04.01.11
Food safety is moving quickly to the top of agendas of food law regulators, as new and evolving regulations are adopted around the world, according to international food policy consultancy EAS. Xavier Lavigne, food law manager with EAS, said the European Union’s (EU) continued strengthening of its food safety regulation and the recent adoption of a new act on food safety in the U.S. demonstrate a trend toward heightened food safety awareness globally. “The EU, for example, has been further harmonizing rules on additives, enzymes and flavors, and is continuously revising the EU-harmonized authorized contaminants and pesticides levels,” said Mr. Lavigne. “With the United States’ new act on food safety, one can see two different philosophies and legal frameworks towards the same goal. This will ultimately strengthen the trend towards food safety at the global and Codex Alimentarius level.”
The changes triggered in Codex are important, he added. “As the WHO/FAO international monitoring body, its standards and guidelines have a significant impact on the 183 countries in the global arena that make up its membership. The Codex Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems, for example, is currently developing guidelines on national food control systems. This discussion is still at an early stage, but developments in the EU, U.S. and the Association of South East Asian Nations will certainly speed up the rate at which it moves along.”
The changes triggered in Codex are important, he added. “As the WHO/FAO international monitoring body, its standards and guidelines have a significant impact on the 183 countries in the global arena that make up its membership. The Codex Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems, for example, is currently developing guidelines on national food control systems. This discussion is still at an early stage, but developments in the EU, U.S. and the Association of South East Asian Nations will certainly speed up the rate at which it moves along.”