1. Tom Heilandt Acting Codex Secretary
The role of international standards in promoting food safety alongside international trade
Tom Heilandt
Acting Codex Secretary

2. Overview Importance of international standards to trade
Importance of the science base/Risk analysis
Codex risk management process
New developments
Conclusions

3. Different consumption of “product x” in countries A, B and C

4. Different standards Country A standard: 0.15 residue
Country B standard: 0.1 residue
Country C standard: 0.05 residue
A and B cannot export to C

5. Different production of “product x” in countries A, B and C

6. Result: difficult to trade
Importers cannot get what they need
Producers cannot export
 Needs are not fulfilled

7. Ways out Adhoc: A, B and C negotiate and find a compromise
But is this safe and fair? Or just haggling with safety as others do with prices?
What if not only 3 parties involved but A, B, … Z?
Sustainable, safe and fair: Find a neutral broker to create a global public good for use by everyone

8. Based on science = Risk analysis
What is the risk? (Risk assessment - science)
What do we do? (Risk management)
How do we talk about it? (Risk Communication)

9. 1963 WORLD
FAO
WHO
MANDATE: to protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade
CODEX

10. CODEX FAO/WHO think tanks Members 2014 WORLD Impact? Needs? Strategy
National standards
Member
project
Process
Result
WTO
Reference
FAO/WHO
science
Networks
2014 WORLD
Impact?
Needs?

11. New developments to adapt to
World moving fast – more countries enter into the world food market
Different and new threats to health e.g. food fraud, double burden etc.
International consensus takes about 4.2 years
Private standards that are not based on science and use safety as marketing tool.

12. Conclusions
A neutral broker is needed to define the rules that govern fairness and safety of international food trade
Codex has this role now
The world is changing
Codex needs to change and has all the mechanisms to do so.
Let’s do it.
2019/4/26