Issue paper
Codex 2020 – What next for standards? Private sector looks post-COVID-19 – Safe food handling practices as important as ever
In a year characterized by unprecedented disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this publication records the steps the Codex Alimentarius has taken from July 2019 (CAC42) to September 2020 (CAC43) on the road to safe and quality food for everyone.
Over the course of the year, some Codex committees were able to meet as scheduled to discuss updates to international food standards, guidelines and codes of practice. Those meetings able to complete their work include the six FAO/WHO Coordinating Committees covering all regions of the globe. Meetings were suddenly halted in March 2020 and since then Codex has been breaking new ground with a first ever virtual Executive Committee meeting and this first virtual Commission. The “food code’s” governing body, known as the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), will make decisions on the committees’ proposals during a series of virtual sessions held over nearly four weeks.
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