FNB News - Productive session sees MRLs, extrapolations and guidance document forwarded

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Productive session sees MRLs, extrapolations and guidance document forwarded

Monday, 06 April, 2026, 12 : 00 PM [IST]

Minnesota, USA

The 28th session of the Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods (CCRVDF) has concluded in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the United States of America.

Chairperson Brandi Roinson thanked all involved and praised delegates for the speedy work in adopting the session’s report. Referring to the week’s work, she said: “It was very productive and without all of your contributions, we would not have made such progress so thank you all!”

On the agenda for the session were maximum residue limits (MRLs) of veterinary drugs that had been evaluated by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), extrapolated MRLs derived by CCRVDF, including criteria and exposure model to extrapolated MRLs for edible offal tissues other than liver and kidney, a guidance document for competent authorities to facilitate the application of action levels when there is no Codex MRLs including actions levels, and information on the status of the joint work carried out by CCRVDF and the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR) on compound with dual uses as pesticides and veterinary drugs.

Specific MRLs under consideration included those for fumagillin dicyclohexylamine (DCH) in fish (fillet) and honey. The committee agreed to retain the MRLs pending the outcomes of the JECFA re-evaluation due to safety concerns raised by members.

There were two separate issues on extrapolated MRLs. Regarding the extrapolation of MRLs to camelid tissues, the committee agreed to forward extrapolated MRLs for final adoption by the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) for: (i) tetracyclines (chlortetracycline, oxytetracycline, tetracycline) in camelids (kidney, liver, milk, and muscle); and (ii) ivermectin in camelid milk. The committee further agreed not to extrapolate MRLs for albendazole and ivermectin to camelid tissues (with the exception of ivermectin in camelid milk), as they did not meet the extrapolation criteria set out in the Risk Analysis Principles applied by CCRVDF. Regarding the extrapolation of MRLs to edible offal tissues other than liver and kidney, the committee agreed to undertake a pilot on tetracyclines, ceftiofur and ivermectin to test both the general conditions for extrapolation and the exposure calculation approach underpinning the derivation of Codex MRLs for “other edible offal”.

Regarding action levels, the committee agreed to forward action levels for lasalocid and nicarbazin in chicken eggs, together with guidelines on recommended risk-based actions to address the detection of residues of veterinary drugs in foods caused by unavoidable and unintentional carryover in animal feed where there is no applicable Codex MRL, to the Codex Alimentarius Commission for final adoption. The guidelines support competent authorities in applying a risk-based approach to managing such residues in food of animal origin, both where no Codex MRL has been established and where an established Codex Action Level is exceeded, thereby facilitating the effective application of Codex action levels established by CCRVDF.

The committee also agreed on a priority list of compounds for JECFA evaluation and for consideration for extrapolation to additional species for approval as new work by the Commission.

The joint work between CCRVDF and CCPR on the establishment of single harmonised MRLs for dual-use compounds was described by the CCPR and CCRVDF chairpersons as “critically important to Codex”.

This represents an innovative approach to Codex work, with the potential to streamline standard-setting when addressing emerging food safety and trade issues of a cross-sectoral nature. To ensure broad participation by animal and plant health officers from Codex Member countries, a stepwise approach has been established. As part of this approach, a virtual meeting of the joint EWG (VWG) will be held from April 28–29, 2026, to consider proposals for single harmonised MRLs and the harmonisation of food descriptors between CCPR and CCRVDF. This work is intended to facilitate informed discussion and decision-making at a joint virtual session of CCPR and CCRVDF in early 2027. The VWG will also prepare a draft agenda for the joint session of the Committees for review by the Commission.

In conclusion, it is worthwhile to note that this Session of CCRVDF achieved several important milestones. For the first time, Codex will establish MRLs for camelid tissues, along with action levels supported by explanatory guidance to facilitate their effective application by governments. These achievements highlight CCRVDF’s capacity to apply innovative approaches to emerging food safety and trade issues, ensuring that its work remains timely and responsive to the needs of Codex Members—not only from a scientific perspective, but also through the exploration of more agile standards-setting mechanisms within the Codex system, such as joint sessions of committees addressing issues of shared concerns.