WORLD TRADE G/SPS/GEN/50
10February 1998
ORGANIZATION(98-0481)
Original: English Committee onSanitary andPhytosanitary Measures
DRAFT ECREGULATION -AFLATOXIN CONTROL
Submission byTheGambia
Thefollowing letter, addressed totheEuropean Commission, wassubmitted bytheRepublic
ofTheGambia on4February 1998, withtherequest thatitbebrought totheattention oftheCommittee
onSanitary andPhytosanitary Measures.
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WeareawarethattheWTOCommitteeonSanitaryandPhytosanitaryMeasureshasbeennotified
byyourselves(notificationG/SPS/N/EEC/51dated8January1998)oftheDraftCommissionRegulation
amending Commission Regulation No.194/97 of31January 1997setting maximum limits forcertain
contaminants infoodstuffs, including groundnuts. Weareequally aware that15February 1998 has
beensetasthefinaldeadline forcomments tobesubmitted from interested parties.
TheGambia, being predominantly anagricultural country, relies mostheavily ontheproduction
andexport ofgroundnuts. Groundnut trade contributes about 80percentofthedomestic exports of
TheGambia, andgroundnut production serves asthebackbone economic activity oftheruralpopulation
(about 60percent) ofthecountry.
Having reviewed theproposal oftheEuropean Commission, TheGambia wishes toputon
record itsgreatest concern thattheCommission doesintend to,rather unjustifiably, reduce themaximum
acceptable limits foraflatoxin content ingroundnuts fromaCodex Committee onFood Additives and
Contaminants (CCFAC) recommended levelof15ppbtotaltoanew10ppbtotal.
TheCommission 'sproposal would effectively restrict entry ofTheGambia 'sgroundnuts, and
essentially thegroundnuts from producer countries inthedeveloping world, totheEuropean Union
through increased rejections (20percent-30percent) ofThird World exports. Onthebasis of
established studies andresearch, TheGambia firmly believes thattheCodex recommended levelsatisfies
thehealth concerns oftheCommission relating toaflatoxin content ingroundnuts since ithasbeen
established thatanaflatoxin levelof15ppbpresents nodanger toconsumers. Anyattempt tovary
thealready acknowledged andrealistic maximum levelwould notonlycreate aqualitative andunilateral
scientific trade barrier, butwould becreating anunfair advantage andprotection fortheEuropean
Union.
Itshould alsoberecalled thattheEuropean Union hadblocked theCCFAC recommendation
of15ppblevelofaflatoxin inedible rawpeanuts onthestrength ofthefactthattherecommendation
should await thereport oftheJointExpert Committee forContaminants andFood Additives (JECFA).
NowthatJECFA hasproduced itsreport exposing effectively thatnodanger accrues fromanincrease
intheacceptable limitofaflatoxin content toeven20ppb,itstands toreason thatthecurrent Codex
maximum of15ppbiswellwithin justifiable limits torelegate theCommission 's10ppbasuntenable.
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Theover-estimation bytheCommission ofthepotency ofaflatoxin isalsoapparent when oneconsiders
thatHepatitis Bhasbeenvirtually eradicated inEurope -acondition which, when combined with
Aflatoxin, could eventually increase theinherent riskofprimary livercancer.
Additional tothereasons advanced fornotaccepting theECproposal, there istheissue of
theECproposed sampling technique which further creates amuch wider inconsistency withthe
acknowledged andwell-practised sampling planderived from theFAO technical consultation on
"Sampling plans forAflatoxin analysis inpeanuts andcorn". TheFAO planusesasingle sample of
20kilograms fortesting theAflatoxin content while theECproposal callsforthree samples, under
amultiple analysis plan, tobetested prior totheacceptance ofalot.Thisproposal would notonly
implicitly create significant rejections ofgood products, butwould haveamaterial impact onimport
costs andEUconsumer prices without increasing consumer protection whatsoever.
Having saidthis,Iamtoconvey theexpressed reaction oftheGovernment ofTheGambia
thatintheinterest offairandundisrupted world trade, maintenance ofconsistency inestablished health
riskstandards, andthesignificance oftheECproposal onthesocio-economic wellbeing ofcountries
inthedeveloping world inparticular, theEuropean Commission should review thenewproposal and
adopt theJECFA recommendations. TheJECFA recommendations donotcompromise health risks
whatsoever, while theCommission proposals would notleadtoanydiscernible health protection of
EUconsumers.
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