The 18th session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, held in 1989, agreed to establish a new Coordinating Committee for North America and the South West Pacific, bringing together, in the words of the New Zealand delegation "far flung countries ... which have many common interests".
CCNASWP is a remarkably diverse region combining fully mature economies such as the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand with 10 small island states. The largest of these is Papua New Guinea (population over 7 million) and the smallest, the Cook Islands and Nauru with populations of around 10 000.
The regional coordinator is based within the Fijian Ministry of Agriculture.
Fiji looks forward to applying standards at the national level and supporting all countries in the region, especially the small island developing states, to establish a sound policy framework for food safety. These initiatives will support improvements in public health, ensure that imported food is safe and of the expected quality and develop increased access to international markets.
The regional coordinator will continue supporting work on regional standards and seeks to strengthen participation of the region in Codex in general. This can be achieved by continuing to develop capacity at the national level by enhancing the role of national coordinators and contact points for increased and effective participation in Codex
In collaboration with Environmental Health Australia (EHA), the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) of the United States of America will present a series of live discussions for World Food Safety Day, with regulators from around the world. The discussions will explore the interconnectivity of food safety and how food is kept safe in communities across the globe.
NEHA President and Registered Environmental Health Specialist, Roy Kroeger, said "June 7 is World Food Safety Day. This day reminds us that we all [...]
National Center for Environmental Health in the Division of Environmental Health Science and Practice at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States publicized World Food Safety Day and the Guide for organizers through its Environmental Health Nexus newsletter. The newsletter was released in Spanish and English.
On June 7, the Twitter handle of the National Center for Environmental Health/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (NCEH/ATSDR) posted awareness messages about eating safely after an emergency or disaster [...]
Papua New Guinea’s World Food Safety Day celebrations were launched a week before the day itself, on 2 June at Iarowari Agro Technical School. “It’s my business, it’s your business, and it’s our business to ensure the food we produce and consume is safe,” attendees were told. Later, on 8 June, representatives from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) joined celebrations, which included a visit to Wardstrip Primary School and KilaKila Secondary School. The main focus [...]
On 7 June this year, the Fijian Ministry of Agriculture dedicated itself to ensuring its staff and the general public were not only aware of World Food Safety Day but also that they understood the significance of ensuring food safety “to inspire action to help prevent, detect and manage foodborne risks.”
The Ministry, which is home to the country’s National Codex Alimentarius Committee, involved every department from accounts and human resources to animal health and agricultural statistics, in celebrating World Food [...]
Over the past 2 days, June 7 and 8, 2021, food safety leaders from across North America joined the North American Food Safety Summit, and I had the privilege of being one of the hosts for the event along with my friend, Dr Darin Detwiler at Northeastern University. Setting up a web cam feed that works for camera angles and manages all the scripts and notes effectively takes creativity. To get a good camera angle, I set up a step [...]
One of the first World Food Safety Day events this year took place in Australia in an event jointly hosted by Environmental Health Australia (EHA) and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) of the United States of America. The aim of the event was, over a 24-hour period, to talk with food safety regulators from around the world to get an idea of the different – and similar – challenges, approaches and practices encountered in different countries.
The Australian half of [...]
Environmental Health Australia (EHA) and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) in the USA have teamed up to host a 24-hour live event for World Food Safety Day. “Have you ever wondered what food safety looks like in other countries?” they are asking prospective viewers – and for those who have, there will be answers from all over the world.
The Facebook live event will kick off with an opening address from Frank Yiannas, Deputy Commissioner for Food Policy and Response [...]
Students and staff at Kansas State University’s Food Science Institute are gearing up to raise food safety awareness in a variety of ways. KSU students from around the world have already prepared a video explaining why food safety is important and a podcast has been recorded for the University’s Global Food Systems podcast series. The discussions in this 7 June podcast cover subjects ranging from human food safety behaviours, cultural contributions and foodborne illness to global child mortality and antimicrobial [...]
Representatives of countries of the North America and South West Pacific (NASWP) region met virtually on 23 November 2020 to update the regional work-plan for implementation of the Codex Strategic Plan until CCNASWP will reconvene, tentatively early 2022. Addressing over 25 participants, in opening remarks Vice-Chairperson of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, Steve Wearne, UK, said “all Members had a voice in the adoption of the new Strategic Plan and all Codex actors now have a shared responsibility for its implementation”.
Delegations [...]
The Codex Alimentarius Commission approved a standard for kava products for use as a beverage when mixed with water today.
“The work started way back in 2004 in Apia, Samoa, and has taken 16 years to get here,” explained the representative of Vanuatu on behalf of the FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for North America and South West Pacific (CCNASWP), the region where the standard will be used.
Kava is part of the culture and the economy of the Pacific Islands. The root of [...]
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