On 13 June 2023, representatives of the Hungarian government, the FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, the WHO Regional Office for Europe and Steve Wearne, the Chairperson of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, all offered speeches at the opening of the Plenary Session of the 42nd meeting of the Codex Committee on Methods of Analysis and Sampling (CCMAS42).

Márton Nobilis (pictured above) State Secretary responsible for food chain safety in Hungary welcomed delegates to the session and remarked on the “high, uninterrupted interest in the meeting” commenting that “this year’s meeting is attracting more participants than ever before, with 200 delegates from more than 60 countries and 15 international organizations attend[ing] in person”.

“The work of the various Codex committees has become one of the most important guarantees of food safety worldwide through the continuous development of international standards,” he said, and made it clear that these will be an important reference for the Hungarian government as it renews its food safety strategy this year. For this, “priority will be given to increasing the efficiency and reliability of laboratory work”, and CCMAS work will play an important role in this. He laid particular emphasis on the work to update the keystone text, standard 234, which “is vital for the daily work of professionals in laboratories and it is in the interest of all parties to have an up to date, clear, accessible standard that includes all accepted methods.”

Opening plenary session at CCMAS42, Budapest, Hungary, 13 June 2023

Nabil Gangi FAO’s Deputy Regional Representative for Europe and Central Asia commented that “working at the science-policy interface, and using the globally relevant advice from the joint FAO/WHO expert bodies, results in the setting of Codex standards that can be used by all Member Countries to facilitate safe trade.” He went on to speak of the importance of food safety to food systems transformation and outlined the four key points of FAO’s newly published food safety strategy. He also underlined the importance of a One Health approach to food safety, as well as the crucial contribution made by science and the FAO/WHO Scientific Advice Programme, which informs the work of Codex committees.

CCMAS Chairperson, Attila Nagy read out a statement from a representative of the WHO Regional Office for Europe, who was unable to attend. The message also emphasized the need for a One health approach, which they said, was receiving increased attention since the pandemic. 

In a  video message Steve Wearne said: “This committee is central to the work of Codex. For our standards to be used and for there to be confidence in the conformity of foods in international trade, we need reliable and standardised methods of analysis.” He said he hopes all Members will see the formulation of the upcoming Codex strategic plan as an inclusive process, but hopes that it will include questions about whether Codex is ”ready to take our proper place in multi-lateral discussions to advance more sustainable food systems."

Learn more

CCMAS42 meeting page including webcast link in three languages

Photo credit © Hungarian National Food Chain Safety Office