Codex adopts new food hygiene standards keep chicken, eggs safe

The Codex meeting decided to develop additional guidelines to lower the frequency of Salmonella and Campylobacter in chicken. Together these two bacteria cause a significant proportion of food-borne diseases all over the world.

Finding efficient ways of dealing with this problem from farm to table could result in the prevention of hundreds of thousands of foodborne disease cases every year.

This year’s Codex meeting also adopted several important new codes and standards, including, a revised code of hygienic practice for eggs and egg products that will protect consumers from disease-causing bacteria such as Salmonella Enteritidis and make international trade in eggs and egg products safer.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) has adopted 44 new and amended food standards and set up a comprehensive set of risk analysis principles to help governments establish their own standards, especially for food items that are not covered by Codex standards, FAO and WHO said in a joint statement.

Codex food safety standards are developed using scientific advice from FAO/WHO expert committees that enables the rigorous standard setting procedures within Codex. According to Dr. Kazuaki Miyagishima, Secretary of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, “This is why Codex standards are so successful globally and the reason they hare recognized by the World Trade Organization (WTO) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement.”

“Because governments often adopt Codex Standards into their national legislation and sometimes even see the need for additional measures in areas not covered by Codex guidance, it is important that the extra safety measures are taken using the same rigorous and internationally recognized principles, not only to protect consumers, but to ensure they are consistent with multilateral trade rules” explained Dr. Miyagishima.

This year's Codex gathering was attended by 133 countries, the highest number ever to attend an annual Commission meeting.

Sign up for our
regular news updates

Latest Poultry Industry News

•   BIRD FLU: Poultry Culled in Togo After Flu Outbreak
•   USDA Partners in Research with Hendrix Genetics and Cobb-Vantress
•   Poultry Sector Expects Higher Sales
•   No Further Avian Infectious Laryngotracheitis in Peru
•   Meat Recall Scandal in Canada
•   Don Tyson's Biography Published
•   Industry First: Live Monitoring of Cage-Free Egg Farm
•   2009 Brazilian Poultry Congress
•   Ready-to-Cook Weight Down 3 Per Cent
•   Eastern Ontario Poultry Conference 2008