The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Agriculture, and Food and Drug Administration have announced an April 7, 2009, public meeting to discuss agenda items and draft positions for the Codex Alimentarius Commission’s 37th Session of the Codex Committee on Food Labeling (CCFL) slated for May 4-8, 2009, in Calgary, Canada. The CCFL “drafts provisions on labeling applicable to all foods; considers, amends if necessary, and endorses specific provisions on labeling of draft standards, codes of practice, and guidelines prepared by other Codex committees; studies specific labeling problems assigned to it by the commission; and studies problems associated with the advertisements of food with particular reference to claims and misleading descriptions.” In particular, the U.S. agencies are seeking public input about (i) draft codex standards for food labeling; (ii) the implementation of the World Health Organization’s Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health; (iii) guidelines for the…
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have announced a public meeting on March 5, 2009, to discuss agenda items and draft U.S. positions for the Third Session of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods (CCCF) slated for March 23-27, 2009, in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Part of the Codex Alimentarius Commission established in 1963 by the Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization, CCCF (i) sets maximum levels for contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants in food and feed; (ii) prepares priority lists of contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants for risk assessments by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives; (iii) considers methods of analysis and sampling for contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants; and (iv) establishes other standards and codes of practice for related subjects. Specific agenda items for the session also include: (i) a draft practice code for the reduction of acrylamide…
USDA, the Food and Drug Administration and the Office of the Undersecretary for Food Safety have announced a February 10, 2009, public meeting to develop draft positions on agenda items for the 41st Session of the Codex Committee on Food Additives (CCFA) slated for March 16-20, 2009, in Shanghai, China. Part of the Codex Alimentarius Commission established in 1963 by the Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization, CCFA (i) sets maximum levels for individual food additives; (ii) prepares priority lists of food additives for risk assessment by FAO and WHO experts; (iii) assigns functional classes to food additives; (iv) recommends specifications of identity and purity for food additives; (v) considers methods of analysis; and (vi) considers standards for related subjects such as food additive labeling. Specific agenda items for the session also include the Codex General Standard for Food Additives and the scope of its food categories. The…
The consumer advocacy group Food & Water Watch is calling on supporters to submit comments to the Codex Alimentarius Commission before its November 15, 2008, deadline on a proposal to allow an “acceptable” level of Listeria monocytogenes in food. According to the organization’s senior food organizer, “Those who are advocating this change argue that some Listeria monocytogenes in foods can be tolerated by most people and it is virtually impossible to guarantee the complete absence of Listeria monocytogenes in food. In Europe and Canada, where the weaker standard is already in place, there has been an increase in the incidence of consumers getting sick from foods contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes in recent years.” Apparently, the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene will debate the standard in early December. Food & Water Watch urges commenters to “Tell the Codex Committee that you are opposed to lowering food safety standards for imported foods.” The…
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have announced a November 4, 2008, public meeting to consider agenda items coming before the 17th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems (CCFICS). Slated for November 24-28 in Cebu, Philippines, the Codex session will address (i) the proposed draft “Principles and Guidelines for the Conduct of Foreign On-Site Audits and Inspections;” (ii) the proposed draft “General Model Health Certificate;” and (iii) the annex to the “Guidelines for Design, Production, Insurance and Use of Generic Official Certificates.” In addition, the committee will discuss “the need for guidance for national food inspection systems, the need for further guidance on traceability and product tracing, and the development of guidance on the prevention of international contamination of food,” according to USDA. Codex was formed in 1963 by the United Nations, the Food and…
