Food Protection Trends - November/December 2023 - 511

IVAN PARKIN LECTURE (continued)
standards, and reinforcing their implementation
without introducing additional complexities or
obstacles for the food industry. Food safety is
acknowledged as a public good, and as such,
should not be viewed as a competitive arena.
Instead, efforts should be collectively directed
toward ensuring the safety of all food products,
thereby fostering a positive industry image and
consumer confidence.
While any standard-setting process mandates
structured procedures, six key elements, as depicted
in Figure 1, are, from my perspective, essential to the
anatomy of effective and pragmatic standards.
schools of thought on risk management can
further complicate matters. Nonetheless, there is
unanimous agreement that the ultimate objective
is to ensure food safety. To attain this goal, it may
become necessary to introduce flexibility into the
standard, allowing different countries to place
varying degrees of emphasis on distinct segments
of the value chain, all the while converging towards
a shared end goal.
Engagement
For a standard to be comprehensive and useful,
it demands not only the active participation of
advocates for its establishment but also the
inclusion of those responsible for its implementation.
Within Codex there is the space and opportunity
for representatives of different sectors of the food
industry, as well as academia, other standardsetting
bodies, and representatives of civil society
and consumers to be involved. Their role is crucial,
as it serves to inject both practical insights and
technical expertise into the deliberations.
However, the mere establishment of robust engagement
processes does not automatically guarantee
their effectiveness. Additional support is often
required to secure effective engagement. Nevertheless,
providing the means for inclusivity is critical
as it must be acknowledged that standard setting
remains a political process, necessitating compromises
to secure consensus. The commitment to
openness and engagement serves as a safeguard,
ensuring that these compromises do not erode
confidence or trust in either the process itself or the
resulting standards.
Figure 1. Anatomy of a useful and impactful
food standard.
Clarity
Defining the scope of a standard frequently
presents itself as the most time-consuming phase.
Without a unified consensus on this aspect, one
cannot conclusively decide on the subsequent
content. Ideally, determining the scope should
be a straightforward task: pinpointing what this
standard aims to cover. However, this often isn't
the case. On the international stage of standard
setting, challenges arise due to the endeavor to
create something pertinent to the entire global
community. This endeavor is compounded by the
significant diversity in food production, processing,
and consumption practices worldwide. Differing
Good science, evidence and technical expertise
The foundation of standard setting lies in the
principles of good science, evidence, and technical
expertise. It constitutes an essential facet, one to
which many scientists, whether consciously or not,
have made valuable contributions. Science forms the
bedrock for forging consensus, instilling confidence,
and fostering trust in the standards themselves. It is at
the core of the standard-setting process within Codex,
whereby the combination of sound science and the
willingness and commitment of Members can expedite
the establishment of standards.
When the issue of contamination of milk and milk
products with melamine emerged in China, a crisis
that extended to international markets, there were no
international standards for indicating a maximum limit
for melamine in foods. The rapid and comprehensive
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