UNITED

NATIONS

Distr.

GENERAL

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/13

19 July 2001

ORIGINAL : ENGLISH

ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR EUROPE

COMMITTEE FOR TRADE, INDUSTRY AND

ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT

Working Party on Standardization of

Perishable Produce and Quality Development

Specialized Section on Standardization of

Dry and Dried Produce (Fruit)

Forty-eighth session, Geneva, 18 - 21 June 2001

REPORT OF THE FORTY-EIGHTH SESSION

Executive Summary

Walnut kernels: Compromises on scuffing and tolerances were found. Opinions differed on the marking of the crop year. Marking will remain optional as in the standard in force. It was decided to forward the text to the Working Party for adoption as a revised UNECE Standard (see Addendum 1 to this report). The colour chart will be printed by the international Nut Council.

Inshell Walnuts: No consensus was reached on the marking of the crop year. Marking will remain mandatory for Extra Class and Class I as in the standard in force. Minor amendments were agreed which will be forwarded to the working party for adoption.

Pistachio kernels and peeled pistachio kernels /Inshell Pistachios: The proposals prepared by the rapporteur from Turkey were discussed in depth. Delegations were invited to send comments. The rapporteur will prepare new proposals for the next session.

Almond kernels/ Inshell almonds: The proposals prepared by the rapporteur from Spain were discussed in depth. Delegations were invited to send comments. The rapporteur will prepare new proposals for the next session.

GE.01-

Executive Summary (cont'd)

Standard layout:

Main text: Minor changes were noted which will eventually be included in the text. The text will be compared to the standard layout for fresh fruit and vegetables.

Annex I: Germany and Spain will be rapporteurs for the annex on the determination of moisture content for dried fruit.

Annex II: The proposal from the Delegation of Spain was discussed in detail. The amended version is published in Addendum 2 to this report. Delegations were invited to send comments.

Annex III: Delegations were invited to send comments to the rapporteur (Spain).

Dictionary of defects: The next version of the dictionary will be published on the UN web site. Delegations were invited to send comments to the rapporteur (Italy).

Elaboration of a sampling plan: It was agreed that it was necessary to have a sampling plan. Delegations were invited to provide relevant information to the rapporteur (United States).

Opening of the session

1.	The meeting was held in Geneva from 18 to 21 June 2001.

2.	The session was opened by the Director of the UNECE Trade Division, Dr. Carol Cosgrove-Sacks, who welcomed delegations to Geneva.

3.	The UNECE Trade Division Director declared that the Specialized Section was the only forum world-
wide dealing exclusively with the commercial quality of dry and dried produce. It had contributed to the good reputation of UNECE in the area of quality standards. The standards drawn up by the group are widely used as practical tools to facilitate trade. UNECE was becoming more and more involved in questions of quality and quality assurance and was working closely with the World Trade Organization and specifically the TBT Committee on these questions. Quality standards should not create technical barriers to trade.

4.	The Director expressed the hope that the group would find compromises on the open questions in the Walnuts standards.

Participation

5.	The session was attended by the delegations of: France; Germany; Hungary, Italy; Spain; Turkey; United Kingdom and the United States of America.

6.	The European Community was also represented.

7.	Representatives of the following non-governmental organizations also participated: International Nut Council (INC).

8.	At the invitation of the secretariat, a representative of the OECD Scheme for the Application of International Standards for Fruit and Vegetables participated in the session.

Item 1:	Adoption of the agenda

Document: TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/1

9.	The Meeting adopted the Provisional Agenda with the deletion of the following documents which had not been received:

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/4

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/11

10.	The following documents were added to the agenda:

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.1 (INC) - Correction to -/2001/3

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.2 (Italy) - Dictionary

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.3 Not distributed

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.4 (Germany) - comments on document -/2001/9

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.5 (India) - Walnut Kernels

-	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.6 (India) - Inshell Walnuts

Item 2:	Matters of interest arising since the forty-seventh session

Document: TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/2

Documents adopted by the Working Party:	TRADE/WP.7/2000/11/Add.17 (Inshell Hazelnuts)

TRADE/WP.7/2000/11/Add.18 (Hazelnut Kernels)

TRADE/WP.7/2000/11/Add.19 (Standard Layout, main text)

11.	The Meeting took note of document TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/2 summing up the relevant outcome of the fourth session of the Committee for Trade, Industry and Enterprise Development and the fifty-sixth session of the Working Party on Standardization of Perishable Produce and Quality Development.

12.	The Director informed the meeting of the outcome of the spring session of the Economic Commission for Europe where UNECE had been requested to:

-	ensure policy coherence between different sectors in UNECE especially towards countries in economic transition;

-	develop and strengthen cross-sectoral activities (e.g. links between trade and transport and trade and environment)

-	ensure a follow-up to the Millennium Summit concerning:

-	eradication of poverty

-	use of information technology

-	issues related to the Chernobyl disaster.

13.	The Director also reported on the outcome of the Committee for Trade, Industry and Enterprise Development and the forum on E-services for Trade Investment and Enterprise which had been held from 11 to 15 June. She pointed out that the Committee continued to place a very high priority on the work of the Working Party and its Specialized Sections and further added that it had been proposed to hold a joint session of the Working Party and the Committee in the future to increase the understanding about the work of the Working Party. This would be further discussed at the Working Party.

14.	The Director suggested that the group should reflect on means to assist countries with economies in transition and to increase the number of workshops in the region where expert knowledge on quality production could be transferred.

Item 3:	Review of the UN/ECE Recommendation for Walnut Kernels

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 37-54

Documents for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/1999/7/Add.3	Text of the recommendation

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/3	Proposal (INC)

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.1	Correction (INC)

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/3/Add.1	Proposal (United States)

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.5	Proposal (India)

15.	The trial period for this recommendation, which was again extended in 2000, ends in November 2001. At the last session, a working group (France, Italy, Spain, United States, INC) was formed to find solutions to the points still under discussion, namely: scuffing; marking of the crop year; commercial type; mould; colour chart. Documents were received from the International Nut Council (INC), the United States and India.

Scuffing

16.	It was agreed that scuffing should only be considered for halves as proposed by INC.

17.	Positions differed on the amount of scuffing to be allowed in the various quality classes, due to the various methods used for the shelling of the walnuts as well as their intended use. In France and some other countries, walnuts are machine-split and then shelled by hand. The resulting walnut halves are virtually unscuffed and used for direct consumption or food decoration. The United States use a mechanical system for splitting and shelling. The resulting halves have a higher amount of scuffing and are used for direct consumption and mainly for further processing (e.g. cakes).

18.	France and other European Countries were satisfied with the amounts given in the present recommendation (Extra Class: 5% , Class I: 20%, and Class II: 33%).

19.	The delegations of the United States and INC felt that these amounts were too strict and would impose a barrier on trade for production areas using machine shelling. They proposed to apply different tolerances for the two production methods (hand-shelling: as in the present recommendation; machine-shelling: Extra Class: 25% and Class I: 50% ; for Class II scuffing is not considered as a defect).

20.	After discussion, it was agreed to apply one set of figures regardless of the shelling method used. The following compromise was agreed for halves (scuffing is not considered to be a defect for quarters and pieces):

-	Extra Class: scuffing on 10% or less of the skin surface is not considered a defect;

-	Class I: scuffing on 20% or less of the skin surface is not considered a defect;

-	Class II: scuffing is not considered a defect;

-	Tolerances: For Extra Class and Class I, 10% by weight of Kernels that do not fulfill the requirements of scuffing.

Crop Year

21.	Opinions concerning the marking of the crop year differed. The United States and INC proposed to revert to the text of the standard in force (i.e. making the marking of the crop year optional). Their main reasons were as follows:

-	It is impossible to enforce this requirement as there is no method to establish which crop year a specific sample belongs to; this might lead to fraud (re-packers marking the new year);

-	A later crop year is not an indication of higher quality - this can vary from year to year; modern storage methods make it possible to maintain good quality for stored walnuts;

-	The crop from the previous year might be rejected in late Spring.

22.	Other delegations favoured the wording in the present recommendation (Marking of crop year mandatory for Extra Class and Class I and optional for Class II) for the following reasons:

-	This information is important for importers and customers because in the case of walnuts, there is a relationship between quality and crop year;

-	Methods to determine the crop year exist;

-	The information is easy to give for the exporter - it is up to the importer to detect and prove any fraud;

-	Mixing of old and new crop should be avoided.

23.	After some discussion in which no consensus could be reached, it was agreed to revert to the text of the existing standard i.e. to make the marking of the crop year optional. To align the text with the other standards it was agreed that it should read: "Crop year, optional, mandatory according to the legislation of the importing country."

Annex on colour classification

24.	It was agreed to publish the colour chart independent from the standard and to reword the footnote making reference to this annex.

25.	The delegation of INC proposed to provide 1000 copies of the annex before the session of the Working Party. The Chairman thanked INC for this offer. INC will contact the secretariat concerning the layout. The United States will provide the pictures.

Reservations

26.	It was agreed that the secretariat would write to Poland, Romania and India concerning their reservations, setting a deadline by which they had to be confirmed. If not confirmed, reservations would be considered as withdrawn.

Commercial type

27.	Following a similar approach taken in other standards and to address the problems mentioned by India, it was agreed to include the following definition as a footnote to the mention of "commercial type" in the definition of the quality classes:

"*	Commercial type: Walnut kernels in each container are of similar general type and appearance and/or belong to a mix of varieties officially defined by the producing country."

Decision to be transmitted to the Working Party

28.	The updated text of the recommendation will be published in addendum 1 to this report and transmitted to the Working Party for adoption as a revised UNECE Standard.

Item 4:	Revision of UNECE standards

(a)	Inshell Walnuts

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 55-59

Documents for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/1999/7/Add.4	Text of the standard in force (Secretariat)

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.6	Proposals (India)

Reservations

29.	At the last session the delegations of Spain and Romania stated that they wished to maintain their reservation requesting a moisture content of 6.0%. The delegation of Romania replied that no scientific studies showed that a lower moisture content reduced the risk of mouldy and rancid nuts.

30.	Spain withdrew their reservation concerning moisture content. France withdrew their reservation concerning tolerances for mould. It was agreed that the secretariat would contact Romania concerning their reservation, setting a deadline by which it had to be confirmed. If not confirmed, the reservation would be considered as withdrawn.

Crop year

31.	The United States and INC proposed to align the provisions with the ones agreed for walnut kernels (i.e. to make the marking of the crop year optional). The other delegations opposed this proposal. The Chairman polled each delegation and the only United States supported making the crop year optional. As a result, the present text of the standard will remain unchanged.

Commercial type

32.	It was agreed to include the definition in the standard as had been done for Walnut kernels.

Decision to be transmitted to the Working Party

33.	The changes mentioned above and some editorial changes to the text of the standard will be transmitted to the Working Party for adoption as a revised UNECE Standard.

(b)	Pistachio Kernels and Peeled Pistachio Kernels

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 60-70

Documents for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/9	Text of the standard in force (Secretariat)

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/5	Proposal (Turkey)

34.	At the last session, an initial discussion was held on the revision of the existing UNECE Standard for Decorticated and Decorticated Peeled Pistachio Nuts. Turkey and the United States agreed to work on a proposal keeping in mind the new standard layout and also seeking input from other producing countries such as the Islamic Republic of Iran.

35.	The delegation of the United States informed that they had not been able to give any input because they preferred to finalize the revision of their national standard first.

36.	Comments from Iran had not been received. The delegation of INC said that they would contact experts in Iran who would be able to provide comments and also participate in the next session.

Discussion of the proposal from Turkey

37.	The Specialized Section thanked the delegation of Turkey for the preparation of the document and congratulated and thanked the head of their delegation, Mr. Mehmet Dokuzoguz, for his 20 years of participation in the group.

38.	In their proposal Turkey had adapted the text to the new standard layout as well as taken into account comments made at the last session.

39.	The following comments were made and agreed:

40.	I. Definition of Produce: it was agreed to delete the words "intended for direct consumption" as this would make the use of the standard very limited because most kernels for direct consumption are either salted, sugared or roasted (which is excluded from the standard).

41.	II A. (I) Minimum Requirements: It was agreed to align the order and wording closer to the standard layout.

42.	II A. (ii) Moisture content: It was agreed to align the wording of the text and the footnote to the standard layout. It was proposed by several countries and supported by INC to lower the percentage to 6.0% to reduce the risk of aflatoxins. The delegation of the United States said that in their national standard 7% were allowed but that they would accept 6.5%. It was agreed to leave 6.5 per cent. The delegation of the United Kingdom entered a reservation requesting 6.0%. The same reservation had already been entered by the Netherlands and Germany.

43.	II B.: It was agreed that provisions for a Class I for peeled pistachio kernels should be developed in view of the growing importance of this product.

44.	II C: Colour classification: It was agreed to add an introductory sentence to this paragraph.

45.	III: Sizing: It was agreed to change the text to read: "Sizing is optional."

46.	IV: Tolerances: The INC proposed to reduce tolerances for shrivelled peeled pistachio kernels from 6% to 4%. The delegation of Turkey declared that they would evaluate this but that especially green kernels were more likely to shrivel because they had to be harvested earlier. The delegation of the United States requested higher tolerances for halved and broken pistachio kernels. It was agreed that Turkey, INC and the United States would propose new tolerances at the next session.

47.	It was agreed that the secretariat would contact Greece concerning the reservation contained in the existing standard, setting a deadline by which it has to be confirmed. If not confirmed the reservation will be considered as withdrawn.

48.	V. B: Packaging: It was agreed to include text concerning light sensitivity bags for green pistachios.

49.	V. C: Presentation: It was agreed to delete the proposed text and to include the text contained in the proposed revision for almond kernels.

50.	VI. B: Nature of produce: The text was amended as follows:

"-	'Pistachio Kernels'

-	'Peeled Pistachio Kernels' or 'Blanched Pistachio Kernels' "

51.	VI. D: It was agreed to delete the indent concerning type (it might be added at a later stage when types become commercially important). Class and Colour Class were placed into separate indents.

52.	VI. D: The rapporteur proposed to make the marking of the crop year mandatory. Positions differed as for walnuts. It was agreed to amend the provision for marking of the crop year to read: "Crop year, optional, mandatory according to the legislation of the importing country."

Colour class

53.	The delegation of INC declared that only the green colour was distinguished in trade, which other delegations confirmed. It was agreed that the rapporteur would collect more information on this topic and present a new text to the next session. The delegation of the United States mentioned that they would prefer to have the marking of the colour class optional.

54.	All delegations agreed that green pistachio kernels should be treated in the same standard as kernels of a different colour.

Annex: Definition of defects

55.	The definition of broken will be reviewed. The text of other definitions will be aligned to the new definitions in the annex to the standard layout once agreed.

Follow-up

56.	All interested delegations were invited to provide comments and proposals concerning the items under discussion to the rapporteur (Turkey) and the Secretariat before 31 December 2001. Delegations were reminded that all proposals have to be justified.

(c)	Inshell Pistachio Nuts

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 60-70

Documents for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/11	Text of the standard in force

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/6 (Turkey)	Proposal

57.	At the last session, an initial discussion had been held on the revision of the existing UN/ECE Standard for Unshelled Pistachio Nuts. The delegation of Turkey had prepared a proposal based on the comments made and aligned the text to the standard layout.

Discussion of the proposal by Turkey

58.	I. Definition of produce: It was agreed to add a last sentence (as for kernels): "Inshell pistachio nuts which are processed by salting, sugaring or roasting are excluded.

59.	II. A. (I) General provisions: The delegation of the United States stated that definitions should be more specific in order to avoid too much room for interpretation.

60.	II. A. (ii) Moisture content: The text of the provision and footnote 2 will be aligned to the standard layout. The positions concerning the percentage differed. The United States preferred 7% but could agree on 6.5%. The INC said that the percentage could be slightly higher than the one for kernels: 6.5%. Germany maintained their reservation requesting 6.0%. The United Kingdom entered a reservation requesting 5.5%.

61.	III. Sizing: Proposed sizing provisions were discussed at length. It was agreed that the rapporteur would collect information from delegations and prepare a new version of this section for the next session. The following comments were made:

-	in international trade sizing is mainly done by count per ounce (INC);

-	the wording and placement of the definition for round and long types should be reviewed;

62.	IV. A. Quality tolerances: Several delegations expressed preferences for tolerances indicated by count for ease of control (with the exception of "foreign matter"). The delegation of the United States specified that in their standards, tolerances were defined by weight. The UNECE standard should sufficiently flexible to allow this.

63.	The delegation of INC declared that special tolerances should be set for cracks on pistachios which have been mechanically split. They suggested 0% in Extra Class and Class I and 20% in Class II which would not count towards total tolerances.

64.	IV. A. Size tolerances: The delegation of the United States said that 5% might be too strict and the way the text was written did not ensure homogeneity. It was agreed to align the text with the standard layout.

65.	V. A. Uniformity: The delegation of the United Kingdom proposed to include the crop year in the uniformity requirement. The delegation of Spain answered that this possibility had not been included in the standard layout.

66.	VI. B: Nature of produce: Add a new indent "Commercial type (optional)".

67.	VI. D. To align with other standards it was agreed to amend the provision for marking of the crop year to read: "Crop year, optional, mandatory according to the legislation of the importing country."

68.	Annex II: The delegation of the United States proposed to sort the definitions according to whether they applied to kernels or shells.

Follow-up

69.	All interested delegations were invited to provide comments and proposals concerning the items under discussion to the rapporteur (Turkey) and the Secretariat before 31 December 2001. Delegations were reminded that all proposals had to be justified.

(d)	Sweet Almond Kernels

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 105

Documents for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/7	Proposal (Spain)

70.	The Working Party authorized the Specialized Section to review the UNECE standards for almonds. The delegation of Spain offered to serve as rapporteur and had prepared draft texts aligned to the revised standard layout containing some further suggestions for amendments. The delegation of Spain thanked the United States and the United Kingdom for their assistance in preparing this document.

71.	The delegation of Spain said that they had aimed at finding a compromise between the provisions of the standards used by Spain and the United States.

Discussion of the proposal from Spain

72.	I. Definition of produce: The delegation of the United States stated that "blanched kernels " should not be included in the standard because blanching was a process and processing was excluded. The delegation of Spain explained that blanched kernels accounted for 20% of international trade in almonds. The UNECE Secretariat specified that processing like salting, sugaring and roasting were excluded but blanching was not considered as processing. He compared the situation to peeled pistachio kernels. It was agreed to put all provisions concerning blanched kernels in square brackets and take a final decision at the next session.

73.	The delegation of France asked if the inclusion of nuts intended for use in the food industry was contradictory to the Geneva protocol which states that the produce described is "normally intended to be sold or delivered in its original condition to the consumer".

74.	Several other delegations declared that the standard should apply to all produce regardless of its intended use. It was agreed to delete the words "intended for direct consumption or for use in the food industry" in order to leave the standard as open as possible.

75.	II. A. (ii) Moisture content: The delegation of Germany entered a reservation requesting a moisture content of 6%.

76.	II. B. Classification: It was agreed to align the text closer to the standard layout and to avoid the use of footnotes as much as possible. The concept of "uniform commercial type" for extra class proposed by the rapporteur to ensure uniformity of shape was not agreed.

77.	III. Sizing: The rapporteur declared that methods of sizing and/or screening varied from one country to the next (e.g. sizing by equatorial width, length or count per 100g or per ounce). This was why he had tried to keep the standard as open as possible.

78.	The delegation of Germany asked if it was necessary to have a minimum size in Extra Class since. They said that certain small almonds were more expensive than the standard sizes, which was confirmed by the delegation of the United States.

79.	IV. Tolerances: The rapporteur had included tolerances for mouldy kernels in the one for rancid, rotten and damaged by insects. The delegation of Germany expressed concern since this allowed a higher amount of mouldy kernels and preferred to single out tolerances for mouldy. Other delegations did not consider mouldy kernels as an important problem for almonds. It was agreed to leave the text in square brackets.

80.	It was agreed to delete the words "having bad smell or taste". The delegation of Spain explained that bitter almonds were a specific varietal problem which increased if many varieties were mixed.

81.	Tolerances for chipped and scratched kernels were increased to be more in line with trade. It was clarified that broken almonds were not subject to the standard according to the definition of produce.

82.	The delegation of the United States requested the deletion of footnote (a) concerning various tolerances for old and new crops since control was not possible. It was agreed to delete it. The delegation of Spain mentioned that old crop was not used extensively for almonds.

83.	III. Sizing: It was agreed that the present footnote 8 concerning sizing per 100g or per ounce

would be included in the main text of the standard.

84.	IV. C. Size tolerances: The text was amended to read: "For all classes, 15%, by weight, of almond kernels not according to the size or screen indicated on the marking."

85.	V. A. Uniformity: Crop year was put into square brackets. Footnote 11 was deleted.

86.	V. C. Presentation: Footnote 12 was deleted.

87.	VI. Marking: In footnote 13 the words "of the importing country" were added after "national requirements".

88.	VI. B. Nature of the produce: In the first indent, "nature of the produce" was deleted and a new term "Almonds" was added.

89.	VI. D. Commercial specifications: The indent concerning size or screen was corrected. the delegation of the United States will propose text for sizing by count per ounce to be included. The indent concerning crop year reads: "Crop year optional, mandatory according to the legislation of the importing country".

90.	Annex II: A number of definitions were simplified.

Follow-up

91.	All interested delegations were invited to provide comments and proposals concerning the items under discussion to the rapporteur (Spain) and the Secretariat by 31 December 2001. Delegations were reminded that all proposals had to be justified.

Item 4 (e):	Inshell Almonds

Document for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/8 (Spain)

92. The rapporteur (Spain) briefly introduced the document. He informed that a new version would be distributed based on the decisions taken for almond kernels and that it would contain the table of tolerances formulated by count which was the method used in the United States and in Spain.

93.	It was agreed that the text should include provisions for Extra Class.

Follow-up

94.	All interested delegations were invited to provide comments and proposals to the rapporteur (Spain) and the Secretariat by 31 December 2001. Delegations were reminded that all proposals had to be justified.

Item 5:	Revision of the Standard Layout for Dry and Dried Produce

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 71-85

Documents for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/9 (Spain)	Revised annex

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.4 (Germany)	Comments on document -
/2001/9

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/10 (Spain)	Revised annex III

General

95.	At the last session, the main text of the standard layout had been finalized and subsequently adopted by the working party (see TRADE/WP.7/2000/11/Add.19). At the present session, a number of changes were noted by the rapporteur (Germany) which will eventually be included in the main text. The text will also be compared to the text of the standard layout for fresh fruit and vegetables and if necessary harmonized to it.

96.	The delegation of Spain prepared revised documents for the annexes II and III to the standard layout based on the discussions at the last session and comments received.

97.	The Chairman announced that Germany together with Spain had offered to serve as rapporteur for Annex I (determination of the moisture content for dried fruit).

98.	Following a suggestion from the Chairman, it was agreed to propose to the working party that all standards should always include the actual version of the annexes to the standard layout i.e. if the annexes were changed, the standards will automatically be adjusted.

Discussion on Annex II

99.	The text proposed by Spain was discussed as amended by Germany. A number of changes were made. The consolidated version of the text will be published in Addendum 2 to this report.

100.	It was agreed that the name of the annex should be "Determination of the moisture content for dry fruit (inshell nuts and nut kernels)" (in French: fruits secs à coque). With this exception, the term "nuts" will be used throughout the English text.

101.	The delegation of the United States mentioned that in their country, the AOAC method was used and that this method was also accepted in international trade. They announced that they would prepare a comparison between the ISO and AOAC methods for the next session.

102.	The revised text is included in Addendum 2 to this report. Delegations were invited to review the text carefully and to send any observations to the rapporteur (Spain) by 31 December 2001.

Annex III

103.	The text presented by Spain was not discussed at the session. Delegations were invited to study it carefully and provide comments by 31 December 2001.

Item 6:	Dictionary of Defects

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 86-90

Document for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/INF.2 (Italy)	Dictionary

104.	At the last session, it had been agreed to continue this work based on comments received. The delegation of Italy submitted a revised version of the dictionary. The dictionary contained terms in five languages. It will be completed with the terms in Turkish and Russian. If possible, the Italian delegation will contact the delegation of the Ukraine for the translation otherwise the document will be translated by the conference services of the United Nations.

105.	It was agreed that the next version of the document would be put on the web site of the UNECE Agricultural Standards Unit.

106.	Delegations were invited to provide relevant information to the rapporteur (Italy) by 31 December 2001.

Item 7	Elaboration of a sampling plan

Discussion at the last session:	see TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2000/17 para. 91-96

Documents for this session:	TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/12 (United States)	Proposal

107.	The document presented by the United States was not discussed at the session. The delegation of the United States informed that the text had been aligned with a format used at OECD by the delegation of the United Kingdom. A new version would be produced for review and discussion at the next session.

108.	The Specialized Section agreed that it was necessary to have a sampling plan. Delegations were invited to provide relevant information to the rapporteur (United States) by 31 December 2001.

Item 9	Matters of interest arising from the work of European Union

109.	The delegation of the European Community informed that:

-	the marketing standard for Inshell Walnuts has been published as regulation 175/2001.

-	the standard for Inshell Hazelnuts is still under review and the publishing date has not been set;

-	it is intended to work on a standard for Inshell Almonds but to wait for the development of the UNECE Standard;

-	Regulation 1148/2001 on checks on conformity to the marketing standards applicable to fresh fruit and vegetables has been published. This regulation contains a sampling plan which could serve as reference during the development of the UNECE sampling plan.

OECD Scheme

110.	The delegation of the OECD Scheme informed that:

-	no meetings of the plenary meeting have been held since the last session;

-	the 10th Meeting of Heads of Control Services took place in Slovakia from 4 to 6 June 2001 with the following program:

-	quality assurance (including HACCP) in the sector of fresh fruit and vegetables;

-	the interface between the different types of control that fruit and vegetables have to undergo;

-	control methods and risk analysis of the quality control services in the different countries;

-	technical visits to production companies, wholesale markets and retail distribution;

-	the next plenary meeting of the Scheme will be from 23 to 25 October 2001.

Item 10:	Other Business

Explanatory sheets for tree nuts

111.	The delegation of INC offered to prepare explanatory sheets for all tree nut standards including colour images of defects. This could be done in cooperation with the OECD Scheme.

Participation of consumer organisations

112.	The delegation of France suggested to contact consumer organisations to encourage them to participate in sessions of the Specialized Section. This was supported by the delegation of Turkey.

113.	The secretariat requested delegations to provide addresses of relevant consumer organisations so that they could be invited.

Item 12:	Preparation of the next session

(a)	Future work

114.	Items for future work have been mentioned throughout this report and are summarized in the Annex.

115.	The delegation of France informed that they would prepare a proposal to amend the UNECE standard for prunes because a new kind of high moisture prunes was being traded.

(b)	Date and place of the next session

116.	The next session has provisionally been planned to take place in Geneva from 21 to 24 May 2002. Should the session be held in a different location, the secretariat will inform delegations as early as possible.

(c)	Preparation of the 57th session of the Working Party on Standardization of Perishable Produce and Quality Development

117.	The secretariat will forward document TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/13/Add.1 (Walnut Kernels) to the Working Party for adoption.

118.	It will be proposed to the Working Party that all standards should always include the actual version of the annexes to the standard layout (see also para. 98).

Item 13:	Election of officers

119.	The Specialized Section re-elected Mr. W. Staub (Germany) as its Chairman and Mr. M. Sciannella (Italy) as its Vice-Chairman. Mr. Staub thanked the delegations for their support and indicated that he would retire in 2003 and thus not be available for re-election in 2002.

Item 14:	Adoption of the report

The Working Party adopted the report of its forty-eighth session on the basis of a draft prepared by the secretariat.

Addenda to this report which will be published separately:

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/13/Add.1:	Revised UNECE Recommendation for Walnut Kernels recommended to the Working Party for adoption as a UNECE Standard

TRADE/WP.7/GE.2/2001/13/Add.2:	Revised Annex II of the standard layout. Published for comments by delegations.

ANNEX

Task list

Task	Responsible	Date
Contact India, Poland and Romania concerning reservations in the standard for walnut kernels	Secretariat	asap
Contact Romania concerning reservations in the standard for inshell walnuts	Secretariat	asap
Contact Greece concerning reservations in the standard for Pistachio kernels and peeled pistachio kernels	Secretariat	asap
Transmit the text of the recommendation for walnut kernels to the working party for adoption	Secretariat	asap
Contact experts from Iran concerning pistachios	INC	asap
Discuss layout of the colour chart for walnut kernels	Secretariat, INC	3 September 2001
Propose to the working party that all standards should always include the actual version of the annexes to the standard layout i.e. if the annexes are changed the standards will change automatically.	Secretariat	3 September 2001
Transmit changes to the standard for inshell walnuts to the working party for adoption	Secretariat	3 September 2001
Provide addresses of consumer organisations	all delegations	3 September 2001
Print colour chart for walnut kernels	INC	1 October 2001
Send comments on the drafts concerning almond kernels and inshell almonds to Spain	all delegations	31 December 2001
Send comments on the drafts concerning Pistachio kernels and peeled pistachio kernels and Inshell Pistachios to Turkey	all delegations	31 December 2001
Send comments on Annexes II and III of the Standard Layout to Spain	all delegations	31 December 2001
Send comments on the dictionary of defects to Italy	all delegations	31 December 2001
Send proposals for a sampling plan to the United States	all delegations	31 December 2001
Contact consumer organisations to invite them to participate in the work of the Specialized Section	Secretariat	31 December 2001
Prepare a new draft of the pistachio standards	Turkey	12 March 2002
Prepare a new draft of the almond standards	Spain	12 March 2002
Prepare a draft for Annex I of the standard layout	Germany, Spain	12 March 2002
Prepare a new version of Annexes II and III of the Standard Layout	Spain	12 March 2002
Prepare a new version of the dictionary of defects	Italy	12 March 2002
Prepare a proposal for a sampling plan	United States	12 March 2002
Prepare a proposal to amend the UNECE standard for Prunes	France	12 March 2002