Over 300 events and activities were organized in at least 90 countries to celebrate World Food Safety Day this year. The creative, informative and inclusive ways in which government authorities, food chain actors, consumers, academics and others worked to promote food safety have been captured in a 24-page report. This report, now available in all six official UN languages, was launched during a 24-hour ‘Tweet-a-thon for food safety’ led by the Codex Alimentarius Twitter account, @FAOWHOCodex, on 7 September. In hourly [...]

At midnight on 7 September 2021 the deadline passed for Codex Members to express their agreement that the Codex Alimentarius Commission could hold its forty-fourth session virtually and proceed with elections for the appointment of new officers. With 135 of the 126 preferences required, countries have once again endorsed the move to meet virtually to address priority matters. Voting will be conducted by appointment, through a physical secret ballot in Geneva, following the modality adopted by the recent FAO Conference for [...]

A webinar open to both Members and Observers will take place on Monday 20 September 2021 from 12:00 to 14:00 CEST and will provide an opportunity to engage with a variety of Codex observer organizations from the 240 currently accredited to the Codex Alimentarius Commission. “We see on a daily basis the contribution experts from observer organizations bring to Codex meetings and working groups and we are fully aware that without their contributions Codex may not be in a position to [...]

By Gyanendra Gongal    Regional Advisor (Food safety) WHO Regional Office for South East Asia Bhutan, India and Nepal have been implementing a Codex Trust Fund (CTF) group project since 2019. One of the major challenges the project is addressing is limited technical knowledge and expertise to run a functional National Codex Committee and participate actively in the Codex standard setting process. Nepal has been facing challenges to meet requirements for the export of indigenous agri products such as ginger [...]

A 24-hour ‘Tweet-a-thon for food safety’ will be held on 7 September, during which the report documenting World Food Safety Day 2021 in all six official UN languages will be launched.  Follow the Codex Twitter account, @FAOWHOCodex, for this virtual conversation starting at midnight (00:00 CET on 7 September 2021). Webinars, videos, attention-grabbing GIFs and artistic images created by international organizations, governments, businesses, non-governmental organizations and individuals involved and inspired millions of people across the world. Now, three months later, this day [...]

Over 400 delegates gathered on line for the opening session of the Codex Committee on Food Additives (CCFA), hosted by China and being held virtually from 1 to 10 September 2021. The efforts of the Codex Secretariat, the hosts themselves and the experts from many different countries who lead specific areas of work in the committee have ensured that despite the global pandemic the 52nd session will have a very busy agenda. Mr Jinfeng Liu (pictured), speaking on behalf of the Vice [...]

Hakim Mufumbiro Codex Regional Coordinator for Africa Partner States in the EAC - East African Community (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda) took part from 24 to 27 August 2021 in the 3rd extraordinary meeting of the EAC Codex Forum to specifically generate regional common positions in preparation to effectively participate in the 52nd Codex Committee on Food Additives, the 46th Codex Committee on Food Labelling and the 27th Codex Committee on Fats and Oils which are among the [...]

In 2021, Armenia’s Food Safety Inspection Body (FSIB) initiated two World Food Safety Day events: A webinar on 4 June that focused on national food safety issues and, a conference on 7-8 June in Aghveran with financial support of the Strategic Development Agency in collaboration with the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in Armenia (SDC). The virtual event included a presentation from Mary Kenny, FAO’s food safety and consumer protection officer and Peter Hoejskov, a technical officer from the WHO [...]

The Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR)wrapped up its 52nd session advancing new Codex Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for spices, seeds, fruits, and other commodities to the 44th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC44). These limits for pesticide residues in food are established by Codex based on a risk assessment and limits for safe intake set by an FAO/WHO international expert scientific group named Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticide Residues (JMPR). Gracia Brisco, the Food Standards Officer in the Codex [...]

The Ministry of Public Health of Qatar marked World Food Safety Day, which falls on 7 June, under the theme “Safe food today for a healthy tomorrow", and slogan "Food Safety is Everyone’s Responsibility." On this occasion, the Ministry organized a number of activities and events, including: Virtual Workshops Three workshops targeting family-run businesses over three days on: Introduction to Food Safety -Types of food contamination and sources Types of bacteria and where they’re found in food (e.g. Salmonella, E. Coli , Staphylococcus, Listeria and [...]