Codex Training Package June 2004

FAO/WHO Codex Training Package Module 2.10

Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures

Dr.Babasaheb Nagurao KumbharM.V.Sc scholar

College of veterinary sciences, Hyderabad

bobbyvph11@gmail.com

International trade influences:

• Promotion of the economic development

• Alleviation of poverty.

SPS measures may influence on: • Many restrictions in international trade.

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SPS MeasuresDefinition -SPS MeasuresDefinition -

Human or risks arising from additives,

Animal Health contaminants, toxins or disease

organisms in food, drink, feedstuff

A measure taken to protect:

Human Life plant- or animal-carried diseases

Animal or pests, diseases, disease-causing

Plant life organisms

A country other damage caused by entry,

establishment or spread of pests

from

from

from

from

Beneficiaries of the SPS Agreement:

The consumers,

The exporters of agricultural products,

The importers of food & other agricultural products.

The SPS Agreement helps:

To ensure that consumers are being supplied with safe food to eat – “safe” by the appropriate standards

To provide greater choice of safe foods for consumers on the market

To support international competition among producers regarding safer and healthier food production

The SPS Agreement helps:

To increase the amount of available information for consumers as a result of greater transparency in governmental procedures,

To increase the amount of available information for importers and to eliminate unjustified border measures.

To eliminate the unnecessary and unjustified trade barriers

FAO/WHO Codex Training Package Module 2.10 Codex Training Package June 20

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SPS Agreement recognizes.....

The Codex standards, guidelines and recommendations relating to:

Food additives

Veterinary Drug and Pesticide residues

Contaminants

Methods of analysis and sampling

Codes and Guidelines of hygienic practice

FAO/WHO Codex Training Package Module 2.10

Examples of SPS measures

Inspection of products for microbiological contaminants

Fumigation treatments for products

Maximum residue limits for pesticide residues in foods

What type of measures?

End Product criteriaQuarantine

measuresRisk assessment

methodsProcessing

requirements

InspectionSampling &

TestingHealth-related

labelingCertifications

All measures with SPS purpose including:

Other Types of MeasuresProtection of the environmentConsumer interests other than healthAnimal welfareNot Covered by SPS Agreement but may be TBT Measures

FAO/WHO Codex Training Package Module 2.10

The SPS Agreement states: Food safety measures necessary to protect public health should conform to Codex standards

National regulations consistent with Codex standards are presumed to meet the requirements of the SPS Agreement

Member countries should base their food safety standards on the standards of the Codex Alimentarius Commission.

Codex is the reference point for standards pertaining to food safetyharmonizing national food safety standards

Linkages between Codex & SPS Agreement

Key Provisions of the SPS AgreementKey Provisions of the SPS Agreement

1. Non-discrimination

2. Scientific justification • harmonization• risk assessment• consistency

3. Equivalence

4. Transparency

5. Technical assistance/special

Treatment

Control, inspection and approval procedures

NON DISCRIMINATION:

Measures should not arbitrarily or unjustifiably discriminate, where identical or similar conditions prevail.

Transparency :

Achievement of greater degree of: Clarity, Predictability Information regarding trade policy,

rules and procedures of WTO

There are three different fields of activities:

Publishing regulations, Notifications, Information.

Harmonization

Harmonization means:

Establishment, Recognition and Application of

Common SPSmeasures by differentcountries.

Standard-setting organizations

Food SafetyCODEX

Plant HealthIPPC

Animal HealthOIE (zoonosis)

Codex = Joint FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius CommissionOIE = World Organization for Animal HealthIPPC = International Plant Protection Convention (FAO)

Scientific justification Harmonization

THREE International organizations responsible for harmonization & standard setting.

Risk assessment:

The evaluation of the likelihood of entry, establishment or spread of a pest or disease within the territory of an importing country according to association with potential biological or economic consequences

The evaluation of the potential for adverse effects on human or animal health arising from the presence of additives, contaminants, toxins or disease-causing organisms in food, beverages or feedstuffs.

Technical assistance • Aim is to adjust to & comply with SPS measures to

comply with SPS requirements of importing country & expand market access opportunities

Areas includeProcessing technologiesResearch & infrastructureEstablishment of regulatory

bodies

Form of; Advice, Credits, Donations, Grants, Training, Equipment

Source - bilateral or through international organizations

Enquiry points

An office designated to receive and respond to any requests for information regarding the country’s SPS measures.

Problems In Implementation

• Non representativeness of international standards

• Absence of a national notification system

• A general lack of awareness

• Some aspects not very well developed – traceability, risk assessment, R&D, residues, data

TECHINICAL BARRIER TO TRADETECHINICAL BARRIER TO TRADE

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The right to protecthuman, animal or plant life or health

Avoiding unnecessary barriers to trade

TBTSPS

Scope of TBT Agreement

Covers all technical regulations, standards and conformity assessment procedures other that SPS measures

Covers products, processes and services

Covers all products, including industrial & agricultural products

Covers all standards prepared by recognized standardization bodies

Technical barriers to trade generally result from the preparation, adoption and application of different technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures.

The TBT Agreement is the Code of Good Practice for the Preparation, Adoption and Application of Standards which is known as the WTO Code of Good Practice.

If a producer in country A wants to export to country B,

he will be obliged to satisfy the technical requirements that apply in country B, with all the financial consequences this entails.

Technical regulations and product standards may vary from country to country.

Having many different regulations and standards makes life difficult for producers and exporters.

The provisions of the GATT 1947 contained only a general reference to technical regulations and standards.

After years of negotiations at the end of the Tokyo Round in 1979, 32 GATT Contracting Parties signed the plurilateral Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade.

From the Tokyo Round Standards Code to the WTO TBT Agreement

The Agreement on TBT tries to ensure that

Regulations, Standards, Testing and Certification

procedures do not create unnecessary obstacles.

The agreement also sets out a code of good practice for both governments and non-governmental or industry bodies to prepare, adopt and apply voluntary standards.

Over 200 standards-setting bodies apply the code.

The agreement also encourages countries to recognize each other’s procedures for assessing whether a product conforms.

Without recognition, products might have to be tested twice, first by the exporting country and then by the importing country.

The Technical Barriers to Trade Committee is the major clearing house for members to share the information and the major forum to discuss concerns about the regulations and their implementation.

Technical regulations and standards in the TBT Agreement

Technical regulations and standards set out specific characteristics of a product — such as its size, shape, design, functions and performance, or the way it is labelled or packaged before it is put on sale.

While conformity with standards is voluntary, technical regulations are by nature mandatory.

If an imported product does not fulfil the requirements of a technical regulation, it will not be allowed to be put on sale. In case of standards, non-complying imported products will be allowed on the market, but then their market share may be affected if consumers' prefer products that meet local standards such as quality or colour standards for textiles and clothing.

Difference between a technical regulation and a

standard

Scope of TBT Agreement Definitions

Conformity Assessment• Conformity assessment procedures are technical

procedures — such as testing, verification, inspection and certification — which confirm that products fulfil the requirements laid down in regulations and standards.

• May include, among other things, procedures for:– sampling, testing & inspection– evaluation– verification & assurance of conformity– registration, accreditation, and approval

Protection of human safety or health 

Safety in food, hygienically, free from any residues

Objectives  

Protection of animal & plant life or health

for example require that endangered species of fish reach a certain length before they can be caught.

Protection of the environment for example, the re-cycling of paper

and plastic products, and levels of motor vehicle emissions.

Other objectives are quality regulations & technical harmonization/ simply trade facilitation.

Quality regulations — e.g. those requiring that

vegetables and fruits reach a certain size to be marketable — are very common in certain developed countries.

Regulations aimed at harmonizing certain sectors, for example that of telecommunications and terminal equipment, are widespread in economically integrated areas.

To encourage development of international standards

To promote international harmonization of national / regional regulations and standards

To prevent regulations and standards from creating unnecessary obstacles to trade

Differences between SPS and TBT Agreements

SPSBased on risk

assessment,Risk assessment

from pests, diseases, additives, contaminants, toxins...

Based on scientific evidence,

TBTBased on legitimate

objective: -national security,

-prevention from deceptive practice,

- environmental protection,

Difference Between SPS &TBT

• Regulation regarding fertilizers

SPS it relating to residues in food or animal feed (objective protection of human/ animal healthTBT it related to quality or efficacy of the product or health

risk to handlers

• Labeling requirements for foodsSPS it related to food safety

TBT it the regulation concerns issues such as; positioning, letter size, nutrient content, grade, etc.

Contd…

Difference Between SPS &TBT

Regulation regarding containers for the shipment of grains

SPS it relating to fumigation or other treatment of these containers, i.e., disinfection in order to prevent the spread of disease

TBT it the regulation regards the size or structure of the containers