Survey on the Use and Impact of Codex Texts

The Codex Secretariat conducts a yearly survey for all Codex Members to measure the use and impact of Codex texts. Mandated to monitor this topic through the Codex Strategic Plan 2020-2025, in 2021 the Secretariat, in collaboration with FAO and WHO evaluation offices, began work on developing a mechanism to explore issues such as accessibility, relevance and credibility concerning Codex standards.

This survey, therefore, is one of the solutions to help Members and Observers better understand the impact, or potential for impact, of Codex texts.

Members are asked to respond to a series of questions on up to four standards adopted or revised by the Codex Alimentarius Commission in the period 2015-2020.

Codex Survey 2024 launch

FAQ

1. What is the purpose of the survey?

The survey seeks to examine the reach and usefulness of Codex texts and use responses to calculate their impact.

2. Who should answer the survey?

Each Member Country in Codex should answer the survey; one response per country. Codex Contact Points should coordinate how each country responds through their normal channels which could include convening the National Codex Committee or team.

3. How long does it take to complete the survey?

The design of the survey has been streamlined and completion should take less than one hour.

4. Which standards are being surveyed in 2024?

Code of Practice to Minimize and Contain Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance (CXC 61-2021)
Maximum Residue Limits and Risk Management Recommendations for Veterinary Drug Residues in Foods (CXM 2-2018)
Working Principles for Risk Analysis for Food Safety for Application by Governments (CXG 62-2007)
Principles and Guidelines for National Food Control Systems (CXG 82-2013)

5. How were these particular texts selected?

Codex texts adopted or revised by CAC from 2015 to 2020 that cover the range of Codex General Subject Committees or Task Forces.

6. Will the answers of a single country be published?

The survey data will be aggregated and analysis will be conducted at the global and regional levels to determine trends. No individual country responses will be shared.

7. Can I change my responses?

Yes, you can just click back on the survey and change or delete your answers. While the survey remains open, you can change any of your answers. Once the survey is submitted, you will no longer be able to change your responses.

8. What if I don’t have a full answer yet, can I save the survey and then go back?

No, there is currently no “save” option. But while compiling the survey, until it is submitted, you can go back and change a previous answer.

9. Can I obtain a pdf copy of the survey to circulate to my committee?

You can request a pdf copy of the survey in any of the 6 UN languages by writing to [email protected].

10. Why does question 6 offer the choice of answering on one or more Codex texts?

A country may not have data to share on all the standards listed but we hope they will answer on all those where that information is available.

11. What is the purpose of the detailed secondary questions on the texts?

The survey seeks to gather information on specific Codex texts where a country has data. This will complement the general questions found later in the survey.

12. When and how will the data be presented?

The preliminary results are presented at the subsequent Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), while the full report is usually available at the beginning of the next survey year.

13. How do you expect the data collected to be useful?

This is the first step in building a mechanism to monitor the use and impact of Codex Texts. Through this pilot survey, Codex will understand how to improve the process and the investment required.

14. What is the deadline for responses in 2024?

To ensure that preliminary results can be presented at CAC47, countries are urged to complete the survey by 25 October 2024.

15. Can a country provide additional information when responding to the survey?

There are numerous text boxes provided in the survey that a country can use to provide further context to your answers including the last survey question, where a country can provide concrete suggestions to improve the reach, usefulness, or use of Codex texts. Additional, written responses can be sent to [email protected] for inclusion in the survey analysis.