UNITED

NATIONS

Distr.

GENERAL

TRADE/WP.7/1999/7/Add.2

6 January 2000

ORIGINAL : ENGLISH

ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR EUROPE

COMMITTEE FOR TRADE, INDUSTRY AND

ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT

Working Party on Standardization of

Perishable Produce and Quality Development

Fifty-fifth session, 3 to 5 November 1999, Geneva,

REPORT OF ITS FIFTY-FIFTH SESSION

Addendum 2

Information provided by the Codex secretariat

Note by the secretariat: The information provided by the Codex Secretariat is reproduced as received.

(a)	The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) and the Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (CCFFV)

Background

The Committee was established by the 17th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Rome, 29 June - 10 July 1987) as the Codex Committee on Tropical Fresh Fruits and Vegetables. Its name and Terms of Reference were amended by the 21st Session of the Commission (Rome, 3-8 July 1995) to cover the standardization of all fresh fruits and vegetables by deleting the term "tropical" throughout.

The Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (CCFFV) is responsible for the elaboration of world-wide standards and codes of practice for fresh fruits and vegetables. This work is carried out in co- operation with the Working Party on Standardization of Perishable Produce of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE), in order to ensure the elaboration of harmonized standards without duplication of effort and that they follow the same broad format.

GE.00-

In addition, the 43rd Session of the Executive Committee of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Geneva, Switzerland, 4-7 June 1996), recommended that U/ECE standards should be used as a starting point for draft Codex standards where appropriate, and requested that relevant UN/ECE standards be distributed as working documents for the Codex Committee for Fresh Fruits and Vegetables when like produce were being considered.

8th SESSION OF THE

CODEX COMMITTEE ON FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

(Mexico City, Mexico, 1-5 March 1999)

The 8th Session of the Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables reached the following conclusions:

100)	agreed to advance the Draft Codex for Pineapple (revised) and Longans and Proposed Draft Codex Standards for Tiquisque (White and Lilac), Yellow Pitahaya and Papaya (revised) to the 23rd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission for final adoption;

101)	agreed to advance the Draft Codex Standard for Grapefruits to the 23rd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission for final adoption, with the exception of Section 3 Provisions concerning Sizing, which was returned for further comments and consideration by the next session of the Committee;

102)	agreed to recommend primary adoption of the Proposed Draft Codex Standards for Asparagus, Oranges, including the Guide for Use in Scoring Freezing Injury and Cape Gooseberry by the 23rd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission;

103)	agreed to return the Draft Code of Practice for the Quality Inspection and Certification of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables and its Proposed Draft Annex II Inspection Site Requisites for government comments and consideration by the next Committee's session;

104)	agreed to retain the Proposed Draft Codex Standard for Yucca for governments comments and consideration by the next CCFFV's session;

105)	agreed to suspend consideration of the Discussion Papers on The Establishment of Size Tolerances and Definitions for Terms used in Codex Standards for further comments by the next Committee's session;

106)	agreed to amendments to the Priority List of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables requiring standardization, including products already standardised by the UN/ECE, namely: Apples (Uruguay); Tomatoes (Mexico) and Table Grapes (Chile/India);

107)	agreed to continue using UN/ECE standards as a starting point for Codex standards when like products were being considered.

23rd SESSION OF THE CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION

(Rome, Italy, 28 June – 3 July 1999)

The 23rd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission adopted the Draft Codex Standards for Limes, Pummelos (Citrus grandis) and Grapefruits (Citrus paradisi) as new World-wide Codex standards, with the understanding that the sections into square brackets (Section 2.1.2 – Minimum Juice Content for Limes and Section 3 – Provisions concerning Sizing for Limes, Pummelos and Grapefruits would be further discussed and finalised by the next session of the Committee, in collaboration with the UN/ECE. These standards were elaborated on the basis of the provisions of the UN/ECE Standard for Citrus Fruits. With regard to the Codex Standard for Pummelos and Grapefruits, the Commission had an exchange of views on the divergences related to the common Spanish name of these products in different countries and therefore, it agreed to refer to the scientific name of these produce in the title of the Spanish version and to include a footnote specifying that these produce was commonly known in certain regions as "Pomelo" or "Toronja".

The Commission also adopted a Draft Revised Codex Standard for Pineapples, as a new World-wide Codex Standard for Pineapples on the understanding that the Section on Maturity Requirements would be further discussed at the next Session of the Committee. In this regard, we note the decision of the Working Party to develop a UN/ECE Standard for Pineapples. In view of the existence of an international Codex Standard for Pineapples, which has still to be finalised by the next session of the Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables, we do believe that the elaboration of an UN/ECE Standard for this produce is unnecessary. However, in view of the good co-operation between the Codex and UN/ECE Secretariats, we hope that the UN/ECE Secretariat would make every effort to avoid any duplication of work and that the work on the development of an UN/ECE Standard for Pineapples would only proceed on the basis of, and be fully harmonised with, the Codex Standard for Pineapples, in order to ensure transparency and to avoid any confusion in international trade that might result from two different standards.

As regards to Proposed Draft Standards for Guavas, Chayotes, Longans, Mexican Limes and Ginger, they were also adopted as new World-wide Codex Standards.

In relation to the Proposed Draft Codex Standards for Tiquisque (White and Lilac), Yellow Pitahayas and Papaya, the Commission decided that it was preferable to follow all the steps of the Procedure and to consider them further at the next Session of the Committee, since these produce were relatively new in countries of temperate zones and time was needed to consider all the aspects of the Standards, and there was no particular urgency to finalise them. However, it was noted that the Proposed Draft Standard for Papaya was a revision of an existing Codex text.

The Commission agreed on the primary adoption of the Proposed Draft Codex Standards for Asparagus,Oranges, including the Guide for Use in Scoring Freezing Injury and Cape Gooseberry.

Both, the Codex Standards for Asparagus and Oranges, have been and will continue to be, elaborated on the basis of the existing UN/ECE Standards for Asparagus and Citrus Fruits respectively. However, in view of the international nature of the Codex Alimentarius Commission and its subsidiary bodies, account should be taken of the needs of its other member countries, which do not necessarily belong to the European region, and therefore there is a need to adjust some specific provisions of the UN/ECE Standards for these produce.

In this connection, we believe that, in the same way that the Codex and UN/ECE Secretariats have successfully come to a harmonised sizing provisions to allow for slender asparagus to be marketed in international trade, the UN/ECE has an excellent opportunity to harmonise their pending specific provisions for oranges on the basis of current proposed Codex text agreed to by the last session of the CCFFV, in order to fully correspond to current practice in international trade.

The Commission also approved the new work for the Committee to elaborate Codex Standards for Apples, Table Grapes and Tomatoes, and in doing so, encouraged the Committee to perform this task in close collaboration with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe which had already elaborated their own Standards on these products. While avoiding any unnecessary duplication of work, the collaboration would also benefit UN/ECE by giving international recognition to its Standards.

In conclusion, the Codex Committee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables will continue to cooperate and coordinate with the UN/ECE towards the elaboration of harmonized standards so that the risk of duplication of efforts between the two organizations is avoided with the understanding that this should enable the CAC to use UN/ECE standards and recommend them for worldwide application, as contained in the Committee term of reference in the Procedural Manual: 'to consult with the UN/ECE Working Party on Standardization of Perishable Produce in the elaboration of worldwide standards and codes of practice with particular regard to ensuring that there is no duplication of standards or codes of practice and that they follow the same broad format'.