Over 400 delegates joined online for the opening session of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH52) which runs from 28 February to 9 March 2022, hosted by the United States of America from Washington DC.

In opening remarks, Steve Wearne, Chairperson of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, applauded the committee’s “appetite for advancement of consensus-driven and science-based standards and texts, and the willingness to compromise where necessary in the interests of Codex and the people everywhere that our work will protect.”

Codex Secretary Tom Heilandt said “the edifice of food hygiene in Codex is amazingly well constructed both with general guidance and specific texts and you continue to develop new standards looking into the future.”

The meeting will focus on guidance on management of biological foodborne outbreaks; guidelines for the control of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) in a range of foods; an approach for the HACCP (hazard analysis and critical control points) process in the Codex general guidelines for food hygiene, and another text on the safe use and re-use of water in food production.

The discussion on water “exemplifies our adaptation to the food safety challenges posed by changes in the world around us,” said Wearne.  “Water is a dwindling resource worldwide and water in food production should be managed in such a way that the safety of food is ensured, while avoiding unnecessary consumption and waste.”

The meeting is being chaired by Emilio Esteban, Chief Scientist in the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service.

Learn more

Visit the CCFH52 meeting page for all working documents and draft texts.