Few Americans have heard of the United Nations/World Health Organization (WHO) Codex Alimentatious (Nutrition Code) Commission or "CODEX", partly because it usually meets in Rome. Very little has appeared about CODEX in U.S. newsletters and magazines read by people interested in vitamins, alternative medicine and health freedom, but it may pose the greatest threat to health freedom in the world today.

The commission meets every two years, and any delegate can propose a change to its standards. Attorney Susan Harris has reviewed a partial list of international organizations "allowed" to send delegates and found that more than 90% represent giant multinational pharmaceutical corporations. The only "consumer" organization she saw listed is the "International Organization of Consumer Unions", which means that right now the general public here (USA) has zero representation on this critically important committee!

WHAT SUPPLEMENTS WILL THEY ALLOW YOU?

In 1996 CODEX will meet in Bonn to make radical changes to the rules governing dietary supplements for member nations. Consumers now face an ominous new threat in the proposals made by the German delegation, called "Proposed Draft Guidelines for Dietary Supplements". The German plan calls for the following:-

No vitamin, mineral, herb etc can be sold for prophylactic (preventive) or therapeutic use;

None sold as a food can exceed potency (dosage) levels set by the Commission;

CODEX regulations for dietary supplements would become binding - eliminating the escape clause within the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that allows a nation to set its own standards;

All new dietary supplements would automatically be banned unless they go through the CODEX approval process

If these Draconian measures are adopted, any party to GATT (eg the United States or Canada) which does not accept the new standards can be heavily sanctioned (fined) by the World Trade Organization. The WTO will have the right to levy enormous fines on any nation that "gets out of line", with the potential to cripple entire sectors of that nation's economy!

The sole U.S. delegate to CODEX has been Elizabeth A. Yetley, PhD, RD of the FDA. Responding to political pressure in the United States, so far she has voted for health freedom, but with little result - at the last meeting the vote went 16-2 in favor of the German proposal!

WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT?

Clearly we cannot expect much help from Congress, which surrendered much of its power to deal with the issue when it passed GATT. Under the agreement, member nations must "harmonize" their rules governing the manufacture of health and medical products with new international standards so as to be "in line" with them. Congress cannot rescind its vote on GATT - on the contrary, the single U.S. delegate to this international commission can be outvoted by delegates from other countries.

In 1996 the FDA will convene a public hearing wherein interested persons and organizations will be able to discuss and question CODEX and the U.S. position on it. The FDA will then draft a final U.S. position paper to be submitted to the five-day 1996 Bonn CODEX meeting. The paper will be highly influential in shaping the final proposed regulations.

It is vitally important that you write to Dr Robert Moors, FDA Office of Special Nutritionals, HFS-450, 200 C St SW, Washington DC 20204, expressing your objections to the German Codex proposal. Also write/fax your senators and congresspersons, as well as every member of the Senate Labor Committee and the House Commerce Committee.

[End of quoting: Source - Perceptions Magazine, April 1996]

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