CAC44

GENERAL INFORMATION

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has made it impossible to convene physical meetings in 2021 and, in line with the agreement of CAC43, Codex subsidiary bodies and CCEXEC have been held virtually in 2021. FAO and WHO have determined that it is not possible to plan CAC44 as a physical session in 2021 and proposed that like CAC43, CAC44 be held virtually, subject to the endorsement of two-thirds of the Members of the Codex Alimentarius Commission.

Following the endorsement by more than two thirds of the Members of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), the 44th Session of the Commission (CAC44) will now be convened virtually. The virtual session of the Commission has been enabled by the agreement of the Membership to the suspension of Certain Rules of Procedure, details of which can be downloaded here. Members also endorsed the proposal to conduct elections by secret ballot through in-person voting by appointment in Geneva.

Additional dates have been added to facilitate the virtual discussions. CAC44 will meet in plenary to discuss the agenda items on 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15 and 17 November 2021, 12.00-15.00 CET.
Adoption of the report will take place on 18 November 2021, 12.00-15.00 CET. An additional session for the adoption of the report has been added as in the paragraph below.

The Appendices and draft List of Participants are already online.

Additional Session – 14th December 2021: 11:00 to 15:00h CET

To enable completion of report adoption, an additional plenary session (day 10 of CAC44) has been added. Access remains the same as for all previous CAC44 discussions. This final session will address the outstanding items of report adoption namely:
• Item 2 – Section on the CCEXEC recommendations on the path forward for the proposed MRLs on zilpaterol; and
• Item 11 - Other Business
In preparation for the session, written comments to facilitate improvement of the report have been requested through CL80 available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian. Written comments should be submitted by 23.45 h CET on Friday 3 December 2021.
A revised version of the report will subsequently be prepared by the Secretariat and published on this page in advance of the session on 14th December 2021.

ONLINE PRE-REGISTRATION

All participants should provide their information (names and addresses) through the online registration system by accessing the link below, latest by 31 October 2021.

Special note for Members:

In registering your delegation for CAC44 please indicate the individual in the delegation who will serve as your Voting Delegate and the individual who will serve as your Alternate Voting Delegate, noting that these individuals will need to be physically present in Geneva during the dates of the Commission in order to vote in the elections (e.g. individuals based at the Embassy or Permanent Mission in Geneva). Please use the drop-down menu for “Specific Role” in the online Registration Form to indicate this. Further information on the logistical arrangements for voting will be forthcoming. In the case of Members that do not have Representation in Geneva, the Codex Secretariat will be in contact regarding the options available for participation in the elections.

GUIDANCE FOR PARTICIPATION IN THE VIRTUAL CAC

The Codex Secretariat has prepared guidance for members and observers to facilitate the smooth running of CAC44. This guidance is available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian. For more information see the Information for Delegates webpage.

CAC44 ELECTIONS

All information on CAC44 elections and voting process are available here.

Please find more Information for Voting Delegates here available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian.

Timeslots for voting are available on the right column.

PARTICIPATION OF GENERAL PUBLIC

CAC44 will be streamed in six languages at the links below. Members of the General Public who wish to follow the proceedings can do so via the webstream.

WEBSTREAMING

Links to CAC44 Webcast are here available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Russian. Last session of 14/12/2021 is available in English only.

All sessions of the CAC44 including the elections will be streamed in 6 languages through the links above. As we have a limitation of 1000 delegates who can join the meeting by zoom we strongly recommend that delegates that are not directly supporting their heads of delegations follow the meeting webstream.

Information event on CAC44

A webinar was held on 21 July 2021 to give countries an update on plans for (CAC44).
Download the webinar audio: English, French, Spanish and read the related news item here.
An informal survey of participants to the webinar on the challenges and benefits of virtual working and considerations for future meetings of codex is available here.

Questions and Answers based on queries arising during the webinar on the endorsement process and the related logistics are available here.

TENTATIVE CAC44 SCHEDULE

TIMESLOTS FOR CAC ELECTIONS

RESULTS
Election of Chairperson – Report of ballot
Election of Vice-Chairpersons – Report of ballot