Learn how FAO and the WTO work together to facilitate trade based on internationally agreed food standards in this new publication. Did you know? • Through the FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius, members establish science-based, internationally agreed food standards. Codex is the world’s pre-eminent international food-standard-setting body, working with transparency and inclusiveness, based on the latest and best expert scientific advice and consensus. • At the WTO, in the SPS and TBT Committees, members monitor the trade impact of food safety and other food related measures. • The SPS Agreement sets out rules for food safety and requirements for animal and plant health. It also covers requirements for final products, processing requirements, or inspection, certification, treatment or packaging and labelling requirements directly related to food safety. • The TBT Agreement covers a wider variety of product standards and regulations adopted by governments to achieve a range of public policy objectives, such as protecting human health and safety or protecting the environment, providing consumer information and ensuring product quality.
Trade in food is difficult to imagine without standards. Food standards give confidence to consumers about the safety, quality and authenticity of what they eat. By setting out a common understanding on different aspects of food for consumers, producers and governments, harmonization on the basis of international standards makes trade less costly and more inclusive. Food standards and trade go hand in hand in ensuring safe, nutritious and sufficient food for a growing world population. Together, FAO and the WTO provide governments with the means to establish a framework to facilitate trade on the basis of internationally agreed food standards. Through the joint FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission, governments establish global science-based food standards that provide the foundation for achieving public health objectives such as food safety and nutrition. Since standards are essential for smooth trade, the WTO SPS and TBT Agreements strongly encourage governments to harmonize their requirements on the basis of international standards. This publication emphasizes the importance of participation and engagement of governments in standards development in Codex and in resolving trade concerns in the WTO SPS and TBT Committees, as well as the importance of capacity development, which together contribute to the dynamism and robustness of the global system of food standards and trade.
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