

	Conference Room Document 55 English only

second fao/who global forum of food safety regulators

Bangkok, Thailand, 12-14 October 2004

ILSI Southeast Asia Region Assists in Harmonizing Food Safety Standards in ASEAN

(Prepared by ILSI Southeast Asia)

Background

Our increasingly global marketplace offers tremendous potential and opportunity for improving the quality and availability of safe and nutritious foods to populations in all corners of the world. At the same time, however, it poses great challenges in ensuring the safety of foods which cross the borders of nations, countries and continents. Globally acceptable food safety standards have the potential to not only ensure the universal availability of safe food, but also to facilitate trade.

Regulations on food safety are set out in the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (The SPS Agreement), concurred upon by the members of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The SPS Agreement permits countries to take legitimate food safety measures to protect the lives and health of their consumers, while prohibiting them for using the same measures in a way that unjustifiably restricts trade. The SPS Agreement also recognizes the Codex Alimentarius standards (Codex) as the reference point for the safety of foods traded internationally, and countries have been encouraged to harmonize their national standards in accordance with the Codex standards.

Deviations from Codex must be justified on the basis of sound science, utilizing the accepted principles of risk and exposure assessment. Within the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), the ability to generate country or region-specific risk and exposure assessment is, however, hindered by the lack of data on food consumption.

ILSI Southeast Asia Region (ILSI SEA Region) recognizes the need and opportunity to provide the necessary background and updated scientific information on risk assessment principles to support the food safety standards harmonization process in the ASEAN countries. Between 1996 and 2002, ILSI SEA Region organized several chemical and microbial risk assessment workshops, which were well-attended by various stakeholders in the region. Since 1991, it has also organized the Asian Food and Nutrition Safety Conference series to periodically update food regulators, producers and researchers on the latest developments and scientific underpinnings in resolving food safety issues and concerns. ILSI SEA Region works closely with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in promoting the principle of Risk Analysis in addressing food safety needs.

ASEAN Food Safety Standards Harmonization Workshop Series

One of the six task forces of the ILSI SEA Region is the Food Safety and Risk Assessment Task Force. The goals of the Task Force include assisting with the food safety standards harmonization efforts of the ASEAN countries. The Task Force has taken the initiative to facilitate the formation of a Working Group on Harmonization of ASEAN Food Safety Standards (Working Group), which functions as an informal network of food safety regulators from each of the ASEAN member countries.

The Working Group was formalized at an inaugural meeting in 2001, where it was agreed that ILSI SEA Region would, through its Food Safety and Risk Assessment Task Force, provide the coordination and facilitation of the ASEAN Food Safety Standards Harmonization Workshops series (Food Safety Workshops).

The agenda of the Food Safety Workshops include examining the implications of varying food safety standards, the scientific basis of standards setting, and addressing the need for capacity building activities. Besides representatives from 10 ASEAN member countries, food safety experts, representatives from the FAO, the WHO and the Codex Secretariat have been invited to give presentations on relevant topics. It was also recognized that the sharing of the experiences of other countries and regions in their harmonization efforts would benefit the Working Group. For example, ILSI Focal Point in China has been coordinating a series of workshops to facilitate the harmonization of food safety standards in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong SAR since 1994. Similar efforts are also ongoing in Australia and New Zealand. Speakers from these countries and regions have been invited to share their experiences at the Food Safety Workshops.

At the first Food Safety Workshop held in 2002 in Singapore, it was concurred that the annual Food Safety Workshop will be a platform for the members of the Working Group to share their respective experiences and progress in their harmonization efforts. It was also agreed that subsequent Food Safety Workshops would focus on three areas relating to food additives: colorants, intense sweeteners, and preservatives, followed by other food safety issues. It was further agreed that the Food Safety Workshops would help to develop exposure assessment data as well as risk assessment capacity building within the ASEAN region.

The Working Group further suggested the use of an electronic database to assist in the harmonization process. This database would serve as a portal for comparison between each country’s food safety standards and those of the Codex. The members of the Working Group shall provide periodic updates on standards in their respective countries to the ILSI SEA Region Secretariat, which is responsible for establishing and maintaining the database.

ILSI SEA Region has since facilitated two more Food Safety Workshops, held in 2002 in Malaysia and in 2003 in Indonesia. The areas of standards harmonization have been expanded to include flavors and contaminants. At these meetings, the Working Group shared updates on the harmonization process in the various countries.

It is encouraging that ILSI SEA Region’s facilitation has successfully brought the national food safety standards of the ASEAN countries closer to the Codex standards.

Some of the landmark achievements include:

Several countries, which did not have existing food safety standards, have decided to adopt the Codex GSFA (General Standards of Food Additives) standards to regulate their imports and exports of food commodities. Several countries are also in the process of drafting and reviewing relevant policies and directives.
Certain countries are revising their food categorizations in accordance with the Codex standards.
To keep up with international trade and developments in this area, some countries have taken the initiative to seek out the latest food additives available in the industry.
The Food Safety Workshops provide a platform for each country to share their experiences in harmonizing their food safety standards. The initiative to involve academic institutions in the harmonization efforts may lead to expedited results.
Concerns regarding mixed additives, the lack of exposure assessment data in individual countries, and the need for additional laboratory support open up opportunities for greater regional collaboration.
Countries are moving towards adapting the global positive list of flavor ingredients. It was agreed that the JECFA (Joint FAO/WHO Executive Committee on Food Additives) safety evaluation process for flavors will be adopted by ASEAN.
Countries concurred on the need to carry out exposure assessment to determine accurate ADIs (Acceptable Daily Intake) and standards. The Food Safety Workshops provide for the exchange of information on how exposure assessment can be conducted effectively and efficiently.
The prototype of the ASEAN Food Safety Standards Database was presented by the ILSI SEA Region Secretariat at the 3^rd Food Safety Workshop held in Indonesia in 2003.

The 4^th Food Safety Workshop will be held on November 29 – 30, 2004 in the Philippines. Following the recommendations from the 3rd Food Safety Workshop, this meeting will raise the issue of contaminants, in particular, pesticide residues and mycotoxins, as new potential areas for harmonization. The first downloadable version of the ASEAN Food Safety Standards Database is also scheduled to be launched at the 4^th Food Safety Workshop.

The Next Steps

ILSI SEA Region takes an active role in building capacity for the ASEAN region and aims to bring safer foods to populations across the globe. This is achieved through its initiatives in food safety standards harmonization and risk assessment training. The Working Group will continue to help ASEAN countries to meet international food safety standards by providing science-based information for sound decision making through seminars and workshops. Harmonizing ASEAN food safety standards with the Codex standards will contribute not only towards increased trade, but more importantly, towards improvement of public health.

Further information on the ASEAN Food Safety Standards Harmonization Workshop, ILSI Southeast Asia Region Food Safety and Risk Assessment Task Force, and other ILSI SEA Region initiatives can be found on ILSI’s website (www.ilsi.org). You can also contact ILSI SEA Region, 1 Newton Road, Goldhill Plaza Podium Block #03-45, Singapore 308899, Tel: (65) 63535 220, Fax: 63525 536, Email: [email protected]

About ILSI

The International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) is a non-profit, worldwide foundation based in Washington, DC established in 1978 to advance the understanding of scientific issues relating to nutrition, food safety, toxicology, risk assessment, and the environment. ILSI branches include Argentina, Brazil, Europe, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, North Africa and the Gulf Region, North America, North Andean, South Africa, South Andean, Southeast Asia Region, the Focal Point in China, and the ILSI Health and Environmental Sciences Institute. ILSI also accomplishes its work through the ILSI Research Foundation (composed of the ILSI Human Nutrition Institute and the ILSI Risk Science Institute) and the ILSI Center for Health Promotion. Established in 1993, ILSI Southeast Asia Region, located in Singapore currently serves as the regional office for the coordination of scientific programs, research and information dissemination in ASEAN, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific. By bringing together scientists from academia, government, industry and the public sector, ILSI seeks a balanced approach to solving problems of common concern for the well-being of the general public. ILSI receives financial support from industry, government, and foundations.