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. There is special mention for the role of certification movement, for the movement of goods across borders, with a commitment on both sides to “promote the implementation of electronic certification and other technologies to facilitate trade”.

The treaty also provides a commitment on antimicrobial resistance and within the approved framework for dialogue the parties agree to continue collaboration in the implementation of international recommendations including the Codex Code of Practice to Minimize and Contain Antimicrobial Resistance (CAC/RCP 61-2005), currently undergoing revision in the Codex AMR task force.

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Download 28 December draft text

Codex and AMR

Sanitary and phytosanitary measures at the World Trade Organization