Codex work on milk and milk products (overview)

Annamaria Bruno and Jeronimas Maskeliunas

Food Standards Officers

Codex Secretariat

Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme

Codex Alimentarius Commission

Established in 1961/1963 174 members countries and 1

Member organisation 219 observer organisations

Codex Alimentarius Commission - mandate

Dual objective:

Protecting the health of consumers

Facilitating fair practices in food trade

Non-mandatory in nature, Codex standards and related texts have since 1995 become international benchmarks for harmonization under the SPS and TBT Agreements of WTO

General Principles

(France)

Food Additives (China)

Contaminants in Foods (Netherlands)

Food Hygiene

(USA)

Codex organizational chart

Food Labelling

(Canada)

Methods of Analysis and Sampling

(Hungary)

Pesticide Residues

(China)

Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods

(USA)

General Subject Committees Commodity Committees

Milk and Milk

Products (New Zealand)

Processed Fruits

and Vegetables (USA)

Meat Hygiene

(New Zealand)

Fish and Fishery

Products (Norway)

Fresh Fruit and

Vegetables (Mexico)

Fats and Oils

(United Kingdom)

Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses

(Germany) Cereals, Pulses and Legumes (USA)

Vegetable Proteins

(Canada)

Natural Mineral Waters

(Switzerland)Cocoa Products and

Chocolate (Switzerland)

ad hoc Intergovernmental Task Forces

Biotechnology

(Japan)

Antimicrobial Resistance

(Republic of Korea)

Processing and Handling of Quick Frozen Foods

(Thailand)

Regional Coordinating Committees

Africa

(Morocco)

Asia

(Republic of Korea)

Europe

(Switzerland)

Latin America

and the Caribbean

(Argentina)

Near East

(Jordan)

North America and

the Southwest Pacific

(Samoa)

Executive Committee Secretariat

CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION

-Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification

Systems (Australia)

Sugars

(United Kingdom)

active

adjourned

Codex work on milk and milk products

Codex Committee on Milk and Milk Products Codex Committee on Food Hygiene Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods Codex Committee on Pesticides Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary

Drugs in Foods Codex Committee on Food Additives Codex Committee on Nutrition and Food for

Special Dietary Uses

Codex Committee on Milk and Milk Products

Hosted by New Zealand Elaborate world-wide standards , codes and

related texts for milk and milk products Meets every two years; 8th Session in

February/March 2008 16 Standards for individual cheese, 19 Standards

cheese products Codex General Standard for the Use of Dairy

Terms (CODEX STAN 206/1999)

Codex Standards for Milk and Milk Products - format

Scope Description Essential Composition and Quality Factors Food Additive Contaminants Hygiene Labelling Methods of Analysis and Sampling

Codex Standards for Milk and Milk Products - Contaminants

“The products covered by this Standard shall comply with the maximum limits for contaminants and the maximum residue limits for pesticides and veterinary drugs established by the Codex Alimentarius Commission.”

Codex Standards for Milk and Milk Products - Hygiene

“It is recommended that the products covered by the provisions of this standard be prepared and handled in accordance with the appropriate sections of the Recommended International Code of Practice – General Principles of Food Hygiene (CAC/RCP 1-1969), the Code of Hygienic Practice for Milk and Milk Products (CAC/RCP 57-2004) and other relevant Codex texts such as Codes of Hygienic Practice and Codes of Practice.

The products should comply with any microbiological criteria established in accordance with the Principles for the Establishment and Application of Microbiological Criteria for Foods (CAC/GL 21-1997).”

Codex Standards for Milk and Milk Products – Ongoing work and Outstanding issues

Ongoing work Export certificate for milk and milk products Fermented milk drinks Processed cheese

Oustanding issues Food labelling provisions of revised individual cheese

standards (country of origin) New work on elaboration of a Standard for Parmesan

cheese

Codex Committee on Food Hygiene

Relevant texts

International Code of Practice – General

Principles of Food Hygiene (CAC/RCP 1-1969)

Code of Hygienic Practice for Milk and Milk Products (CAC/RCP 57-2004)

Relevant on-going work

proposed draft Code of Practice for Powdered Formulae for Infants and Young Children

Code of Hygienic Practice for Milk and Milk Products – outstanding issues

Codex Guidelines for the application of the lactoperoxidase system (CAC/GL 13 - 1991)

While adopting the above Guidelines, the Commission at its 19th Session agreed to emphasize that the lactoperoxidase system should not be used for products intended for international trade and should never be used as a substitute for refrigeration (ALINORM 91/40, para.234)

Pesticide Residues in Milks

The Codex Alimentarius Commission has established MRLs/EMRLs in milks for the following 88 pesticides :

2,4-D , abamectin*, aldicarb, aldrin and dieldrin, amitraz, azocyclotin, bentazone, bifenthrin, carbaryl, carbofuran, carbosulfan, chlordane, chlormequat, chlorpyrifos, chlorpyrifos-methyl, clethodim, clofentezine, cyfluthrin*, cyhexatin, cypermethrin, cyprodinil, cyromazine, DDT, deltathrin*,diazinon, dichlorvos, dicofol, diflubenzuron, simethipin, dimethoate, diphenulamine, diquat, disulfoton, dithiocarbamates, endosulfan, ethephon, ethoprophos, famoxadone, fenamiphos, fenbucanazole, fenbutatin oxide, fenitrothion, fenpropathrin, fenpropimorph, fenpyroximate, fipronil, fludioxonil, flumethrin, flusilazole, flutolanil, glufosinate-ammonium, glyphosate, heptachlor, imidacloprid, kresoxin-methyl, lindane, methamidophos, methidathion, methomyl, methoprene, methoxyfenozide, myclobitanil, oxamyl, paraquat, penconazole, permethrin, phorate, piperonyl butoxide, pirimicarb, pirimiphos-methyl, prochloraz, profenogos, propargite, propiconazole, spinosad, tebuconazole, tebufenozide, terbufos, thiabendazole*, triadimefon, triadimenol, triazophos, trifloxystrobin, vinclozolin

* - Used also as veterinary drug

Veterinary Drug Residues in Milks

The Codex Alimentarius Commission has established MRLs in milks for the following 27 veterinary drugs :

albendazole, benzylpenicillin/procaine benzylpenicillin, ceftiofur, chlortetracycline/oxytetracycline/tetracycline, clenbuterol, cyfluthrin*, cyhalothrin*, cypermethrin and alpha-cypermethrin, deltamethrin*, dihydrostreptomycin/streptomycin, diminazene, doramectin, eprinomectin, febantel/fenbendazole/oxfendazole, gentamicin, imidocarb,  isometamidium, ivermectin, lincomycin, neomycin, pirlimycin, spectinomycin, spiramycin, sulfadimidine, thiabendazole*, tilmicosin, trichlorfon (metrifonate)*.

* - Used also as pesticide

Codex Committee on Nutrition and Food for Special Dietary Uses

Relevant texts

Codex Standard on Infant Formula (Codex STAN 72-1981)

Ongoing work

Draft revised Standard for Infant Formulas and Formulas for Special Medical Purposes intended for Infants. Final draft of Section A “provisions for infant formulas” and Section B “provisions for Formulas for Special Medical Purposes” to be submitted for adoption at 30th CAC (July 2007)

Others

Contaminants and toxins

Codex General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Food – GSCTF (CODEX

STAN 193-1995): Aflatoxin M1, Lead

Additives

Codex General Standard for Food Additives – GSFA (CODEX STAN 192-1995) - Food Category 01.0 Dairy Products and analogues

Methods of Analysis

Recommended Methods of Analysis and Sampling(CODEX STAN 234-1999)

Cooperation between Codexand OIE

Cooperation is important to minimize overlaps and avoid gaps in in standards falling within the scope of both organizations, so as to ensure a farm-to-fork approach to the safety of foods of animal origin.

OIE already participates actively in Codex work, e.g. in CCMH, CCRVDF, CCFH and CCFICS.

OIE Working Group on Animal Production Food Safety. Advisory group established in 2002 with participation of experts from Codex.

OIE ad hoc Groups on Identification and Traceability of Live Animals (since 2005), on Certificate (since 2007) and on Animal Feeds (October 2006)

For more information visit the Codex website: http://www.codexalimentarius.net