The Procedural Manual of the Codex Alimentarius Commission describes the legal foundations and practical functioning of the Commission and its subsidiary bodies. Knowledge of the contents of this Manual is essential for Codex members and observers to participate effectively in the work of the Commission. The Manual has been organized into seven sections and one appendix as follows:
x Section I: Basic Texts and Definitions sets out the Commission’s Statutes, Rules of Procedure and the General Principles of the Codex Alimentarius, as well as definitions of terms for the Purpose of the Codex Alimentarius which assist in the uniform interpretation of these texts.
x Section II: Elaboration of Codex Standards and Related Texts contains the Uniform Procedure for the Elaboration of Codex Standards and Related Texts, the criteria for the establishment of work priorities and subsidiary bodies, guidance on relations between Commodity Committees and General Committees, a format for Codex Commodity standards, procedures for consideration of food additive provisions, guidelines on the elaboration or revision of codes of hygienic practice and principles for selection of methods of analysis and sampling procedures.
x Section III: Guidelines for Subsidiary Bodies contains guidelines for the smooth and transparent operation of Codex Committees, ad hoc Task Forces and physical and electronic working groups
x Section IV: Risk Analysis – contains general and specific texts on risk analysis for application in the framework of the Codex Alimentarius Commission and its subsidiary bodies dealing with the protection of consumers’ health and to the joint FAO/WHO expert bodies and consultations.
x Section V: Codex Structure and Session History, lists the Commission’s subsidiary bodies with their Terms of Reference and the dates and places of the sessions held.
x Section VI: Membership, includes the membership list of the Commission (with year of accession where available) as well as the Core Functions of the Codex Contact Points.
x Section VII: Relations with other Organizations outlines the Principles and Guidelines governing the relations between the Codex Alimentarius Commission and international intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations.
x Appendix: General Decisions of the Commission contains the Statements of Principle concerning the Role of Science in the Codex decision-making process and the extent to which other factors are taken into account, the Statements of Principle relating to the Role of Food Safety Risk Assessment and the Measures to facilitate consensus.
