[Source: Ministry of Agriculture and Waterways Fiji/ Facebook]

The Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Agriculture and Waterways, Dr Andrew Tukana attended the 86th session of the Executive Committee of the Codex Alimentarius Commission at the UN FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy last week.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission, jointly created by FAO and the World Health Organization (WHO), is the most important international body in the field of food standards.

Since 1963, Codex has developed hundreds of internationally recognized standards, guidelines and codes of practice.

[Source: Ministry of Agriculture and Waterways Fiji/ Facebook]

It has defined thousands of permitted levels of additives, contaminants and chemical residues in food.

The end goal is to ensure food safety and fair trade practices for everyone, everywhere.

Dr Tukana attended the 86th CCEXEC Session in his capacity as the Regional Coordinator for the North America and South West Pacific Region (CCNASWP).

The five-day meeting focused on critically reviewing several food standards, the elements of the model for future Codex work as well as the review of the draft Codex Strategic Development Plan for 2026 – 2031 and the associated budget for the next financial year.

The outcomes of the meeting were adopted by the members of the CCEXEC 86th session on the 5th of July 2024.