Foodlaw-Reading Dr David Jukes, The University of Reading, UK
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Food Law News - FAO / WHO / WTO / Codex - 2019

Codex Report, 8-12 July 2019

CODEX – Report of the Codex Alimentarius Commission Meeting

JOINT FAO/WHO FOOD STANDARDS PROGRAMME CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION Forty-second Session CICG, Geneva, Switzerland 8-12 July 2019 A copy of the full report is available on the Codex website (click on image).

The following is the Executive Summary giving some selected Decisions of CAC42:

CAC42 was attended by 538 delegates from 99 Member countries and 58 Observer organizations.

CAC42 adopted:

• Maximum residue limits (MRLs) for 32 different pesticides in various foods and feeds;
• 154 food-additive provisions of the General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA) (CXS 192- 1995) which were already in the step procedure and replacement notes to Note 161 which allowed the adoption of 111 revised food additive provisions for sweeteners; revised food additive provisions in 23 commodity standards and in the GSFA as part of the ongoing exercise on alignment of food additive provisions between commodity standards and the GSFA; and revisions to the Class Names and the International Numbering System for Food Additives (CXS36-1989);
• Maximum levels (MLs) for lead in selected commodities in the General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Food and Feed (CXS 193- 1995) with a consequential amendment to the ML for lead in wine;
• Guidelines for rapid risk analysis following instances of detection of contaminants in food where there is no regulatory level;  The Code of practice for the reduction of 3- monochloropropane1,2-diol esters (3- MCPDEs) and glycidyl esters (GEs) in refined oils and food products made with refined oils;
• Amendments to the Code of Practice for Fish and Fishery Products (CXC 52- 2003) to align with the Guidance for Histamine Control;
• The Preamble and document structure for the General Standard on Methods of Analysis and Sampling (CXS 234-1999);
• A Standard for dried or dehydrated garlic;
• The Section on moisture in the Standard for quinoa;
• Provisions for almond, flaxseed, hazelnut, pistachio, and walnut oils as well as palm oil with a higher content of Oleic acid (OXG) to be included in the Standard for Named Vegetable Oils (CXS 210-1999);

CAC42 held extensive discussions on the proposed draft ML for cadmium for chocolates containing or declaring <30% total cocoa solids on a dry matter basis and the inclusion of a provision for trisodium citrate in fluid milk (FC 01.1.1) in the GSFA. As there was no consensus on final adoption, these two standards will be further discussed in the relevant technical committees.

CAC42 approved ten new work items, including on allergen labelling, internet sales/e-commerce, a code of practice for the prevention and reduction of cadmium contamination in cocoa beans, and guidelines for the control of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) in specific foods.

CAC42 discontinued work on development of a standard for non-centrifuged dehydrated sugar cane juice and as consequence, the Codex Committee on Sugars (CCS) was adjourned sine die;

CAC42 discussed Codex work management and sustainable scientific advice from FAO/WHO and in particular:

• Endorsed the decision of CCEXEC77 to establish a sub-committee to develop practical guidance for Codex Subsidiary Bodies and their chairpersons on the operationalisation of the Statements of Principle Concerning the Role of Science to allow Codex to set standards that are needed by Members and are based on science, while acknowledging different situations in different areas of the world and to complement the guidance provided in the Measures to Facilitate Consensus.
• Adopted the Codex Strategic Plan 2020-2025, encouraged all Members to participate in the development of the work plan for its implementation over the next year, particularly during the FAO/WHO coordinating committees, and requested CCEXEC79 to present the proposed work plan for implementation of the Strategic Plan to CAC43;
• Acknowledged the valuable scientific advice work by FAO and WHO and supported the recommendations to FAO and WHO included in the discussion paper for the development of a new strategy for sustainable funding from FAO and WHO regular budgets for scientific advice in support of Codex activities.

CAC42 re-elected, as Chairperson, Mr Guilherme Antonio da Costa Jr. (Brazil) and, as Vice-Chairpersons, Mr Purwiyatno Hariyadi (Indonesia), Ms Mariam Eid (Lebanon) and Mr Steve Wearne (United Kingdom); and re-elected Egypt (Near East), United States of America (North America), and Australia (South West Pacific) and elected Tanzania (Africa), Japan (Asia), Germany (Europe), and Uruguay (Latin America and the Caribbean) as Members of the Executive Committee.