Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality”.[3]
Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology
10) In addition to the matters mentioned in the document, the Committee noted that the Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology (Chiba, Japan, March 2001) had advanced to Step 5 the Proposed Draft Principles for the Risk Analysis of Foods Derived from Biotechnology and the Proposed Draft Guidelines for the Conduct of Food Safety Risk Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Plants. It had agreed to use the term “modern biotechnology” as defined by the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity to ensure consistency, and asked the CCFL to give consideration to using the same definition in its work, although some delegations and observers were of the opinion that for food labelling purposes it may be appropriate to use terms and definitions that were easier for consumers to understand[4]. The Task Force had also considered available analytical methods, and agreed that there should be a collaborative exchange with the CCMAS with a view to CCMAS considering the validation of methods of analysis and ultimately their endorsement, and had agreed to inform the CCFL of its progress in this area.
11) The Delegation of France referred to the discussion on traceability in the Task Force and pointed out that the work of the CCFL in several areas, especially organically produced foods and genetically modified foods, reflected the importance of traceability throughout the food chain. The Committee noted that the Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems had asked the Commission to consider traceability from a general perspective in order to provide guidance to relevant Committees and to ensure a harmonized approach throughout Codex, on the basis of a paper prepared by the Secretariat.
12) The Committee had an exchange of views to decide whether it should take specific action concerning traceability. Many delegations and some observers expressed the view that this was an essential aspect of the work of the Committee, and proposed that the Committee should inform the Commission of its wish to participate actively in future work on traceability.
13) The Delegation of Argentina recalled that the last session of the Committee on General Principles had discussed traceability and “looked forward to receiving the advice of the Commission on this matter and drew attention to its role of ensuring a consistency of approach of such matters throughout the Codex system. It looked forward to contributing positively to the future development of this topic” (ALINORM 01/33A, para. 15).
14) Several delegations, including the United States, stressed that it was premature to undertake any work in the Committee before the Commission had given clear direction to Codex Committees on how to proceed in this area, especially as this appeared to be a controversial subject. The Committee agreed that it should be kept informed of further discussions on traceability in the Commission and Codex Committees.
