Welcoming delegates to the 32nd session of the Codex Committee on General Principles (CCGP) that is taking place virtually from 8 to 17 February 2021,  Julien Denormandie, Minister of Agriculture and Food, of the host country France said that in a world facing a major pandemic, the different stakeholders in the food sector everywhere face the challenge of producing healthy and good quality food in sufficient quantity, while at the same time coping with the risk of health, economic hazards [...]

More than a year has passed since the last time a Codex technical committee met. When the Task Force on Antimicrobial Resistance ended on 13 December 2019 in Pyeongchang, Republic of Korea, nobody could imagine that there would be a 14 month wait for experts to gather once again to continue their formal deliberations of Codex business. The task of kicking off the 2021 series of meetings, with plans currently for a virtual year and online sessions, has fallen to France [...]

A webinar taking place on 5 February 2021, 12:00-13:30 CET, entitled Feed safety – Good Practices for the Feed Sector Matter, will bring together experts from FAO and the International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF) to discuss the importance of feed safety in the sustainable production of safe food of animal origin. The event will also see the launch of a new manual on implementing the Codex Alimentarius Code of Practice on Good Animal Feeding. Primary producers, including farmers and the feed [...]

This year is going to be a big challenge for the Codex system as the technical committees that were suspended in 2020 due to the pandemic prepare to operate for the first time virtually. Experiences with the smaller Executive Committee and the success of the 43rd Commission have shown that both small and large groups can be brought together on line, but how easy will it be, operating virtually, to iron out more complex, technical differences on pesticides, contaminants or [...]

Close to 200 participants gathered online on 19 January 2021 for the first of two webinars aimed at building understanding on a Codex text currently being drafted in the Codex antimicrobial resistance task force (TFAMR). The text in question is the Guidelines on Integrated Monitoring and Surveillance of Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance which is being developed to assist governments when they design and implement their own AMR surveillance programmes. Typically, this type of programme will involve collecting and analyzing data from [...]

In 2021 a Food Systems Summit led by UN Secretary-General António Guterres will be part of what is known as the ‘Decade of Action’ to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. Speaking at the Executive Committee session on 14 January 2021, Jamie Morrison, Director of the Food Systems Programme in FAO, told delegates how the Summit aims “to generate a much better understanding amongst the public as to the importance of the choices they make” regarding the purchase, consumption [...]

Parent bodies applaud innovation in Codex, maintaining focus and momentum during the pandemic As the 80th session of the Executive Committee of the Codex Alimentarius Commission opened online on 13 January 2021, Maria Helena Semedo, Deputy Director-General of FAO, complimented Codex on its ability to quickly adapt to new efficient and effective virtual ways of working. During the pandemic, Codex standards have provided clear, immediate and effective solutions to protect supply chains and consumers and “together we have a chance to [...]

A webinar to discuss key issues on a Codex text regarding antimicrobial resistance (AMR), currently being drafted, will take place online on 19 and 20 January 2021. Working groups are established by Codex committees, usually to develop draft texts between sessions and traditionally operate by correspondence through online platforms such as forums and commenting systems. The suspension of formal physical committee meetings and the need to advance work, combined with experience and familiarity gained by many in participating in virtual events [...]

As 2020 drew to a close we asked Codex Secretary Tom Heilandt to look back on the year and these are his thoughts. What has been different about 2020? Just about everything! Travel went down from maybe 50 to three times.  Physical meetings, both Codex meetings and others were “virtually” non-existent. The last time, I met Codex members was at CCEXEC78 back in February, and our last physical Codex team meeting was at the beginning of March. So, everything was different, but [...]

The “Brexit” agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union reached on 24 December 2020 was described by EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen as a “fair and balanced” deal. The treaty is expected to receive the support of all 27 member states and will be “provisionally applied” at the end of the year. Chapter 3 of the agreement describes collaboration on sanitary and phytosanitary measures with the objective of “enhanced cooperation” in international organizations including the Codex Alimentarius. [...]