Professor Chair Holder of IPB, Prof. Dr. Ir Purwiyatno Hariyadi, has just been elected to be the Vice Chair for Codex Alimentarius Commission

Is Professor Chair Holder of the Department of Food Science and Technology (ITP) of Faculty of Agricultural Technology of – Bogor Agricultural University (FATETA IPB), Prof. Dr. Purwiyatno Hariyadi,  has just been elected to be Vice Chair of Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) for 2017-2019, based on the highest number of votes.

CAC is intergovernmental body, its head quarter is located  in Rome, Italy.  It was established by FAO and WHO to protect consumer health and promote fair practices in food trade. The CAC first convened in 1963 and currently has 183 member states, one of which is Indonesia. The Codex Alimentarius (Latin for "Food Code") is a collection of internationally recognized standards, codes of practice, guidelines, and other recommendations relating to foods, food production, and food safety. As of 2012, there were 186 members of the Codex Alimentarius Commission: 186 member countries and one member organization, the European Union (EU). There were 215 Codex observers: 49 intergovernmental organizations, 150 non-governmental organizations, and 16 United Nations organizations.

The election of Prof Purwiyatno through the selection process is fairly strict. Of the 3 Vice Chairs elected, Indonesia received 103 votes, 102 United Kingdom received votes, and Lebanese received votes 102. This shows the world trust on scientific capacity owned by Prof. Purwiyatno.

Another Indonesian scientist who had served for CAC was Prof. Dr. F.G. Winarno, who is also Professor of the Department of Food Science and Technology of IPB. Prof. Winarno had served as President for CAC two consecutive period, on 1991-1995. He was the first Asian scientist who is believed to occupy that prestigious position. (Wied)