Ngā mihi nui: Celebrating New Zealand at Codex – Past, Present and Future

In mid-June 2023, just weeks after marking World Food Safety Day, New Zealand celebrated 60 years of success in Codex at The Beehive, New Zealand Parliament.

The anniversary festivities were attended by the Minister for Food Safety, Hon Rachel Brooking and the Minister of Agriculture, Hon Damien O’Connor.  Representatives from the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) also attended, including Director-General Ray Smith, Deputy Director-General (DDG) Policy and Trade Julie Collins, acting DDG New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS) Jenny Bishop, and other key MPI and NZFS staff involved with Codex.  It also included Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex) Vice-Chairperson Raj Rajasekar.

“The 60-year anniversary event marked a significant milestone in New Zealand’s international engagement on food standards,” says Mr Rajasekar. 

This video, launched at the event, highlights New Zealand’s contributions at Codex to date, and acknowledges Codex’s important role in protecting consumers and ensuring fair practices in food trade.

Several organisations that have made a significant contribution to New Zealand’s Codex footprint were represented at the event.  This included dairy company Fonterra, the Meat Industry Association, Horticulture New Zealand, kiwifruit exporter Zespri, the New Zealand Food & Grocery Council, Seafood NZ Ltd, and Olives New Zealand.

Short remarks were made by the Managing Director, Corporative Affairs, Fonterra, and New Zealand Executive Officer of Olives NZ talking about the benefits of Codex standards to their businesses and industries, particularly in terms of market development and reduction of technical barriers to trade.

New Zealand has been an active member at Codex since its inception, from New Zealander H. Doyle, one of three inaugural vice-chairpersons in 1963, to the present day, where Mr Rajasekar is one of the three vice-chairpersons. 

Codex Vice-Chairperson Raj Rajesekar and Food Safety New Zealand Director Food Regulation Paul Dansted.

“New Zealand has been a proud member of Codex for the past 60 years,” says Mr Rajasekar. 

“Codex has helped to shape our food safety systems and contribute to New Zealand’s export success.”

Through Codex, New Zealand has led the development of international standards around meat hygiene and milk and milk products. It has also served as host country for Codex Committees on these important areas and has played a leading role in the development of other international standards.  This includes food hygiene, food additives, pesticides and veterinary drug residues, food labelling, nutrition, food inspection and certification systems, fresh fruits and vegetables, and methods of analysis and sampling.

The night at Parliament closed with the launch of New Zealand’s Strategic Objectives in Codex 2022-2026, a blueprint for New Zealand’s continued role and work at Codex.

As a founding member, New Zealand congratulates Codex on 60 years of productive work that has improved the health, wellbeing, and economic outcomes for consumers in countries around the world.  New Zealand looks forward to many more years of working with Codex.

Did you know?

The headline to this article is in Te Reo Māori and English. Ng mihi nui translates to a few things including thank you very much, very kind regards, with gratitude – and congratulations, and sums up the sentiment from New Zealand.

Photo credit

© Ministry for Primary Industries