FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS (FAO) REGIONAL
OFFICE FOR AFRICA, ACCRA - TEL. 675000/7010930

PRESS RELEASE NO. 01/15

CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION TASK FORCE ANNOUNCES
SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS TOWARD AGREEMENT ON
WORLDWIDE STANDARDS FOR BIOTECH FOODS

Rome, 2 April 2001 --- The joint FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission's
Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology have
made significant progress in setting standards for foods derived from
biotechnology, the two UN agencies announced today. Codex Alimentarius is a
body charged with the development of international standards for food safety
and consumer protection.

The Task Force, bringing together officials from 35 countries and
representatives of 24 non-governmental organizations including Consumers
International, industry groups and Greenpeace reached near consensus on a
draft text of "general principles for risk analysis of foods derived from
biotechnology." Risk analysis is the system by which governments consider
the safety of foods and the measures that need to be taken to protect the
public from any health risks. The guidelines do not cover environmental
issues because these are included in other United Nations agreements, such
as the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety.

The one point on which consensus could not be achieved was the question of
traceability. This is a system of tracing all foods and food components
from their origin to the point of final consumption and is not related
exclusively to foods derived from biotechnology. According to the
announcement, traceability is strongly favoured by European countries, but
some countries worry that the system might be too complex and too costly to
operate globally.

The Task Force also announced agreement on a Draft Guideline for the Conduct
of Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Plants. The
guidelines pay special attention to the question of allergenicity that might
be transferred to new genetically modified (GM) plant varieties. The
guidelines also prohibit the transfer of genes that would cause
gluten-sensitive reactions in people with celiac disease. The Task Force
will further refine guidelines at its next meeting and will initiate work on
similar guidelines for the safety assessment of genetically modified
micro-organisms used in food production and processing.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission set up the ad hoc Task Force in 1999. The
Government of Japan hosts it. The Task Force Chairman is Professor Hiroshi
Yoshikura, Director General, Research Institute, International Medical
Center of Japan. Some 210 experts and officials took part in the 25-29
March 2001 meeting.

The Codex Alimentarius Commission was established in 1962 to implement the
joint FAO/WHO Foods Standards Programme. Codex is an intergovernmental
statutory body with a 165-country membership. Its purpose is to protect the
health of consumers, to ensure fair practices in food trade and to promote
coordination of all food standards work undertaken by international
governmental and non-governmental organizations.

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