August 2005

AHPA posts info about Codex, EU directive, CAFTA

An update is now available of the American Herbal Product Association (AHPA) analysis of the Codex Alimentarius Commission and its potential effect on the legal status of dietary supplements in the United States.

The document, “Codex Alimentarius and dietary supplements,” was originally released in April 2005. It has now been revised to provide new information on the current status of the European Union’s Directive on Vitamin and Mineral Supplements and to address emerging concerns related to CAFTA (Central America Free Trade Agreement).

According to AHPA, a number of companies that sell herbal products have contacted AHPA in the past several months with questions about Internet-based articles that express alarm about these international agreements. Particular concern has been focused on what effect, if any, these rules might have on access to supplements in the U.S.

The latest round of internet communications have focused on CAFTA and claim that the part of this agreement that would reiterate our existing obligations to harmonize “sanitary and phytosanitary” (SPS) measures will result in changes to the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA). AHPA says that these SPS measures are defined as being limited to issues that protect against the spread of pests and diseases and from risks arising from additives, contaminants and toxins.

AHPA’s document is posted on the AHPA Web site at www.ahpa.org/05_0727_CodexAndDS.pdf.

Source: American Herbal Product Association, www.ahpa.org

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