1. OIE National Focal Points for Animal Production Food Safety
Responsibilities of
OIE National Focal Points
for Animal Production Food Safety
Seminar for the OIE National Focal Points for Animal Production Food Safety
Abu Dhabi, UAE, 13 – 16 January 2014
You have been invited to attend this seminar because you are the nominated FP or the representative of the FP nominated by your OIE Delegate.
What will you get from being here?
Well, apart from getting to spend a few days in this amazing city, you will get the opportunity to meet and network with other OIE FPs for APFS and share experiences.
You will get to learn about:
- the key activities of the OIE wrto APFS
- the latest information an a number of important food safety pathogens AND
- some of you will get the chance to make a presentation and share some of your country experiences in controlling specific FS pathogens.
Gillian Mylrea
International Trade Department, Paris

2. What is Animal Production Food Safety?
It is ‘the management of food-borne risks to human health due to hazards arising from animal production (i.e. farm level to primary processing)’
OIE’s mandate (since when?)
But…to ensure a whole food chain approach to food safety, we must work together with Codex because..
Codex Alimentarius is the intergovernmental organisation responsible for setting standards to ensure safe food.
Who of you can tell us what is APFS?
It is ‘the management of food-borne risks to human health due to hazards arising from animal production (i.e. farm level to primary processing)’
OIE’s mandate (since 2001, when in the 3rd strategic Plan, it recommended that the OIE ‘should be more active in the area of public health and consumer protection," and this work should include "zoonoses and diseases transmissible to humans through food, whether or not animals are affected by such diseases", e.g. Salm E/T in poultry.
- this was also the time the APFSWG was created
The objective of this work is to improve the safety of the “whole food continuum" worldwide.
But, the OIE cannot do this alone, because to ensure the whole food chain approach to FS we must work together with the Codex Alimentarius,
Who knows what Codex Alimenatrius is?
Codex is the intergovernmental organisation responsible for setting standards to ensure FS 2

3. OIE CAC OIE / Codex coordination ‘farm to fork’
Standards to manage risks at the farm level:
1. Risks to animal health
AND
2. Risks to food safety,
i.e. food-borne risks to human health due to hazards at farm level to primary processing
OIE / Codex
coordination
‘farm to fork’
OIE
© ENSV
CAC
Standards for food production & quality during and more especially after the primary processing stage
To ensure safe food
Cooperation and coordination between OIE and Codex is so very important to ensure the whole farm to fork continuum is addressed in our standards.
The OIE has the mandate to develop standards to manage risks at the farm level, both
Risks to animal health
AND
Risks to food safety,
i.e. food-borne risks to human health due to hazards at farm level to primary processing
Codex develops standards for food production & quality during and more especially after the primary processing stage to ensure safe food.
© ENSV 3 3

4. Key roles of OIE Delegate and FPs
OIE Delegates are (inter alia)
contact point to the OIE
represents his/her country in the World Assembly of Delegates (the authority to adopt OIE standards)
inputs into the OIE standard development process
responsible for harmonising national regulations with OIE standards (and WTO SPS principles) and
informing OIE of the national animal disease situation.
Now to the Key Roles of the OIE Delegate and you, the FP for APFS
OIE Delegates, usually the CVO are:
contact point to the OIE, all correspondence between the country and the OIE is always via the Delegate.
represents his/her country in the World Assembly of Delegates (the authority to adopt OIE standards)
provides input into the OIE standard development process
responsible for harmonising national regulations with OIE standards and/or on a risk analysis, consistent with OIE standards (and WTO SPS principles) and
informing the OIE of the national animal disease situation.
The Delegate should designate National Focal Points to assist them in engagement with the OIE in key areas.
So, your role is to support your Delegate in their work regarding APFS and the OIE!
The Delegate should designate National Focal Points to assist them in engagement with the OIE in key areas 4

5. National Focal Points of the OIE
Aquatic animals
Animal disease information
Animal Production Food Safety
Animal welfare
Communications
Laboratories
Veterinary products
Wildlife
Since 2008, we have expanded the number of FP topics and now have 8 topics 5

6. CHIEF VETERINARY OFFICER
NATIONAL STRUCTURE FOR THE ANALYSIS OF OIE STANDARDS
DELEGATE
CHIEF VETERINARY OFFICER
The FP is nominated by the Delegate BUT may work within the VS or in another Ministry.
Q. Who works in the VS?
Q. Who works in another Ministry?
Important to note that all communications with the OIE are via the OIE Delegate.
FOCAL POINT
in the VS
FOCAL POINT
in other Ministries

7. Terms of Reference National Focal Point for Animal Production Food Safety
Who knows what the ToR for APFS FP are?
Look at the hand-out and identify the 4 key areas the FP for APFS is responsible for.
Discuss with your neighbour, whether you have been active in any of these areas of responsibility or how you could be.
Take 3 minutes!
The OIE has drafted some suggested ToRs for FPs but it is important that you discuss these with your Delegate and agree on what they want you to do to support them in their work for the OIE.
Who knows what the ToR for APFS FP are?

8. What have you come up with?

9. Terms of Reference for APFS FPs What are they?
Establish /communicate with a network of APFS experts;
Dialogue with the Competent Authority for APFS and facilitate cooperation, where responsibility is shared;
Receive reports from OIE and
Conduct in-country consultation and
Prepare comments for the Delegate
on proposals for revised OIE standards related to APFS, i.e. in reports of the Terrestrial Code Commission;
ensuring alignment with Codex
Establish / communicate with a network of APFS experts;
Establish a dialogue with the CA and facilitate cooperation, where responsibility is shared; e.g. VS and MoH;
Receive reports of OIE and conduct in-country consultations (e.g. with relevant partners, industries and stakeholders) and prepare science-based comments for the Delegate on OIE draft standards and related matters);
Because OIE and Codex may be working on the same pathogen, important also to be in contact with the Codex contact point in your country to ensure alignment of comments to OIE and Codex

10. Terrestrial Animal Health Code
includes standards for improving terrestrial animal health and welfare and veterinary public health worldwide.
for early detection, reporting and control of pathogenic agents, including zoonotic ones,
and preventing their spread via international trade in animals and animal products, while
avoiding unjustified sanitary barriers to trade
updated every year
includes cross references to Codex standardse where relevant (and vice versa).
You can see a large part of your role as a FP is to prepare comments on revised texts in the Terrestrial Animal Health Code.
Who uses the OIE Terrestrial Animal Health Code and knows what it is?
In a later PPT I will go into more details about relevant sections in the T Code.
For now, in brief, the TC includes….

11. Availability of Relevant OIE Reports
Terrestrial Code Commission (TCC) Reports:
TCC meet February and September each year
Reports are provided to the Delegate, then uploaded on the public OIE site
once public, OIE informs FPs of the reports availability
Reports specify what chapters require Member Country comments, (e.g. Ch 8.4. Infection with E.granulosus)
Reports specify the closing date for Member Country comments.
APFSWG Report:
APFSWG meet in October of each year
report is included in the February meeting report of the TCC
report is available on the OIE website on the section on APFS.
A role of the FPs is to comment on relevant OIE reports
The relevant reports you need to be aware of regarding APFS are: the reports of the TCC and the APFSWG

12. Important points:
Make arrangements with your Delegate to ensure you have early access to reports
decide what chapters are relevant to your country
undertake the consultation process (with relevant CAs and interested parties)
and ensure comments reach OIE prior to the deadline.

13. OIE Members can influence international standard setting
Members are primarily responsible for the setting and adoption of international standards
therefore Members should attempt to actively participate in the standard setting process

14. Thank you for your attention
Organisation mondiale de la santé animale
World Organisation for Animal Health
Organización Mundial de Sanidad Animal
12 rue de Prony, Paris, France