The codex alimentarius is an international code of food standards developed by the codex alimentarius commission codex, under the united nations, as a joint program of the food and agriculture organization fao and the world health organization who. Ccfa invites members and observers to join an ewg chaired by the united states, working in english, to work on the. This page contains an index of individual food additives or food additive groups indicated. Food and drug administration center for food safety and applied nutrition office of food additive safety fcc stakeholders forum may 9, 2019. Codex committee meeting of the codex committee on food. Codex committee on food additives fiftieth session xiamen, china, 2630 march 2018 division of competence between the european union and its member states according to rule of procedure ii paragraph 5 of the codex alimentarius commission agenda item subject matter document reference 1 adoption of the agenda member states competence. General standard for food additives gsfa to the 52. On july 31, 2019, the codex alimentarius has implemented the new general standard for food additives gsfa by updating gsfa 1921995 the updates discussed in the 42 nd session of the codex alimentarius commission cac of july 812, 2019 in geneva, switzerland, had already been highlighted in april. Request for general information on the availability of data related to nitrates and nitrites 51st session jinan, china, 2529. Codex committee on food additives ccfa general standard for food additives. Organization who established the codex alimentarius commission cac in 1963. Codex alimentarius to revise the general standard for food additives 2019 posted by nevena vujosevic on aug 2, 2019 on july 31, 2019, the codex alimentarius has implemented the new general standard for food additives gsfa by updating gsfa 1921995. Food additives db gsfa online codexalimentarius fao. The harmonization of international food standards has been a major objective of the codex alimentarius commission since its creation in 1962.
The updated version of the codex general standard for food additives gsfa online, incorporating the outcome of the 31st session of the codex alimentarius commission, is now available on codex website in english, french, spanish and chinese new. The consensus included i the first colour provisions. The codex general standard for food additives gsfa, codex stan. Food and agricultural organization fao has released an updated version of its general standard for food additives gsfa under the codex alimentarius. Fao publishes revised codex standard for food additives tuv sud. Request for comments at step 3 on the proposed changes andor addition to the international numbering system for food additives cxg 361989. Codex general standard for food additives gsfa online. The european community made a reservation to the entry on the level of 600 mgkg of benzoates ins in food category. Cxc 792019 code of practice for the reduction of 3monochloropropane1,2 diol esters 3mcpdes and glycidyl esters ges in refined oils and food products made with refined oils. Joint faowho expert committee on food additives jecfa. Codex general standard for food additives gsfa online database. The preamble of the gsfa contains additional information for interpreting the data. It is defined by codex alimentarius, the international food standards organisation of the world health organization who and food and agriculture.
Codex provisions concern the hygienic and nutritional quality of food, including microbiological norms, food additives, pesticide and veterinary drug residues, contaminants, labelling and presentation, and methods of sampling and risk analysis. The codex alimentarius commission was established in 1963 by the world health organization and the food and agriculture organization of the united nations to develop international food standards to protect consumer health and to facilitate fair trading practices in foods. General standard for food additives gsfa should be the single authoritative reference point for food additives. International symposium on safety and uses of food additives, hong kong, china march 16, 2014 presented by. Jan 31, 2018 the joint faowho expert committee on food additives jecfa, is the international body responsible for evaluating the safety of food additives. Codex develops international food standards, guidelines and codes of practice for an international food code that contributes to the safety, quality and fairness of food. The codex alimentarius, or food code is a collection of standards, guidelines and codes of practice adopted by the codex alimentarius commission.
Its texts are developed and maintained by the codex alimentarius commission, a body that was established in early november 1961 by the food and agriculture organization of the united nations fao, was joined by the world health organization who in june 1962, and held its first session in rome in. Basically, the matter of food additives may be discussed on a largescale level by means of the description of the general standards for food additives codex alimentarius commission, a harmonised, workable and indisputable international standard. Codex develops international standards relating to the maximum levels of certain substances in foods such as food additives, contaminants and other substances. Jecfa serves as an independent scientific expert committee which performs risk assessments and provides advice to fao, who and the member countries of both organizations, as well as to the codex alimentarius. The following is a list of food additives as organized by the codex alimentarius committee. Only food additives that have been evaluated and deemed safe by jecfa, on the basis of which maximum use levels have been established by the codex alimentarius commission, can be used in foods that are. Among topics discussed were additives, contaminants, pesticides, vet drugs and nutrition labeling. The 41st session of the codex committee on food additives ccfa was held in shanghai, china on march 1620, 2009.
On july 31, 2019, the codex alimentarius has implemented the new general standard for food additives gsfa by updating gsfa 1921995. Coordinate all food standards work done by international governmental and nongovernmental organisations. In may 1963, recognizing the importance of whos role in all health aspects of food and considering its mandate to establish food standards, the sixteenth world health assembly approved the establishment of the joint faowho food standards programme and adopted the statutes of the codex alimentarius commission. Jecfa is an international scientific expert committee administered jointly by the food and agriculture organization of the united nations fao and who. List of food additives, codex alimentarius the following is a list of food additives as organized by the codex alimentarius committee.
Cl 20125fa report of the 44th session of the codex committee on food additives rep12fa part a matters for adoption by the 35th session of the codex alimentarius commission. Clicking on an individual food additive or food additive group takes the user to a page with details on acceptable uses of the food additive. Year of adoption acesulfame potassium 950 1997, 2003 acetic acid, glacial 260 1979 2003, 2005 acetic and fatty acid esters of glycerol 472a 1981 2001 acetylated oxidized starch 1451 2007 alphaacetoacetate decarboxylase from bacillus brevis. On packaging in the european union, approved food additives are written with a prefix of e. Agenda item subject matter document reference 1 adoption of the agenda cxfa 16481. The codex alimentarius proposals already exist as law in norway and germany where the entire health food industry has literally been taken over by the drug companies. The codex alimentarius commission develops and adopts food standards that serve as a reference for international food trade. Food additives used in accordance with this standard should be of appropriate food grade quality and should at all times conform with the applicable specifications of identity and purity recommended by the codex alimentarius commission9or, in the absence of such specifications, with appropriate specifications developed by responsible national or international bodies. The codex alimentarius is a collection of internationally recognized standards, codes of practice, guidelines, and other recommendations relating to foods, food production, and food safety. The codex general standard for food additives gsfa, codex stan 1921995 sets forth the conditions under which permitted food additives may be used in all foods, whether or not they have previously been standardized by codex. Codex alimentarius food safety european commission. Updated up to the 42 nd session of the codex alimentarius commission 2019 food additive index.
The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft united states u. Request for general information on the availability of data related to nitrates and nitrites. During the last ten days of march 2019, about 350 food safety regulators from all over the world attended the 51st session of the codex alimentarius committee on food additives ccfa51 and found consensus on all issues on the sessions agenda, even faster than expected. It was created to regulate, and thus control, every aspect of how food and nutritional supplements are produced and sold to the consumer. Codex committee meeting of the codex committee on food additives. Codex general standard for food additives gsfa codex stan 1921995 presented at. Its texts are developed and maintained by the codex alimentarius commission, a body that was. January 2019 the codex alimentarius commission codex is the international food standards setting body established by the united nations food and agriculture organization and the world health organization. On july 26, 2018, the codex alimentarius commission cac held a meeting in rome, italy, to discuss and adopt several points related to food safety and quality standards. The information is published in the document class names and the international numbering system for food additives, first published in 198. The codex alimentarius, latin for book of food, is a set of international standards for food labeling and safety. Codex alimentarius the codex alimentarius commission develops and adopts food standards that serve as a reference for international food trade.
Apr 08, 2015 in addition to standards for specific foods, the codex alimentarius contains general standards covering matters such as food labeling, food hygiene, food additives and pesticide residues, and procedures for assessing the safety of foods derived from modern biotechnology. Codex is the major international organization for protecting the health and economic interests of consumers and encouraging fair international trade in food. Gsfa online food additive index food and agriculture. Codex committee on food additives 1964, 2007 a to establish or endorse acceptable maximum levels for individual food additives. Chairperson, working group on the gsfa, codex committee on food additives. Codex alimentarius the real threat to world health. Codex alimentarius commission food standards australia new. Report of the united states delegate to the 47th session of the codex committee on food additives march 2327, 2015 xian, peoples republic of china the 47 th codex committee on food additives ccfa met in xian, peoples republic of china, march 2327, 2015. Codex alimentarius latin for food code is a global set of standards created by the ca commission, a body established by a branch or the united nations back in 1963.
The codex alimentarius includes provisions in respect of food hygiene, food additives, residues of pesticides and veterinary drugs, contaminants, labelling and presentation, methods of analysis and sampling, and import and export inspection and certi. Food additive specifications endorsed by the codex alimentarius commission are included in the jecfa compendium of. Cxa 62019 list of codex specifications for food additives. Only the food additives listed herein are recognized as suitable for use in foods in conformance with the provisions of this standard. The information given by the commodity committees may.
Regulation amending the turkish food codex regulation on food additives. Codex alimentarius, food additives, food quality controlfood safety, breastfeedinginfant food, nutrition. The commission is a joint intergovernmental body of the food and agriculture organization of the united nations fao and who with 188 member countries and one member organization the european union. Clicking on show synonyms will display food additive synonyms. Request for comments at step 3 on the proposed changes andor addition to the international numbering system for food additives cxg 361989 codex circular letter cl 201949fa. The updates discussed in the 42 nd session of the codex alimentarius commission cac of july 812, 2019 in geneva, switzerland, had already been highlighted in april. Gsfa online is a webbased version of the codex general standard for food additives cacstan 1921995 sets out the conditions for the use of food additives in food products allows users to search the standard by food additive name, synonym, ins number, functional class of additives or food category. Provisions are searchable by food additive name, synonym, ins number, by functional class and by food category, as described in annex b of the codex gsfa. The committee was very productive with several documents moving forward for adoption by the 32nd codex alimentarius commission including.
Food additives db gsfa online codexalimentarius faowho. Developed through fifty years of united nations meetings and studies, it serves as a touchstone to normalize regulations in food hygiene, nutrition, safety guidelines, labeling, pesticide usage, risk assessment, additives and international trade. Codex general principles for the use of food additives. Codex alimentarius commission food standards australia. Established by the united nations food and agriculture organization fao and the world health organization who in 1963, the codex alimentarius, or food code, is the preeminent international food standardssetting body that protects the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade through the establishment of voluntary international standards, guidelines, and codes.
The international numbering system for food additives ins is a european based naming system for food additives, aimed at providing a short designation of what may be a lengthy actual name. Today, the cac is composed of 188 member countries, one member organization the european union and more than 200 intergovernmental and international non governmental observer organizations food industry, professional, and consumer groups. Codex general standard for food additives gsfa food category. The ca commissions purported mission, like all agenda 21 missions, sounds so wonderful that it might have been created by a committee from heaven above. The 36th codex committee on food additives and contaminants has forwarded food additive provisions for final adoption by codex alimentarius commission. The international numbering system for food additives is a europeanbased. It has been meeting since 1956, to evaluate the safety of food additives, contaminants, naturally occurring toxicants and residues of veterinary drugs in food. The codex alimentarius and the european legislation on food. Jun 03, 20 the codex alimentarius, latin for book of food, is a set of international standards for food labeling and safety. Codex alimentarius commission 27th session geneva 28. Codex committee on food additives ccfa food safety. Updated up to the 42nd session of the codex alimentarius commission 2019. In these countries, vitamin c above 200 mg is illegal as is vitamin e above 45 iu, vitamin b1 over 2.
Codex commodity committees have the responsibility and expertise to appraise and justify the technological need for the use of additives in foods subject to a commodity standard. Wto members applying the codex alimentarius standards meet their. Food safety regulators from all over the world attended the 51st session of the codex alimentarius committee on food additives and found. This database provides, in a searchable format, all the provisions for food additives that have been adopted by the codex alimentarius commission. Australia and new zealand do not use a prefix letter when listing. The chairperson of the codex alimentarius commission, guilherme da costa, brazil, has written to fao suggesting the cancellation of the 43rd codex alimentarius commission session planned for july 2020 in rome and to explore the opportunity to hold an online executive committee session to ensure that standard setting work can continue. Established by the united nations food and agriculture organization fao and the world health organization who in 1963, the codex alimentarius, or food code, is the preeminent international food standardssetting body that protects the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade through the establishment of voluntary international standards. Its name is derived from the codex alimentarius austriacus. It is defined by codex alimentarius, the international food standards organisation of the world health organization and food and agriculture organization of the united nations. Keller heckman annual codex alimentarius commission meeting. Covid19 likely to cause cancellation of a physical. United nations fao, world health organization, codex alimentarius commission. Codex alimentarius committee finalizes backlog on food additives. However, these limits can still differ from country to country, due to different dietary patterns, environmental conditions and national practices.
Updated up to the 42 nd session of the codex alimentarius commission 2019 food additive index this page contains an index of individual food additives or food additive groups indicated in uppercase. The codex alimentarius commission codex was established in 1962 by two united nations organizations, the food and agriculture organization fao and the world health organization who. International food standards faowho codex alimentarius. The international numbering system for food additives is a europeanbased naming system for food additives, aimed at providing a short designation of what may be a lengthy actual name. List of food additives, codex alimentarius ceramica wiki. Codex committee on food additives ccfa archives food. International numbering system for food additives wikipedia. Department of agriculture usda, and the food and drug administration fda are sponsoring a public meeting to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items that will be discussed at the 44th session of the codex committee on food additives ccfa of the codex alimentarius commission codex, which will be held in. This page contains an index of individual food additives or food additive groups indicated in uppercase. Today, there are 185 member governments including canada. Apr 18, 2019 an interesting, although technical, discussion occurred on the current version of the gsfa placed online on the codex alimentarius website and the overall underlying gsfa database, versus the only official version of the gsfa published as the codex alimentarius general standard on food additives i.