27. The Committee agreed with the proposal of France to reinsert the sodium iodides and iodates in the list of iodizing agents along with the widely used potassium salts.
28. The Committee reasserted its position that the choice of the iodizing agent and level of iodization should remain under the responsibility of the national authorities.
29. The Committee noted the proposal of the delegation of Malaysia to include a provision concerning appropriate packaging in order to maintain the stability of iodized salt, which might be altered particularly in hot and humid climates. The Committee agreed that this general question should be referred to the Committee on Additives and Contaminants.
30. The Committee noted the concern of the Delegation of Indonesia regarding the effects of iodized salt on fats and oils and was informed that studies carried out in the framework of the UNICEF/Wageninen University project, in Germany and in Poland, had not demonstrated any detrimental effect of iodized salt on several processed foods.
31. The Representative of WHO informed the Committee that revised Recommended Iodine Levels in Salt and Guidelines for Monitoring their Adequacy and Effectiveness[5] had recently been prepared by WHO on the basis of a study carried out in seven African countries.
Status of the Proposed Draft Revised Standard for Food Grade Salt
32. The Committee agreed to advance the Proposed Draft Standard to Step 5 and, in view of the extensive review of the document, to recommend that the Commission omit Steps 6 and 7 to adopt it at Step 8 (see Appendix III).
