The challenges and opportunities posed by the emerging issues in agrifood systems identified by FAO’s foresight programme were outlined at a side event of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Food in Utrecht on Tuesday 18 April. The role Codex might play in providing guidance on new foods and new food production systems was discussed by a panel that included Vittorio Fattori, FAO Food Safety Officer, Daniela Battaglia, FAO Animal Production Officer and Ong How Chee from the Singapore Food Agency, [...]

Each Codex Committee meeting in 2023 is being invited to mark the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Codex Alimentarius Commission. Following events earlier this year in Fiji, the United States of America, Germany and China, on Monday 17 April 2023, the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods (CCCF) welcomed delegates attending the session to a reception at the meeting venue in Utrecht, Netherlands (Kingdom of the ). Sally Hoffer, Chairperson, in recalling the history and work of the Committee said [...]

Delegates gathered in Utrecht, Netherlands (Kingdom of the) on Monday 17 April 2023 to take part in working groups on a range of technical topics that will be on the agenda in the full plenary of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods (CCCF16) which begins on Tuesday 18 April. Ahead of the session, the Codex Secretariat spoke to Brazil who led work on establishing maximum levels (MLs) for lead in certain food categories, beyond those already covered by the General [...]

The Codex Secretariat has published the 28th edition of the Codex Alimentarius Procedural Manual on its website. This release not only incorporates the recent technical additions agreed by the Commission but presents the content in a new format and design in line with the Codex 60th anniversary overall rebranding of Codex texts, as well as with FAO and industry publishing standards. “The 28th edition of the Procedural Manual, with its new format and colourful layout, is a dazzling piece of work [...]

Representatives from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety reviewed the progress and priorities of the project “Action to support implementation of Codex AMR Texts (ACT)” at a consultation meeting earlier this March.   Attending the session, Tom Heilandt, Codex Secretary, said: "We are happy to implement the ACT project with the support from the Government of Korea. This year Codex is turning 60. This project is one of the [...]

The Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) met virtually on 15 March 2023 to successfully adopt the report of the session, sending the “Standard for Follow-Up Formula for Older Infants and Product for Young Children” for final adoption by the Codex Alimentarius Commission in November this year. The Chairperson of CCNFSDU Anja Brönstrup, Germany, congratulated the committee on its work, the milestones achieved and the special willingness amongst delegates to complete topics some of which, such [...]

This International Women’s Day, 8 March 2023, the UN is calling on governments, activists and the private sector alike to power on in their efforts to make the digital world safer, more inclusive and more equitable. The Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU), taking place in Duesseldorf, Germany from 7 to 10 March has much to celebrate with women the focus of a hugely successful start to the session. The first day of discussion saw the [...]

The World Food Safety Day 2023 campaign has started today, with the theme “Food standards save lives”. The theme coincides with the 60th anniversary of Codex Alimentarius this year and encourages food safety advocates around the world to focus on the importance of applying standards in every aspect of food production - from the source to the table. The launch saw the publication of this year’s guide in all six UN languages, which provides information on the theme and Codex Alimentarius, [...]

On 5 April 2023, the FAO/WHO Scientific Advice Programme will release a new publication entitled “Food safety aspects of cell-based food” in a webinar that is open to Codex Members and Observers. Animal-based meat production has evolved over thousands of years to meet the demand for safe and affordable sources of protein. Cell-based food production, which is the field of growing animal agricultural products directly from cell cultures, is being explored as a sustainable alternative or complement to conventional livestock [...]

The Codex Guidelines for ready-to-use therapeutic foods, or RUTF, have been published in the revised format which is part of the drive in the Codex Secretariat to enhance the availability of all Codex standards, guidelines and codes of practice. By the implementation of a digital object identifier (doi) –which remains unique over the lifetime of a document, even when its location and other metadata may change – the Secretariat is aligning its texts to industry standards and taking advantage of [...]