New Delhi [India], December 2 : India has been unanimously elected as a member representing the Asian region in the Executive Committee of Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) during its 46th meeting being held at FAO Headquarters in Rome, an official statement said.
Executive Committee is an important arm of the CAC and the member countries have a considerable interest in getting its membership.
In this capacity, India would not only get an opportunity to contribute substantially in the international standard-setting process for different food product categories but will also be involved in the decision-making process, as per a release issued by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The Executive Committee supports in the management of the Commission's programme of standards development by conducting a "critical review" of proposals to undertake work and monitoring the progress of standards development.
The Executive Committee comprises the Chair, three vice chairs, six regional coordinators and seven elected representatives from the various geographical regions of Codex, the release said.
India's proposal for setting up group standards for millets was also accepted by the Commission and India's initiative for establishing global standards for millets was acknowledged by the Commission and supported by the member countries, as per the official release.
The country has proposed setting up the global standards for millets under the Additional Agendas category on the first day of the CAC meeting on November 27, and the matter was deliberated at length on November 30 and was approved by the Commission for preparation of three project documents.
The Indian delegation was led by G Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO of FSSAI and comprised Aradhana Patnaik, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Dr Harinder Oberoi, Director, NIFTEM, P Karthikeyan, Joint Director, FSSAI, Dr Saswati Bose, General Manager, APEDA and Dr JS Reddy, Additional Director, EIC.
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