Six Arab delegations – Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Oman and Saudi Arabia – participated in the physical meeting of the CRVDF26, held in Portland, Oregon, United States of America from 13 – 17 February, 2023.
This meeting witnessed two significant contributions from Arab Codex delegations, with the development of two technical documents supporting the derivation and adoption of Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for Veterinary Drug Residues of relevance to the Arab region.
” Six Arab delegations … development of two technical documents…
These technical papers were introduced in the form of Conference Room Documents (CRDs) by the Arab Industrial Development, Standardization and Mining Organization (AIDSMO), Jordan, Morocco and the International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST) through its disciplinary group for food regulatory science: GFoRSS (the Global Food Regulatory Science Society). They are the result of studies carried out by a group of Arab experts, under the auspices of the Arab Codex Initiative, implemented in partnership with AIDSMO.
The first technical document developed by the Arab region (CRD11) reviewed the opportunity to derive MRLs for priority veterinary substances for use in conjunction with the aquaculture production of fish species relevant to the Arab region – such as, Tilapia – based on Codex MRLs for other fish species.
CCRVDF26 agreed to include, under Part V of the priority list, three of the recommended substances from the Arab fish study for development consideration using the extrapolation method: (a) Lufenuron, (b) Emamectin benzoate and (c) Diflubenzuron.
The second paper (CRD10) examined the opportunity to derive MRLs applicable to Camelid tissues based on Codex MRLs for veterinary substances used with ruminants.
CCRVDF26 concurred with the Arab region’s recommendation to consider the applicability of the extrapolation approach to derive MRLs for relevant veterinary substances in Camelid tissues with respect to compounds where no significant metabolism is observed. The Electronic Working Group (EWG) on extrapolation was tasked to develop criteria for the extrapolation methodology applicable in this case and make appropriate recommendations to CCRVDF27.
” … active Leadership of Arab Codex delegations in Codex proceedings.
The level of Arab participation at the CCRVDF26 represents extensive progress towards ensuring the relevance of Codex Standards to the Arab region’s food and agrifood sector. It also charts a promising path forward for active leadership of Arab Codex delegations in Codex proceedings.
