USDA announced a public meeting to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft U.S. positions that will be discussed at the 3rd Session of the Codex Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on antimicrobial resistance, which will be held in Jeju, Republic of Korea, Oct. 12 - 16, 2009. The public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., Room 107-A, USDA, Jamie L. Whitten Federal Building, 1200 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250. More information is available here. Documents and agenda items related to the 3rd Session of the Codex Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on antimicrobial resistance will be accessible here.
Public Meeting To Address Agenda Items For the 3rd Session of the Codex Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Antimicrobial Resistance
Can the multilateral institutions encourage unbiased outcomes?
Lee Ann Jackson and Marion Jansen have written, “Risk assessment in the international food safety policy arena: Can the multilateral institutions encourage unbiased outcomes?” (Jan. 2009). The working paper describes how food safety related scientific evidence is generated and how it is used in the context of risk assessment for international standard-setting at Codex and in WTO trade disputes. The authors also discuss the processes leading to policy conclusions on the basis of scientific evidence. They discuss the interactions between private and public sector actors and between "scientific experts" and others. Finally, they provide suggestions on improving the interactions and the transparency of the process.
Public Meeting To Address Agenda Items For The 15th Session Of The Codex Committee On Fresh Fruits And Vegetables
The USDA today announced a public meeting to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft U.S. positions that will be discussed at the 15th Session of the Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (CCFFV) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission. The public meeting will be held Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009, from 10 a.m. to noon, Room 2068, USDA South Building, 1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250.
Documents and agenda items related to the 15th Session of the CCFFV, which is hosted by Mexico and will be held Oct. 19-23, 2009, in Mexico City, Mexico, will be accessible here. Interested parties may submit written comments at the public meeting, or by e-mail to Dorian LaFond, International Standards Coordinator, AMS, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, at Dorian.Lafond@usda.gov. For further information about the public meeting, contact Doreen Chen-Moulec, U.S. Codex Office, Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA, by e-mail at Doreen.Chen-Moulec@fsis.usda.gov or by phone at (202) 205-7760 or fax at (202) 720-3157.
New Master Degree in Food, Society, and International Food Governance
The Institute for Food Laws & Regulations at Michigan State University announced a collaboration with the Open University of Catalonia on a new Master's degree in Food, Society, and International Food Governance. The program is designed for individuals interested in enhancing their understanding and analysis of agriculture and food policy, and increasing their understanding of the social, cultural and economic factors that influence and shape the development and enforcement of agriculture governance. This combination presents an opportunity to explore connections between the historical, political, scientific, strategic, and ethical considerations involved in the organization of food policy and agriculture internationally. The program trains students to identify and generate solutions for just and sustainable food systems.
In an agreement to be finalized, the UOC will recognize any two (2) of the MSU IFLR courses listed below (6 credits total) as equivalent to 15 ECTS (UOC credits). Thus, UOC would accept these credits as one fourth of the UOC Masters in Food, Society and International Food Governance. Students have the option of either enrolling in these courses through MSU's Lifelong Education Program first and applying the credits towards the UOC Master Degree, or students may enroll in the UOC program first.
The UOC would recognize the IFLR courses as follows:
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Courses may also be taken both for the Master degree and to satisfy the requirements for a Certificate from Michigan State University in International Food Law. Successful completion of four international food law courses required for the MSU certificate. Certificate holders may apply past MSU credits towards the new master's degree.
More information on the International Food Law Certificate Program is available here.
The Institute for Food Laws & Regulations at Michigan State University announced a collaboration with the Open University of Catalonia on a new Master's degree in Food, Society, and International Food Governance. The program is designed for individuals interested in enhancing their understanding and analysis of agriculture and food policy, and increasing their understanding of the social, cultural and economic factors that influence and shape the development and enforcement of agriculture governance. This combination presents an opportunity to explore connections between the historical, political, scientific, strategic, and ethical considerations involved in the organization of food policy and agriculture internationally. The program trains students to identify and generate solutions for just and sustainable food systems.
In an agreement to be finalized, the UOC will recognize any two (2) of the MSU IFLR courses listed below (6 credits total) as equivalent to 15 ECTS (UOC credits). Thus, UOC would accept these credits as one fourth of the UOC Masters in Food, Society and International Food Governance.
The UOC would recognize the IFLR courses as follows:
Courses may also be taken both for the Master degree and to satisfy the requirements for a Certificate from Michigan State University in International Food Law. Successful completion of four international food law courses required for the MSU certificate. Certificate holders may apply past MSU credits towards the new master's degree.
More information on the International Food Law Certificate Program is available here.
US Public Meeting on Codex Agenda Items
The Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture is sponsoring a public meeting June 8 to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft U.S. positions that will be discussed at the 32nd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, to be held in Rome, Italy, June 29-July 4, 2009.
Slow International Progress Toward Harmonized Audits
EAS e News (June 2009) reports on the recent Food Safety Summit technical sessions on third-party audits and the slow process of harmonizing international audits. Because there is an overlap between the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) and the Codex Alimentarius Commission's general principles of food hygiene, GFSI's proponents hope to use the overlap to gain easier international acceptance of GFSI's criteria.
“According to Mark Overland, corporate certification manager for Cargill, who moderated the sessions, general acceptance of the GFSI in the United States would require three key elements: a public audit standard instead of the numerous proprietary standards that exist; accreditation of audit bodies to the international standard; and auditors that are qualified to the international standard. . . . Codex Chair Karen Hulebak expressed concern about any moves to expand the international use of proprietary standards for third-party auditing. . . .”
The whole article is available here.
JECFA 2008 "blue book" on food additives
The Technical Report from JECFA's June 2008 meeting on various food additives has now been published and runs to 222 pages. Amongst the chemicals covered at this meeting were phytosterols, phytostanols and their esters, steviol glycosides and polydimethylsiloxane. A number of flavouring agents were also evaluated and revisions made to the specifications for several additives. WHO Technical Report Series 952.
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