Setting Standards for Food Quality.

"Codex" is a shorthand way of referring to the joint FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission and to its main body of work--a collection of international standards for food quality and safety that protect consumers and facilitate international trade. The words Codex Alimentarius are Latin and mean "food law" or "food code". The Codex Alimentarius Commission bas been developing international food standards since 1963, shortly after the establishment of a joint Food Standards Programme by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAQ) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The work of Codex is the preparation of international food standards, codes of good practice, labelling guidelines and many other recommendations that Governments can use to regulate international and domestic trade in food. These are all voluntary standards; there is no direct obligation on member Governments to apply Codex standards. However, the Uruguay Round Trade Agreements of the World Trade Organization (WTO) oblige countries to base their national food standards and regulations on Codex standards, unless the country concerned can show legitimate reasons for applying stricter or more comprehensive standards.

Food standards, in one form or another, have been in place for centuries, and their main objective has always been the same: preventing fraudulent practices and adulteration, protecting the consumer and facilitating the exchange of goods. Advances in food chemistry and microbiology in the nineteenth century led many countries independently to develop national food standards programmes, and by the time of the United Nations Conference on Food and Agriculture in 1943, it was recognized that the differences in national food standards had the potential to create barriers to trade in foods. Drawing upon initiatives in Europe to establish a regional Codex Alimentarius, FAQ established the international Codex Alimentarius Commission in 1961 and asked WHO to join it in a joint Food Standards Programme. The Commission first met in 1963 and has now held 23 meetings, the most recent one being in Rome in June/July 1999.

In the 1970s, the Commission tackled the issue of food labelling, including elements such as ingredient and additive listing, date-marking and the labelling of irradiated foods. In 1995, following extensive reviews of scientific evidence, the Commission declared that the use of hormones in beef production did not pose problems to human health and that trade in such products could proceed. The Commission is currently examining the status of foods derived from biotechnology and requirements for good animal feeding practices.

Food safety standards developed by Codex are all based on a complete review of scientific data and information by the long-standing Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives and the joint FAO/WHO Meetings on Pesticide Residues. These two bodies are composed of internationally renowned food scientists, toxicologists, veterinarians and other specialists who provide independent advice to FAO, WHO and Codex. On general consumer protection issues such as the prevention of fraudulent practices, Codex standards are recognized in the United Nations General Assembly Guidelines on Consumer Protection as forming the best basis for national policies and plans in regard to food. Codex standards have such a well-established reputation as an international reference, that in any debate on food quality and safety it has become customary for health officials, government food control authorities, manufacturers, scientists and consumer advocates to ask first of all: What does Codex have to say?

One of the most important benefits of Codex work is the way in which it can be used by developing countries to build up national food control programmes without having to spend excessive amounts of time and money to undertake the basic research that underpins each Codex standard. Like many UN bodies, Codex is intergovernmental in character; any member nation of either FAO or WHO may join the Codex Alimentarius Commission. There are currently 165 member nations. The Commission has a long history of cooperation with international nongovernmental organizations representing the food industry and trade, consumer organizations and special interest groups, and scientific professional associations. This cooperation enriches the work of the Commission by ensuring the scientific and technical soundness of its standards and their acceptability to the community at large.

Mr. Lupien is Director of FAO's Food and Nutrition Division and Randell is with the joint FAO/WHO Food standards Programme.