Codex Malaysia planned a series of events to celebrate the 60th anniversary year of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, including a National Workshop on Enhancing Effective Participation in Codex and a Food Safety Seminar at the country’s Safe Food Expo 2022. 

National Workshop on Enhancing Effective Participation in Codex

Recognizing the contribution of the secretariats of the National Codex Committee (NCC) subcommittees, who drive and bring national interest to the Codex platform, Malaysia’s NCC conducted a workshop on Enhancing Effective Participation in Codex for our Codex Contact Point (CCP) and all national Codex committee secretariats. Experiences, challenges, and tips on participating in in-person Codex meetings were shared among the participants. Updates on Codex’s procedures were delivered using the Codex e-learning modules, and the session ended with a Codex meeting role-play session inspired by the 2018 FAO Regional Training Workshop on Enhancing Effective Participation in Codex.

Participants reported that “Such training is needed for the continuous capacity development of the NCC subcommittees, as well as to strengthen the network and interagency cooperation in the work of Codex Malaysia” and “This workshop really helps the secretariats of the NCC to understand how Codex works, as well as the roles of the NCC in Malaysia.”

Goal to Safer Food

The Food Safety Seminar 2022 was titled “Goal to Safer Food”. It was held on 26 October 2022, in Putrajaya, Malaysia, in conjunction with the first Ekspo Makanan Selamat (e-MAS) Malaysia or Malaysia Safe Food Expo 2022. Officiated by the Senior Director for Food Safety and Quality, Ministry of Health Malaysia, Ms. Norrani Eksan, the seminar was attended by over 140 participants from government and private agencies, as well as food industry players. Three Codex-related topics were presented: Codex’s role in food safety and quality control in Malaysia, the adoption of Codex standards, and how Codex benefits the food industry. The Codex 60th Anniversary was highlighted, marking the tremendous contributions Codex has made over the past 60 years towards protecting the health of consumers at the global, regional, and national level and ensuring fair practices in the food trade worldwide.

Participants were enlightened on the adoption of Codex standards and related texts in national law, on the promotion of the voluntary use of other Codex standards, and on food safety at the national and international levels. From the food industry’s perspective, representatives from the Federation of Malaysia Manufacturers (FMM) affirmed the important roles the Codex standards and related texts play in ensuring safe and wholesome food produced and sold in Malaysia as well as for export.

The seminar was a success in promoting and raising awareness about the significance of the Codex standards and related texts in bolstering food safety and quality control in Malaysia.

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Codex@60: It’s not too late to celebrate!

Codex@60 webpage

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