Codex focus on fats and oils standards

Speciality oil firms will have the chance to voice their concerns
on global food codes as 100 government delegates meet to discuss
the fats and oil industry at a week-long session, kicking off in
the UK next week.

Under the aegis of the UK's Food Standards Agency, delegates from around the world will gather under the Codex committee on fats and oils to enter the debate on food safety and quality in the fats and oils.

The committee is part of the wider Codex Alimentarius Commission, an inter-governmental body aimed at developing a series of food standards and related texts. The codes aim to provide a trans-global level of consumer protection and fair practice in the international trade of food and agricultural products.

Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is jointly sponsored by the United Nations-backed Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Held from the 21 to 25 February at the International Coffee Organisation in London, prioritised for the meeting agenda are: the draft standard for fat and blended spreads; proposed amendments to the standard for named vegetable oils (rice bran, sesame seed); and the storage and transport of edible fats and oils in bulk.

Further details about the event can be obtained from the Food Standards Agency.