The Codex Alimentarius Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) opened 26 November in Berlin, Germany. Speaking at the opening session before a record number of 420 delegates from Member countries and observer organizations, Hans-Joachim Fuchtel, Parliamentary State Secretary in the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, reminded the committee of its dedication to those with special nutritional needs and therefore in need of special care. Fuchtel told delegates that achieving “a well-balanced nutritional diet for a growing world population is an enormous challenge which the international community can only tackle collectively” and that this was the thinking behind the UN Decade of Action on Nutrition 2016-2025. With over 151 million children under 5 years affected by insufficient nutrition and suffering from growth and development disorders Fuchtel recognised that the decrease in global incidences was slowing down but not at a rate that would enable countries to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goal targets by 2030. The committee will be discussing follow-up formula; ready-to-use foods for children affected by severe acute malnutrition; a Proposed Draft Definition for Biofortification and a series of other matters relating to nutrition labelling, food additives and harmonized probiotic guidelines for use in foods and dietary supplements as well as a new item on “bodybuilding foods”. Read more on the CCNFSDU40 meeting page Learn about Nutrition at WHO and FAO Photo credit CCNFSDU/AS