u.s. codex office

World Food Safety Day is June 7 and USDA is committed to doing our part to collaborate with federal and state partners and engage in vital conversations with food safety experts, consumer organizations, industry, and academia to ensure safe food for all.

The Codex Alimentarius, or just Codex for short, is an international set of food standards that protect public health by ensuring food safety and promoting fair trade practices. It is produced by an international commission that formulates voluntary international standards, codes of practice, and guidelines that make up the Codex Alimentarius. As we observe World Food Safety Day and the 60^th anniversary of the Codex Commission’s founding, we celebrate food standards for defining the path to safe food for everyone, everywhere.

Lead is a naturally occurring heavy metal found in the soil, water, and air. It is also a toxic substance that can affect brain and kidney function and pregnancy outcomes. Robust international food safety standards help all nations to reduce toxic lead exposure. In 2021, the U.S. Codex Office (USCO) worked with the international food standards setting body (Codex Alimentarius) to develop science-based food standards. One area they focused on was reducing lead contamination in food.

This year’s World Food Safety Day theme is “food safety is everyone’s business.” One group with members around the world is focused on the business of science-based food standards to protect consumer health.