FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu met today with Guilherme da Costa, Chairperson of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, together with three Vice Chairpersons – Mariam Eid from Lebanon, Purwiyatno Hariyadi from Indonesia and Steve Wearne from the United Kingdom.

 

Guilherme da Costa said: "The Director-General expressed strong support for the work of Codex and for the importance of science-based international food standards."

 

The Director-General also highlighted that Codex activities should be more visible, tangible and efficient, unleashing their potential to ensure fair practices in food trade and to protect consumer health.

 

He strongly encouraged Codex Officers to strengthen their efforts to have more countries adopting Codex standards. With relation to developing countries, the Director-General mentioned the importance of capacity building, particularly on the African continent, as well as developing regulatory systems and establishing appropriate laboratories, for countries to be fully prepared and comply with the standards set by the Codex Alimentarius Commission.