Organic Farming in Europe and the European Union

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Codex Alimentarius and Organic Agriculture

Text by Otto Schmid, FiBL, January 8, 2008

Intorduction

The need for clear and harmonized rules has not only been taken up by private bodies, IFOAM and state authorities, but also by the UN-Organizations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Health Organization (WHO) as well as UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development).

FAO and WHO consider international guidelines on organically produced food products as important for consumer protection and information to facilitate trade. They are also useful to governments wishing to develop regulations in this area, in particular in developing countries and countries in transition.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission

(Taken from the FAO homepage) The Codex Alimentarius Commission is an intergovernmental body with over 170 members, within the framework of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme established by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and the World Health Organization (WHO).

The main result of the Commission's work is the Codex Alimentarius, a collection of internationally adopted food standards, guidelines, codes of practice and other recommendations, with the objective of protecting the health of consumers and ensuring fair practices in the food trade.

History

In 1991, the Codex Alimentarius Commission began (with the participation of observer organizations such as IFOAM) with the elaboration of Guidelines for the production, processing, labelling and marketing of organically produced food.

The Codex Commission approved plant production guidelines in June 1999, and animal production guidelines in July 2001.

The requirements in these Codex Guidelines are in line with the IFOAM Basic Standards and the EU Regulation 2092/91.

There are, however, differences with regard to the details and the areas, which are covered by the different standards.

Latest edition of the Codex Guidelines

The Guidelines for the Production, Processing, Labelling and Marketing of Organically Produced Foods were developed in view of the growing production and international trade in organically produced foods to facilitate trade and prevent misleading claims.

They are intended to facilitate the harmonization of requirements for organic products at the international level, and may also provide assistance to governments wishing to establish national regulations in this area.

The third edition includes revisions to the text adopted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission up to 2007.

>> Download the Codex Alimentarius Guildines Organically Produced Food

Comparison with other standards

The trade guidelines on organic food take into account the current regulations in several countries, in particular EU Regulation 2092/91, as well as the private standards applied by producer organizations, especially those based on the IFOAM Basic Standards. These guidelines define the nature of organic food production and prevent claims that could mislead consumers about the quality of the product or the way it was produced.

In the view of IFOAM, which was actively involved in the elaboration of these Guidelines, this Codex Document is an important step in the harmonization of international rules in order to build up consumer trust. They will be important for equivalence judgments under the rules of WTO. For developing the market for organically produced food, these Codex Guidelines are important in giving guidance to governments in developing national regulations for organic food.

Current work in progress

Since 2005 a revision process of the annex lists has started, in particular for food processing, based on amended criteria for the use of new substances. Responsible for this work is a working group within the Codex Committee for Food Labelling (CCFL), which meets regularly each year in May organised by the government of Canada.

The Codex Commission has adopted the amendments of these annex lists proposed by the Codex Committee for Food Labelling in July 2007.

In 2008 the discussion about a few and more controversial additives for food processing will continue.

Text: Otto Schmid, FiBL, January 8, 2008