Codex standards play a vital role in ensuring food safety, according to the USDA’s Under Secretary for Food Safety. José Emilio Esteban said standards set in Codex are science-based and the science is applicable worldwide.
“They are established at every stage in the food production process. So they cover pathogens and contaminants as well as safe food handling practices for those that are growing, processing, packaging, distributing, and preparing your food. The reason we follow Codex standards is everybody in the world is entitled to the same quality and safety of food. It is important that the standards we develop are applied to large and small producers and to make sure everybody has the same target when it comes to the safety of food,” he said. Read more