As 2022 draws to a close, the Chairperson of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, Steve Wearne, United Kingdom looks back on the outcome of the 45th Commission meeting.

How would you describe the outcome of your first Commission and the return to a physical meeting?

The return to physical was marked for me by the incredible positive energy when people met on the first day, many for the first time in two or three years.  I saw this energy sustained through the animated discussions in the margins.  Although virtual participation drives inclusivity, we have not found any virtual equivalent of these chats in the corridor or over coffee and, for me, these informal exchanges often hold the key to unlocking compromise and the prospect of progress.  I’m sure they contributed to the success of the meeting in terms of adoption of standards and endorsement of new work – the core task of the Commission.

As Chair, I’m also pleased we managed to complete all of our business in a mammoth series of discussions which took 32 hours over five days.

What worked well?

Even though some of our discussions saw Members fail to reach a consensual agreement and led to the Commission voting on advancement of a standard for the first time in a decade, I’m pleased that discussions throughout were amicable, rules-based and mutually respectful.  The vote went smoothly, thanks to behind-the-scenes preparation by the FAO Elections Officer, Codex Secretariat and others, and people were transfixed by the new LCD “scoreboard” in the plenary hall, which many of us saw in operation for the first time.

There is often, in my experience, a dip in energy once we have completed considering the work of Codex committees and move on to standing discussion items such as finance and reports from FAO and WHO.  I’m pleased that was not the case on this occasion – an FAO colleague remarked to me that feedback he had received was the most useful ever at a Commission meeting.  There was a real sense that the work of FAO and WHO, and their contributions to ensuring the productivity of Codex through scientific advice and other programmes, is truly valued by Members.

What will you be looking to change in the future?

I know that Tom Heilandt, the Codex Secretary, has some thoughts on how we might change our approach to report adoption. By the time we finish, this will have taken eight hours of virtual discussion and two rounds of online comments to resolve even though delegations to whom I spoke agreed without exception that the Codex Secretariat had produced a very good initial draft.  It doesn’t feel like an efficient and value-adding process at present.

For my part, I’ll be looking to work with the Codex Secretariat to plan and manage the agenda for CAC46 in Rome next year so that we avoid the dreaded “night session”, as delegates’ energy almost visibly ebbs away during our seventh, eighth and ninth hours of plenary discussion in a day.  We also, or course, need to leave time and opportunities to mark the 60th anniversary of the first CAC meeting, to celebrate and to look to the future.

Learn more

Watch webcasts from CAC45

Read the draft report