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| Report of the U.S. Delegate, Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables, 14th Session, May 12-17 2008, Mexico City, Mexico |
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The fourteenth Session
of the Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (CCFFV)
was attended by forty-six member countries, one member organization and observers from two
international organizations. Lic. Carlos Arce Macias, Undersecretary of Foreign Investment,
Regulations and International Trade Practices, Ministry of Economy, opened the Session.
Other addresses came from the Mexico's government officials whose portfolio includes code related subjects.
The U.S. delegation to the 14th Session of the CCFFV consisted
of representatives from the apple and tomato industry, USDA/FAS, the
FDA, Texas A&M and USDA/AMS.
Issues of Importance to the United States
Tomatoes
Sizing requirements: After eight years of development, there was agreement on tomato sizing
requirements in the standard. Due to the differences among national trading practices and the cost
implications it was agreed to allow sizing as practiced in international trade (by diameter, count,
weight and importing country legislation) was agreed to. However, the European Community (EC)
indicated its displeasure with allowing sizing by "importing country legislation." The EC
felt that this provision fails the international harmonization of national regulations/standards.
Cherry Tomatoes: Efforts to set minimum and maximum sizes of cherry tomatoes were abandoned
due to differences between countries and lack of reliable data that supported the need to establish
sizing requirements for cherry tomatoes.
Apples
The draft Codex Standard for Apples in its fourteenth year of development still beset by
differences due to national and regional trading and cultural practices. The draft Codex Standard
resulting from the September 2007 Codex Apple working group meeting in Washington, DC was discussed
by additional working group and the plenary sessions, amended and advanced to Step 5.
The key outstanding issues are:
Minimum Size: The previous agreement correlating minimum size to a minimum Brix (10.5 degrees)
was challenged by some countries who want to increase the minimum Brix degrees to 12 and the minimum
diameter to 60mm. Several countries contend there are no direct links between apple size and maturity,
therefore another measure to determine acceptable minimum size should be explored. These delegations
also supported the exclusion of minimum size from the standard.
Color Requirement: There was no agreement on how to address uniformity of color without
having an apple varietal color list.
Uniformity: There was no agreement on diameter ranges for this requirement. Some countries
preferred a fixed 5mm diameter; while others wanted a graduated range.
Since there was no agreement on these critical issues, The committee agreed that another intersession
physical meeting of the working group should be held. The U.S. (leader of the Working Group) in
conjunction with the other working group members will decide date and venue of the working group meeting.
Avocados
The meeting agreed to a proposal from Cuba to revise the Codex Standard for Avocados with the provision
that the Avocado working group first indicate which sections or if the entire standard require revision.
The U.S. is a member of the Avocado working group.
Other Key Issues Discussed
Guidelines for Quality Control of FFV
The session agreed to discontinue the development of this document due to the existence of several
relevant documents within Codex, and other international standardization and inspection bodies.
New Standardization Work
The CCFFV agreed to develop new standards for Chili Peppers led by Mexico, Durian led by Thailand and
Amarillo (tree tomato) led by Colombia.
Conclusion
The 14th CCFFV Session was successful for the decisions that reflect international trade practices.
They do not require countries to change their national trading practices. The difference of views on the
application of standards between European Union, member counties, and other major producing and
exporting countries such as Australia, Brazil, Canada, New Zealand was apparent.
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Last Modified:
October 9, 2008 |
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