In a preview webinar held on 22 September 2022 ahead of the 6th session of the Codex Committee on Spices and Culinary Herbs (CCSCH), taking place from 26 September to 3 October, Chairperson Dr M.R. Sudharsan, India, said the committee had learnt from its experience of operating virtually and many issues on standards being considered had been resolved by working groups meeting before the plenary sessions. “Now we are more focused, and hope delegates also have gained experience by attending [...]

The AMR Codex Texts (ACT) project “Implementation of Codex standards to support containment and reduction of foodborne antimicrobial resistance” was recently presented in two regional meetings of the Mongolian Veterinary Medical Association (MVMA) on August 2-3 and August 6-7, 2022.  These two conferences were organized by the MVMA branch councils of the Bayankhongor and Zavkhan provinces in cooperation with the Department of Veterinary Services and the FAO office in Mongolia.  “Veterinarians were introduced to the goals and activities of the project, and [...]

In preparation for CCFICS26, the electronic Working Group (eWG) for Equivalence is convening a CCFICS Equivalence virtual workshop on 21 September 2022, 12.00 to 14.30 CET, open to all Codex Members and Observers. Equivalence is a complex issue and building understanding and consensus takes time.  There have been multiple rounds of consultation and comments via physical and electronic working groups and at several CCFICS meetings since 2014.  The event will provide an opportunity for informal discussion of the two separate but parallel [...]

An online event hosted by the Codex Secretariat at 12:00 CEST on Tuesday 20 September 2022 will see the launch of a new Codex survey to measure the use and impact of Codex standards. This survey, developed with the evaluation units of FAO and WHO will seek valuable input from countries on the reach, usefulness, and how a sample of Codex texts are used. The data will contribute to monitoring under the Codex Strategic Plan 2022-2025. The event will bring together [...]

The international conference "Artificial Intelligence (AI) for detecting food fraud" was held on 13 September 2022 in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan. The conference was organized by the FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for Europe (CCEURO) of the Codex Alimentarius, the European Center for Peace and Development of the United Nations University for Peace (ECPD), the International Food Standards Certification Organization (IFSCO), with the support of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The conference, attended by 1680 participants from Europe and Asia adopted a [...]

Would you like to know more about how to strengthen the food safety system in your country? The growing population worldwide, the increase in food demand, the consequent growth of the food industry, added to global health risks, demonstrate the importance of incorporating food safety into national policies and strengthening the food safety systems. Foodborne diseases generate great impacts on the health of the population.   The Phyto and Zoosanitary Regulation and Control Agency of Ecuador (AGROCALIDAD), as the base of the FAO/WHO Coordinating [...]

Les champions qualité, les membres du Codex Forum national et les représentants d’autres organisations impliquées dans le contrôle de la qualité viennent, avec l’appui de la FAO au Burundi, d’être formés et sensibilisés du 24 au 25 aout 2022 sur les activités menées par le Codex Alimentarius au niveau international, régional et national afin d’obtenir leur adhésion. Cette activité a été suivi par une réunion du groupe technique de travail pour l’opérationalisation et la mise en œuvre du Manuel de [...]

The FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for Africa opened virtually from Kampala, Uganda on Monday 5 September 2022. In opening remarks, Hon. Ms. Harriet Ntabazi, State Minister for Trade, Uganda, called for harmonization of food safety standards across the continent. “If we merge as Africa and talk one language, if we concretize our standards together then the level of competitiveness as a continent will grow … in other markets.” Hon. Mrs. Margaret Muhanga Mugisha, State Minister for Primary Health Care, welcomed nearly 200 [...]

In celebration of World Food Safety Day – 7 June 2022, the FAO office in Tajikistan led a scientific conference on the theme "Safer food, better health" with the participation of the national Committee on Food Safety (CFS), Association of Veterinaries of Tajikistan (TVA), scientific institutions, World Health Organization (WHO) and other stakeholders. Issues related to food safety, prevention of zoonoses, AMR were discussed during the conference. The organizers recognize, in particular, Dr Eran for support. The conference was attended [...]

by the Regional Coordinator of CCLAC   The Codex Coordinating Committee for Latin America and Caribbean (CCLAC) has concluded its "Regional Workshop for the popularization of Codex Alimentarius work in CCLAC countries 2020-2022". The purpose of the workshop was for the different countries of the region, to share experiences and activities related to Codex work, such as meetings attended, events held and the different areas of interest in which they are working. Similarly, the workshop extended messages about the importance of countries’ participation [...]