In the field of food safety regulation, harmonization of national standards with international ones, in particular with Codex Alimentarius standards, plays an important role. This document, created under the auspices of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), is a generally accepted guideline in ensuring the safety and quality of food products.
The Codex Alimentarius Commission was established in 1963 as a subsidiary body of FAO and WHO to implement a joint program to establish food standards. Today, it has 188 members, including 187 countries and one member organization, the European Union. Ukraine became a member of the Commission in 2004.
The Code standards do not replace or constitute an alternative to national legislation. By their nature, they are advisory in nature. In order for them to have legal force in a particular country, they must be integrated into national legislation or approved in regulatory acts.
The role of Codex Alimentarius in Ukraine
In Ukraine, issues related to the Codex Alimentarius were dealt with by the National Commission of Ukraine on the Codex Alimentarius in 2006–2015. However, from September 20, 2015, the regulation on this commission lost its validity due to the entry into force of Law of Ukraine "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Concerning Food Products".
This Law, in particular, amends the Law of Ukraine "On the basic principles and requirements for the safety and quality of food products" and specifies that in the absence of national standards, you can use safety and quality parameters set by international organizations such as Codex Alimentarius.
Law of Ukraine "On the basic principles and requirements for the safety and quality of food products" contains key provisions that regulate the use of international standards in cases where national standards are not available. Key points:
- Paragraph 12 of Part 1 of Article 1 states that relevant international organizations include, in particular, the WHO, the Codex Alimentarius Commission, the OIE and other organizations that develop standards, recommendations and instructions for the protection of human health and food quality indicators.
Clause 13 of Part 1 of Article 19 provides that:
- In the absence of national requirements, safety parameters or individual food quality indicators defined by international organizations, in particular Codex Alimentarius, are applied.
- If such parameters are absent in the documents of international organizations, the norms established by the legislation of the European Union apply.
The original article was published in the journal Quality management.
