19 – 24 April 2010

CODEX - 42nd Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues, Xian, China

The summary and conclusions of the 42nd Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues are as follows:

MATTERS FOR ADOPTION BY THE 33RD SESSION OF THE COMMISSION

Adoption of MRLs and other related texts

• Adoption of draft and draft revised MRLs at Step 8, including proposed draft MRLs at Step 5/8, for pesticide/commodity combinations (paras 28 – 85 and Appendices II and III);
• Adoption of proposed draft MRLs at Step 5 for pesticide/commodity combinations (paras 28 – 85 and Appendix IV);
• Adoption of the proposed draft revision of the Codex Classification of Foods and Animal Feeds for three commodity groups at Step 5 (para. 105 and Appendix X).
• Adoption of the proposed draft revision of the Principles and Guidance for the Selection of Representatives Commodities for the Extrapolation of MRLs to Commodity Groups at Step 5 (para. 116 and Appendix XI).

Revocation of MRLs

• Revocation of Codex MRLs for pesticide/commodity combinations (paras 28 – 85 and Appendix V);

Discontinuation of work

• Discontinuation of work on the establishment of MRLs for pesticide/commodity combinations (paras 28 – 85 and Appendix VIII).

Approval of new work

• The pilot project in which JMPR would conduct an independent, parallel review along with a global joint review team and recommend MRLs before national governments establish MRLs in 2011 (para. 202).

MATTERS OF INTEREST TO THE COMMISSION

The Committee:

• agreed to retain several draft and proposed draft MRLs at Step 7 awaiting for JMPR evaluation (paras 28 – 85 and Appendix VI);
• agreed to return several draft MRLs to Step 6 for further comments and consideration at its next session (paras 28 – 85 and Appendix VII);
• agreed to retain the proposed draft revision of the Codex Classification of Foods and Animal Feeds for eight commodities at Step 7, awaiting finalization of the revision of other commodity groups in compliance with the decision of the earlier session of this Committee (para. 96 and Appendix IX);
• agreed to return the draft Guidelines on the estimation of uncertainty of results for the determination of pesticide residues to Step 3 for additional comments and consideration at its next session (para. 123 and Appendix XIII);
• agreed to return the Risk Analysis Principles applied by the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues for additional comments, redrafting, and consideration at its next session (paras 150 – 152);
• agreed not to revise all EMRLs for POPs and consider the status of Codex MRLs for lindane at the next session of the Committee (paras 131-133);
• agreed if the OECD requests any input on further developments of the calculator, the Codex Secretariat would circulate this request to all Codex Member Countries (para. 138);
• agreed to continue to identify priority minor uses and specialty crops for MRL setting and to prepare proposals for definitions of minor use and specialty crops for consideration at its next session (para. 163);
• agreed on the priority list of pesticides to be evaluated by JMPR, for adoption by the 33rd Session of the Commission (para. 186 and Appendix XII); and
• agreed to retain the Guidelines on the Portion of Commodities to which Codex MRLs apply and which is analyzed (CAC/GL 41-1993) as a single document (para. 190), and consider the status of a list of analytical methods for pesticide residues on the IAEA website at its next session (para. 194)