Contaminants in Food
Codex Committee on Contaminants in Food (Host Government - Netherlands)
The Codex Committee on Contaminants in Food (CCCF) establishes and endorses permitted maximum levels or guideline levels for contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants in food and feed.
It also prepares priority lists of contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants for risk assessment by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives.
The CCCF considers methods of analysis and sampling for the determination of contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants in food and feed and develops and elaborates standards or codes of practice for related subjects. It also considers other matters assigned to it by the Commission in relation to contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants in food and feed.
Existing Codex Standards
The 'General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Foods' - relating to contaminants in food* - has been endorsed and adopted into the international food code.
*This is an indicative list only. For a full list of standards approved by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, please consult its Official List of Standards.
Outcomes from the 32nd Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission
The 32nd Commission adopted at Step 8 and 5/8 the:
- Revision to the Preamble of the GSCTF
- Code of Practice for the Reduction of Acrylamide in Foods
- Code of Practice for the Reduction of Contamination of Foods with Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) from Smoking and Direct Drying Processes
- Code of Practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Ochratoxin A Contamination in Coffee
- Amendments to Paragraph 10, Sample Preparation in the Sampling Plans for Aflatoxin Contamination in Ready-to-Eat Treenuts and Treenuts Destined for Further Processing: Almonds, Hazelnuts and Pistachios
The 32nd Commission approved new work on:
- Maximum Levels for Fumonisins in Maize and Maize Products and associated Sampling Plans
- Code of Practice for the Reduction of Ethyl Carbamate in Stone Fruit Distillates
- Revision of the Code of Practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Aflatoxins in Tree Nuts (CAC/RCP 59-2005): Additional Measures for Brazil Nuts
- Maximum Levels for Melamine in Foods and Feed
Last Meeting
The 3rd Session of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods was held in The Hague, The Netherlands, from 23–27 March 2009.
At this meeting the committee agreed to forward to the Commission:
Proposed Draft Standards and Related Texts at Step 8 or 5/8 of the Procedure
The Committee agreed to forward:
- Proposed Draft Revision to the Preamble of the GSCTF at Step 5/8
- Draft Code of Practice for the Reduction of Acrylamide in Foods at Step 8
- Draft Code of Practice for the Reduction of Contamination of Food with Polycyclic Armnatic Hydrocarbons from Smoking and Direct Drying Processes at Step 8
- Proposed Draft Code of Practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Ochratoxin A Contamination in Coffee at Step 5/8.
The Committee agreed to submit to the Codex Alimentarius Commission, through the Executive Committee, the proposal for the following new work on:
- “Maximum Levels for Fumonisins in Maize and Maize-Products and Associated Sampling Plans”
- A “Code of Practice for the Reduction of Ethyl Carbamate in Stone Fruit Distillates"
- A “Revision of the Code of Practice for the Prevention and Reduction of Aflatoxin in Tree Nuts (Additional measures for Brazil Nuts)”
- “Maximum Levels for Melamine in Food and Feed”.
Others matters for adoption
The Committee agreed to forward the:
- Amendments to Paragraph 10, Sample Preparation in the Sampling Plans for Aflatoxin Contamination in Ready-To-Eat Treenuts and Treenuts Destined for Further Processing: Almonds, Hazelnuts and Pistachios.
Download the report from this meeting
Next Meeting
The 4th Session of the Committee on Contaminants in Foods is yet to be confirmed.