International (FAO/WHO) · International reference standard — adopted voluntarily by members · Established 1963 · Authored by Karen Pendergrass, Institute of Contaminant Standards · www.fao.org/fao-who-codexalimentarius
Quick read
The Codex Alimentarius Commission is the FAO/WHO body that sets voluntary international food standards, including maximum levels (MLs) for contaminants in specific foods. Codex MLs are reference standards adopted at members’ discretion and used as the benchmark in international trade; they are not automatically binding, but they anchor national limits worldwide and carry weight under WTO agreements.
Mandate & scope
Established in 1963 by the FAO and WHO, the Codex Alimentarius Commission develops harmonized international food standards. Its Committee on Contaminants in Foods (CCCF) sets maximum levels for heavy metals in defined commodities, drawing on JECFA’s toxicological assessments. The Index tracks Codex maximum levels for cadmium across several foods and the long-standing tin limit for canned foods (CXS 193-1995). Codex standards are voluntary — members may adopt, adapt, or exceed them — but because they are recognized reference points under the WTO Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, they strongly influence national maximum levels and cross-border trade. In practice many jurisdictions align their limits with Codex unless they choose a more precautionary value.
Positions across metals
| Metal | Type | Value | Instrument | Effective | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cadmium | Maximum level | see instrument | Maximum Levels for Cadmium in Food | — | partial-ingest |
| Tin | Maximum level | multiple — see instrument | 1995 - Tin maximum levels for canned foods | 1995 | active |
Where it diverges
Codex maximum levels are concentration limits in specific foods (mg/kg), so they are not directly comparable with the intake-based guidance of JECFA, even though Codex relies on JECFA’s assessments to derive them. Codex MLs typically sit close to, or are mirrored by, EU and national maximum levels, since many jurisdictions align with Codex for trade reasons; where the EU sets a tighter value, it reflects a more precautionary regional policy rather than a different toxicological reading.
Cadmium
Tin
| Body | Type | Value | Instrument |
|---|---|---|---|
| Codex | Maximum level | multiple — see instrument | 1995 - Tin maximum levels for canned foods |
| EC | Maximum level | see instrument | Commission Regulation |
| EC | Directive | see instrument | element migration limits |
| EC | — | see instrument | organotin compounds in skin-contact and childcare… |
| EC | Maximum level | see instrument | EU Regulation 2023 915 maximum levels for contamin… |
| FDA | — | multiple — see instrument | 21cfr-73-color-additive-metal-specifications |
Update log
| Date | Event | Instrument | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995-01-01 | Issued / in force | 1995 - Tin maximum levels for canned foods | active |
Key documents
| Source document | Instrument |
|---|---|
| codex-cccf17-2024 | Maximum Levels for Cadmium in Food |
| codex-cxs-193-1995 | 1995 - Tin maximum levels for canned foods |
References
Positions, the update log, and key documents above are generated from the per-instrument regulation pages this body issues, via tools/build-regulator-pages.mjs. The wiki reports what Codex has published; it does not endorse it. See the wiki/HMTc separation policy for why reporting regulatory values is kept architecturally separate from certification threshold-setting.
Update history
This page has no substantive edit history yet. Future revisions will be recorded here once the change lands in git.