COVID-19 and the related response from governments across the globe has led to the postponement or cancellation of numerous Codex subsidiary body meetings scheduled to be held in 2020. However, food safety remains an important issue and the Codex Secretariat is working together with Host Secretariats, Chairs of Committees and Chairs/Vice-Chairs of Electronic Working Groups (EWGs) to ensure that the standards development work can continue even if the committees cannot meet this year. Tom Heilandt, Codex Secretary confirmed that electronic working groups [...]

As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to interrupt the meeting and events schedules of all organizations worldwide, the Codex Secretariat in conjunction with the governments that host Codex meetings has announced that eight meetings have either been postponed or cancelled, calling into question whether the Codex Alimentarius Commission will go ahead in Rome, Italy in July 2020. In an extended interview, Codex Secretary Tom Heilandt explains the contingency plans being put in place to mitigate the loss of meetings from the Codex [...]

The host secretariat of the Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods (CCRVDF) has confirmed that the upcoming session, due to be held in San Diego, USA from 25-29 May 2020 has been postponed due to the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19. In collaboration with the Codex Secretariat, discussions are underway to explore if the meeting could be rescheduled for early 2021 at the same location. Further details on new dates and on the work of the committee will be published [...]

La Secretaría del Codex ha anunciado que, de común acuerdo con las respectivas secretarías de los países anfitriones del Comité sobre Contaminantes de los Alimentos (CCCF), el Comité sobre Sistemas de Inspección y Certificación de Importaciones y Exportaciones de Alimentos (CCFICS) y el Comité sobre Métodos de Análisis y Toma de Muestras (CCMAS), ha decidido cancelar sus reuniones debido al brote del COVID-19 en curso. “Dada la creciente gravedad de la situación, teníamos que proporcionar información clara a quienes se están [...]

En las reuniones del Codex participan expertos de todo el mundo y el calendario para 2020 comprende 15 comités programados en múltiples lugares en cinco continentes. En las orientaciones internas de la FAO para el personal, incluida la Secretaría del Codex, emitidas a raíz del brote del COVID-19 se establece que los viajes se limitarán a “misiones fundamentales y viajes esenciales en los que el tiempo apremia”. Esto significa, por ejemplo, que el taller previsto en Francia del 27 al 29 [...]

La Secretaría del Codex junto con las secretarías hospedantes de los comités del Codex están siguiendo la evolución de la situación relativa al brote de COVID-19 y están evaluando las posibles repercusiones que ello tendrá en las próximas reuniones del Codex. Publicaremos información actualizada sobre el estado de todas las reuniones del Codex que estaban programadas para que se celebraran entre marzo y junio de 2020 apenas esté disponible, y un informe ulterior de la situación será facilitado como muy tarde [...]

Due to the exceptional circumstances related to the expansion of the COVID-19 outbreak in France and in different parts of the world, serious consideration had to be given regarding the scheduled Codex Committee on General Principles (CCGP), due to be held in Bordeaux from 23-27 March 2020. The host government, France, through the CCGP Secretariat and in agreement with the Codex Secretariat regret to announce that CCGP32 has therefore been postponed. Information regarding new dates and the venue will be published as [...]

Madagascar is continuing its efforts to build the capacity of its members with the support of the Codex Trust Fund. A four-day training workshop in Antananarivo from 24-27 February 2020 set out to integrate new members and provide a refresher for more experienced members. The workshop also dealt with the redefinition of priority committees for Madagascar, the formulation of national positions, preparation for sessions as well as the use of online Codex tools. After this training, Madagascar will further improve [...]

Over 1 000 food safety stakeholders from around the world gathered in Seattle, USA this week for the 2020 Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) Conference, which also marked the 20th anniversary for the GFSI. Action is more urgent than ever. Addressing the conference, Peter Freedman, Managing Director of the Consumer Goods Forum said 2020 marked a moment of change in governance and strategy for GFSI. “Action is more urgent than ever”, he said, citing the climate advocate Greta Thunberg. “Our agenda remains [...]

The World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), meeting from 26-27 February 2020, in Geneva Switzerland at WTO headquarters, seeks to ensure that technical regulations and standards, including packaging, marking and labelling requirements do not create unnecessary obstacles to trade. Just as with the Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement, the TBT Agreement encourages members at all levels of development to participate in relevant standard-setting bodies. This is important to ensure that these bodies produce standards on products [...]