@article{wto:/content/papers/25189808/70, author = "World Trade Organization", title = "Risk Assessment in the International Food Safety Policy Arena", journal= "WTO", year = "2009", volume = "", number = "", pages = "", doi = "https://doi.org/10.30875/bce1503a-en", url = "https://www.wto-ilibrary.org/content/papers/25189808/70", publisher = "WTO", issn = "", type = "", abstract = "Two institutions provide multilateral venues for countries to discuss food safety measures at the international level: the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex) and the World Trade Organization. Both institutions encourage their members to base food safety standards on scientific evidence. In this paper we provide a description of how food safety related scientific evidence is generated and how it is used in the context of risk assessment for international standard-setting at CODEX and in WTO trade disputes. In particular, we discuss the processes leading to policy conclusions on the basis of scientific evidence, with a focus on the interactions involved between private and public sector actors and those between “scientific experts” and others. We identify weaknesses in the current institutional set-up and provide suggestions on how to improve the interaction between different players at the national and international level so as to strengthen the existing system and increase its cost efficiency.", }