Australian Quarantine Review Secretariat Australian Quarantine a shared responsibility

The Office International Des Epizooties

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3 The International Plant Protection Convention
4 The Codex Alimentarius Commission

2 The Office International Des Epizooties

The mission of the OIE is to promote international cooperation in research and control of animal diseases, thus improving animal production and human needs. Currently, 139 countries are members of the OIE.

OIE operates to achieve its aim by cooperation among government veterinary services, directed mainly against controlling the important List A and List B Diseases:

List A comprises transmissible diseases which have the potential for very serious and rapid spread, irrespective of national borders, which are of serious socio-economic or public health consequence and which are of major importance in the international trade of animals and animal products (e.g. foot-and-mouth disease); and

List B comprises transmissible diseases that are considered to be of socio-economic and/or public health importance within countries and that are significant in the international trade of animals and animal products (e.g. bovine tuberculosis).
From a trade perspective, accurate animal health information is required for two main purposes:
· import risk analysis; and
export certification of animals and animal products.
An importing country's decision on the risks involved in the importation of animals or animal products will be based on:
· confidence in the capabilities of the exporting country's veterinary services;
· the presence and effectiveness of a monitoring and surveillance system for major diseases and other diseases of particular concern;
· evaluation of the qualitative (and where possible quantitative) disease risk posed; and
· effectiveness of the exporting country's control over movement of animals and animal products between zones and regions of differing disease status within the country, thus preventing disease transmission.
The Commonwealth Chief Veterinary Officer within the Department of Primary Industries and Energy is Australia's permanent member of OIE, representing Australia's interests in this forum. In addition, Australia has been elected by secret ballot to be a member of the OIE's Administrative Commission, which manages the budget and strategic plan and gives guidance to the International Committee on global priorities. Australia is also an elected member of the International Animal Health Code Commission, which develops international technical rules to prevent disease transmission through trade in animals and animal products.
Under the SPS Agreement, OIE is recognised as one of the international organisations responsible for developing the standards, guidelines and recommendations that are accorded the status of reference norms under the Agreement. Accordingly, the work of OIE has assumed significant importance for Australia and other countries that have substantial international trade in agricultural commodities.
OIE's criteria for import risk analysis, including recognition of zoning and regionalisation of diseases, will be highly relevant to the shaping of national practices under the influence of the SPS Agreement.

3 The International Plant Protection Convention

The IPPC was adopted by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Conference in 1951 and came into force the following year. It was amended by the FAO Conference in 1979 and the amendments came into force in 1991. In 1996, there were 103 members of the IPPC. The Convention has as one of its main objectives securing common and effective action to prevent the spread and introduction of pests and diseases of plant and plant products and to promote measures for their control.

The IPPC describes the principles of plant quarantine and the relevant actions to be taken by national governments in the implementation of plant quarantine. The IPPC promotes cooperation among countries aimed at preventing the movement of serious pests that could spread through the activities of international trade. The IPPC will provide the rules for harmonisation of trade in plants and their products. Standards work to date has been done by its Regional Plant Protection Organizations.
The Asia–Pacific Plant Protection Commission is an FAO body set up under an Article of the IPPC to promote cooperation in plant quarantine and plant protection in the Asia–Pacific region. It was formed in 1956 and currently has 25 countries as members. Australia was one of the first adherents and has always been active in the work of the Commission. As a result of pressure from Australian and New Zealand, the Commission functions through a system comprising an Executive Committee, Standing Committees and Working Groups. Australia is currently one of three vice-chairs of the Executive Committee and chairs the Pest Risk Analysis Working Group of the Plant Quarantine Standing Committee. Australia is seen within the Commission as the main contributor of technical expertise to its activities. Together with New Zealand, Australia is the prime mover of work within the Commission on harmonisation of plant quarantine as part of the general work programs of FAO and WTO. The Asia Pacific Plant Protection Commission provides a forum for Australia to promote its views on plant quarantine and plant protection internationally.

4 The Codex Alimentarius Commission

The United Nations Joint FAO–World Health Organization (WHO) Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex) was established in 1962 to guide and promote the elaboration and establishment of definitions and requirements for foods, to assist in their harmonisation, and, in so doing, to facilitate international trade. Membership of Codex includes 146 countries.

Codex has produced 250 commodity standards and more than 40 hygienic and technological codes of practice, evaluated more than 700 food additives and contaminants, and developed more than 3200 maximum residue limits for pesticide–commodity combinations.
The SPS and TBT Agreements have accorded special status to the standards, guidelines and recommendations of Codex as reference points in determining whether food standards and other measures are being used unjustifiably as barriers to trade.
The Codex Contact Point for Australia is located in the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) and liaises with State government health and agriculture agencies, the food producing industry, agricultural and veterinary chemical producing industries, consumer organisations, food technology research organisations, tertiary institutions, and other relevant groups such as dietitians. In 1993, an AQIS officer was elected to serve as Vice Chairman of the Commission and was re-elected to this position in 1995.
AQIS, in close cooperation with the Australia New Zealand Food Authority, coordinates all of Australia's input to the work of the 33 Codex committees, represents Australia at a range of expert committee meetings, and currently chairs one Working Group (on organic food guidelines). AQIS is particularly active in the work of Codex committees on residues of veterinary drugs in food, pesticide residues, food hygiene, meat hygiene, and fish and fish products. In this regard, Australia has been driving a major policy reform through Codex relating to residue management internationally by proposing member country acceptance of Codex maximum residue limits for imported product where specific country limits do not exist.
In 1991, Australia was chosen by Codex to serve as host country for a new Codex Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems, which now meets annually in Australia. Sessions of the Committee are attended by representatives from up to 35 countries and 15 international organisations. Australia's policy approach to the Committee reflects the position that it provides the opportunity to harmonise inspection and certification systems internationally, so facilitating Australia's export trade. Australia has placed particular emphasis on the acceptance of quality assurance methods as a basis for achieving regulatory objectives.

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