WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/GEN/928 
11 June 2009 
 (09-2854) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd Phytosanitary Measures Original:   English 
  
 
INFORMATION ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION  
 
Submission by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex)
 
Meeting of 23-24 June 2009  
 
 
 The following communcation, received on 8 June 2009, is being circulated at the request of 
the Codex  secretariat. 
 
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I. CODEX SESSIONS SINCE THE LAST MEETING OF THE SPS COMMITTEE 
(25-26 FEBRUARY 2009) 
• The 30th Session of the Codex Committee on Methods of Analysis and Sampling (Budapest, 
Hungary, 9-13 March 2009);  
• The 41st Session of the Codex Committee on Food Additives (Beijing, China, 
16-20 March 2009);  
• The 3rd Session of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods (The Hague,  
Netherlands, 23-27 March 2009);  
• The 26th Session of the Codex Committee on General Principles (Paris, France, 30 March-
3 April 2009);  
• The 41st Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (Beijing, China, 
20-25 April 2009);  
• The 37th Session of the Codex Committee on Food Labelling (Calgary, Canada, 
4-8 May 2009);  and  
• The 18th Session of the Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods (Natal, 
Brazil, 11-15 May 2009).  
 
In particular, the SPS Committee may wish  to take note of the following: 
 1. The Thirtieth Session of the Codex Committ ee on Methods of Analysis and Sampling  agreed 
to forward to the 32
nd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission for adoption the draft 
Guidelines for Settling Disputes over Analytical (Test)  Results and the draft Guidelines on Analytical 
Terminology and to consider further at its next session the proposed draft Guidelines for Methods for 
the Detection and Identification of Foods Derive d from Biotechnology, the proposed draft Revised 
Guidelines on Measurement Uncertain ty and the question of sampling uncertainty.  In addition, the 
Committee endorsed several methods of analysis for inclusion in Codex Standards.  
2. The Forty-first Session of the Codex Committee on Food Additives agreed to forward to the 
Commission for adoption: draft and proposed draft food additive provisions of  the General Standard G/SPS/GEN/928 
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  for Food Additives (GSFA); proposed draft amendmen ts to the International Numbering System for 
Food Additives; proposed draft Specifications for the Identity and Purity of Food Additives; and Amendment to the Annex to Table 3 of the GFSA  to include the following footnote: “Acidity 
regulators, packaging gases, stabilizers and thicke ners listed in Table 3 are acceptable for use in 
fermented milks, heat treated after fe rmentation, as defined in the Codex Standard for Fermented 
Milks  (CODEX STAN 243-2003).  The Committee also agr eed to endorse the majority of provisions 
for food additives and procession aids forwar ded by the Committees on Processed Fruits and 
Vegetables, on Nutrition and Food for Special Di etary Uses and on Fats and Oils and by the 
FAO/WHO Coordinating Committee for Asia, with the exception of two provisions that were returned to the relevant Committees.  It further agre ed to prepare a further draft of the Guidelines and 
Principles for the Use of Processing Aids for consideration at its next session. 
3. The Third Session of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods  agreed to advance to 
the Commission for adoption: proposed draft Revision to the Preamble of the General Standard for 
Contaminants and Toxins in Food s (GSCTF) (CODEX STAN 193-1995); draft Code of Practice for 
the Reduction of Acrylamide in Foods; draft Code of Practice for the Reduction of Contamination of 
food with Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (P AH) from Smoking and Direct Drying Processes; and 
proposed draft Code of Practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Ochratoxin A Contamination in Coffee.  The Committee also agreed to submit to  the Commission the proposals for new work on 
Maximum Levels for Fumonisins in  Maize and Maize-Products and A ssociated Sampling Plans; Code 
of Practice for the Reduction of Ethyl Carbamate in Stone Fruit Distillates; revision of the Code of 
Practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Aflatoxin in Tree Nuts  (CAC/RCP 59-2005) (additional 
measures for Brazil nuts); and Maximum Le vels for Melamine in Food and Feed. 
4. The Twenty-fifth Session of the  Codex Committee on General Principles  agreed to forward 
the p roposed draft revised Code of Ethics for International Trade in Foods  (CAC/RCP 20-1979) to 
the Commission for adoption .  The Committee endorsed the nutritional risk analysis principles 
provided by the Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) and 
recommended their adoption by the Commission and endorsed two proposals (criteria approach: 
amendments and a new section a nd consequential amendment) fr om the Committee on Methods of 
Analysis and Sampling.  The Committee noted that promoting capacity building in developing countries was a vital work to be undertaken in orde r to ensure their greater participation in Codex 
work and agreed to report it to the 32
nd Session of the Commission for further debate. 
5. The Forty-first Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues agreed to forward 297 
proposed draft and draft revised Maximum Resi due Limits (MRLs) for 22 pesticides to the 
32nd Session of the Commission for adoption and propo sed to revoke 115 MRLs for 25 pesticides.  
The Committee forwarded to the Commission for adop tion the proposed draft revision of the Codex  
Classification of Foods and Animal Feeds for eight commodity groups which is essential for 
improved establishment of pesticide residues in f ood and animal feeds.  The Committee agreed to 
continue to identify and address issues related to minor uses and specialty crops including the 
elaboration of definitions of these terms and identif ication of priorities for minor uses and specialty 
crops for MRLs setting for their inclusion in the Pr iority List for their evaluation by JMPR.  The 
Committee also forwarded to the Commission the ame nded priority lists of chemicals scheduled for 
evaluation and re-evaluation by the FAO/WHO Jo int Meeting on Pesticides Residues from 2010 to 
2016 for approval as new work.  The Committee at its ne xt session will consider how to deal with a 
number of Codex extraneous maximum residue lim its (EMRLs) for persistent organic pollutants 
(POPs) that fall under the Stockholm Convention as this Convention phased out the use of these compounds. 
6. The Eighteenth
 Session of the Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods 
agreed to forward to the 32nd Session of the Commission for adoption: draft and proposed draft 
maximum residue limits (MRLs) for seven veteri nary drugs in various animal species/tissue  G/SPS/GEN/928 
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  combinations (avilamycin, dexamethasone, melengest rol acetate, monensin, narasin, triclabendazole 
and tylosin); and the draft Guidelines for the Desi gn and Implementation of National Regulatory Food 
Safety Assurance Programmes Asso ciated with the Use of Veterinary Drugs in Food Producing 
Animals, which would supersede the Guidelines for the Establishmen t of a Regulatory Programme 
for Control of Veterinary Drug Residues in Foods  (CAC/GL 16-1993) and the Code of Practice for 
Control of the Use of Veterinary Drugs (CAC/RCP 38-1993).  The Committee also sent to the 
Commission for adoption at Step 5 proposed draft MRLs for narasin and tilmicosin.  The Committee 
agreed to request the Commission to withdraw the Codex temporary MRL for tilmicosin in sheep milk and to discontinue work on MRLs for triclabendazole in goat tissues.  
II. FORTHCOMING CODEX MEETINGS 
• The 62
nd Session of the Executive Committee of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Rome, 
Italy, 23-26 June 2009);  
• The 32nd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Rome, Italy, 29 June – 
4 July 2009);  
• The 30th Session of the Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products (Agadir, Morocco, 
28 September - 2 October 2009);  
• The 3rd Session of the Ad hoc  Codex Intergovernmental Task Force on Antimicrobial 
Resistance (Jeju, Republic of Korea, 12-16 October 2009);  and  
• The 15th Session  of the Codex Committee on Fresh Fru its and Vegetables (Mexico City, 
Mexico, 19-23 October 2009).  
 
7. The Thirty-second Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission  will conduct its 
deliberations on the basis of he reports of the Executive Committee and other subsidiary bodies which 
have met since the 31st Session of the Commission (Geneva, July 2008).  It will consider a number of 
draft and proposed draft standards and related texts for adoption at Steps 5 or 8.  The Commission is 
expected to adopt several Codex standards and rela ted text, including the Microbiological Criteria for 
Listeria monocytogenes  in Ready-to-Eat Foods, Generic Model Official Certificate and 
Recommendations on the Scientific Basis of Hea lth Claims.  The Commission will consider the 
implementation of the Codex Strategic Plan 2008-2013 , including the evaluation of the capacity of the 
Codex Secretariat and the impact of co-hosting of Codex sessions in developing countries.  The 
Commission will also discuss financial and budgetary  matters; strategic pla nning; relations between 
Codex and other international orga nizations such as OIE and ISO; private standards; the developing 
country participation in the Codex process, includi ng the operation of the FAO/WHO Project and trust 
Fund for Enhanced Participation in Codex.  
8. The 30th Session of the Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products will consider draft 
Code of Practice for Fish and Fishery Products (S ections on Lobsters and Crabs including relevant 
Definitions).  The Committee will also consider the draft List of Methods for the Determination of 
Biotoxins in the Standard for Raw and Live Biva lve Molluscs, the proposed draft Standard for Fish 
Sauce and the Food Additives Provisions in Standards for Fish and Fishery Products. 
9. The 3rd Session  of the Ad hoc  Codex Intergovernmental Task Force on Antimicrobial 
Resistance will consider the p roposed draft Guidelines for Risk An alysis of Foodborne Antimicrobial 
Resistance, which consolidates three proposed draf t documents on: Risk Assessment of Foodborne 
Antimicrobial Resistant Microorganisms Related to Non-Human Use of Antimicrobials; Creating 
Risk Profiles for Antimicrobial Resistant Foodbor ne Microorganisms for Setting Risk Assessment and 
Management Priorities; and Risk Management to Contain Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistant 
Microorganisms. G/SPS/GEN/928 
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  III. CODEX MEMBERSHIP 
10. After the accession of Tajikistan and Djibouti earlie r this year, Codex membership stands at 
180 member countries and one member organization (the European Community). 
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