India hosted the third edition of the Global Food Regulators Summit (GFRS) 2025 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, bringing together over 3500 delegates from 59 countries to advance international cooperation on food safety, nutrition, and regulatory convergence. Organized by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Summit reinforced India’s role as a hub for global and regional regulatory dialogue. Over the years, participation from countries across all regions has steadily increased, as out of the total 59 participating countries, 15 were from the Asian region, of which 8 represented the Southeast Asia subregion, reflecting GFRS’s growing significance as a platform for sharing knowledge, best practices, and regulatory innovations. The Summit highlighted Codex’s leadership role in capacity-building, standards setting, and promoting harmonized approaches to food safety, trade, sustainability, traditional and novel food systems and risk assessment.

In his remarks, V. K. Paul, Member of the policy thinktank, NITI Aayog, Government of India, emphasized that “Food regulatory frameworks should encourage mutual recognition of equivalence between countries to avoid duplication and overlap. They should make use of digital tools, such as traceability systems, e-licensing, and data-driven inspections.” Shri Rajit Punhani, CEO, FSSAI, recalled the success of GFRS 2024 and acknowledged the collective efforts of international organizations, regulators, industry representatives, and scientists in advancing food safety globally. He highlighted the importance of such collaborative platforms in fostering knowledge sharing, best practices, and innovation, and conveyed gratitude for the continued support and commitment toward building a safer and healthier global food ecosystem.

India, through the Codex Trust Fund (CTF) has always promoted Codex activities in the region. Previously under CTF, India led a joint project with Bhutan and Nepal (2018–2023) and an inter-country workshop on “Enhancing Participation for Codex Activities (2024–25)”, empowering more than 40 government officials from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Timor-Leste.

Building on this momentum and in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), FSSAI introduced the “FSSAI–WHO Master Class on Food Safety and Risk Assessment”, a capacity-building initiative embedding Codex principles and WHO tools into national food safety systems, and trained regulators and scientists on hazard identification, exposure assessment, and evidence-based decision-making during GFRS2025. Led by experts from Codex, WHO, FAO and other international organizations including Moez Sanaa (WHO), Hilde Kruse (Codex Secretariat), Awilo Ochieng Pernet (Former Chairperson, Codex Alimentarius Commission, CAC), Diego Varela (Former Vice-Chairperson, CAC), Raj Rajasekhar (Former Vice-Chairperson, CAC and representing the Ministry of Primary Industries, New Zealand), Vincent Arbuckle (Deputy Director-General, New Zealand Food Safety), Peter Donelan (Standards and Trade Development Facility, STDF/WTO) and Alka Rao (Codex Contact Point, India)  – the Master Class highlighted the value of international collaboration in strengthening risk assessment capacity and regulatory harmonization. It also reinforced the importance of public–private partnerships in building resilient food systems.

By convening Codex leaders, FAO and WHO representatives, international regulators, and industry partners, GFRS 2025 reaffirmed Codex as the cornerstone of international food safety and trade. It demonstrated that collaborative platforms such as GFRS are essential to advancing science-based regulation, fostering innovation, enabling sustainability, and ensuring that both traditional and novel foods are regulated with transparency and trust. GFRS continues to emerge as a truly global and regional activity that strengthens food safety, innovation, and harmonization, while promoting inclusive growth through public–private partnerships and collective action.

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Codex centre stage as food regulators meet in Delhi for a stimulating summit
The Global Food Regulator’s Summit 2025 (GFRS 2025)