This World Water Day is a good day to remind ourselves of the important work being done by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) to ensure this precious and increasingly scarce resource is used wisely within food production and processing.

In 2023, CAC adopted the Guidelines for the Safe Use and Reuse of Water in Food Production and Processing (CXG 100-2023), which include new tools to help policymakers, food producers and processors determine when and how water can be safely reused within the food supply chain. This new document provides crucial guidance particularly to those operating in a resource-scarce context. With changing weather patterns across the world, water scarcity is a growing problem. As such, these Guidelines are a timely and vital addition to the Codex Alimentarius.

The text is designed to provide general guidance and, in the case of fresh produce, the dairy sector and fisheries, commodity-focused advice. Water quality is central to the safe production and processing of these commodities and the reuse of water is becoming increasingly important within these food chains. The adopted text already includes an annex for fresh produce, and the recent meeting of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH) in March agreed to forward the annex on milk and milk products, which has a strong focus on water reuse in the sector, to CAC47 for final adoption.

“Milk and milk products are an essential source of nutrition, and their production requires water for the animals to drink, for the pasteurization process and for cleaning equipment,” said Kris de Smet, Team Leader Food Hygiene, European Commission, and Chair of the electronic working group that worked on the annex. “The annex for milk and milk products of the Codex guidelines on the safe use and reuse of water provides concrete recommendations to ensure that the water used is microbiologically safe, and examples on how water can also be reused to provide safe and nutritious dairy products, even when water resources are limited.”

The annex on fish and fishery products will undergo further elaboration in time for the next CCFH meeting. CCFH also agreed to develop a fourth annex to the Guidelines, which will provide guidance on water fit-for-purpose assessment, safety management, and technologies for recovery and treatment of water for reuse.

Sarah Cahill, Senior Food Standards Officer at the Codex Secretariat said: “Water continues to be an important point of discussion in the context of food safety and the evolving global environment. These Guidelines are a first in terms of the contribution Codex can make to global efforts to address water scarcity and help ensure water is safe in the context of its use.”

Read more

Guidelines for the Safe Use and Reuse of Water in Food Production and Processing (CXG 100-2023) (Codex text)
Safety and Quality of Water Used in Food Production and Processing (meeting report publication, fao.org)
CCFH54 meeting page (webpage)
Safe water saves water - How new Codex Alimentarius guidelines can boost water conservation (fao.org Story)

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Honduras and the Development of Codex Guidelines on Water Use