TRADE AND FOOD STANDARDS
TRADE AND FOOD STANDARDS
Published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Trade Organization 2017
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) or the World Trade Organization (WTO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO or the WTO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of FAO or WTO. FAO WTO WTO
ISBN 978-92-5-109793-9 ISBN 978-92-870-4501-0 (print) ISBN 978-92-870-4502-7 (PDF)
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Part 1. The institutional framework
CONTENTS Acknowledgements iv Foreword v Executive summary vii Introduction ix
PART 1. The institutional framework The Codex Alimentarius The World Trade Organization
1 3 12
PART 2. The benefits of taking part The WTO SPS and TBT Committees in action The benefits of taking part Participating in Codex Investing in capacity development
19 22 27 30 38
PART 3. A dynamic system
49
References and resources 56 Acronyms 58
Part 1. The institutional framework
iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
iv
his publication, Trade and Food Standards, has been jointly prepared by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO).
T
Fisheries and Aquaculture, the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture, Legal and Ethics, Nutrition and Food Systems, and the FAO Regional Offices.
For FAO, the technical work was led by the Food Safety and Quality Unit in the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Protection and the Secretariat of the Codex Alimentarius Commission of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme. The overall preparation and coordination was led by the Trade and Markets Division of the Economic and Social Development Department. Valuable comments and suggestions were provided by other FAO Departments and Divisions including Animal Production and Health,
For the WTO, the technical work was led by the Agriculture and Commodities Division and the Trade and Environment Division. Valuable contributions were provided by the secretariat of the Standards and Trad