Codex Alimentarius Commission is an international food standards body established jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) of the United Nations in May 1963, with the objective of protecting consumer health and ensuring fair practices in food trade. Currently, the Codex Alimentarius Commission has 189 Codex Members made up of 188 Member Countries and 1 Member Organization (The European Union). Bhutan became a member of Codex Alimentarius in 1999. BFDA, as the National Competent Authority for food safety, is primarily responsible for the protection of consumer health through safe food. BFDA has been designated as the National Codex Contact Point (NCCP) since 2003. The head of BFDA, as the NCCP functions as the central coordination point for all Codex activities within Bhutan. The NCCP also serves as the Member Secretary to the National Codex Committee (NCC) and coordinates all relevant Codex activities within Bhutan.
The detail of the NCCP Bhutan is as below:
Director
Bhutan Food and Drug Authority (BFDA)
Ministry of Health, Royal Government of Bhutan
PO Box No. 1071, Thimphu: Bhutan
Tel# +975 2 327030 (Direct)+ 975 2 327031/325790/331349 (PABX)
Fax # +975 2 327032/335540BFA
Email: bhutancodex@gmail.com
Website: www.BFDA.gov.bt
International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) is an intergovernmental treaty signed by over 185 countries, aiming to protect the world’s plant resources from the spread and introduction of pests, and promoting safe trade. The Bhutan Food and Drug Authority (BFDA) is the designated National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of Bhutan. The Head of BFDA, Director is currently the IPPC Official Contact Point of Bhutan.
Bhutan as the contracting party of the IPPC Convention, we are obliged to participate in developing the international standards, adopts and promote application of International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs) to safeguard global food security, facilitate safe trade and protect the environment.
IPPC Official Contact Point for Bhutan is;
Director
Bhutan Food and Drug Authority (BFDA)
Ministry of Health (MoH)
P.O. Box 1071, Thimphu, Bhutan
Phone: (+975) 2327031 / 325790 / 325993
Fax: (+975) 2 327032
Email: ippcbhutan@gmail.com
Fax: (+975) 2 32 7032
Email: ippcbhutan@gmail.com
The SPS Enquiry Point has been established to answer all reasonable questions regarding SPS measures both at domestic and international levels and provide relevant supporting documents. This allows trading partners to be aware of and to meet expectations and trade requirements more readily thus contributing to the trade facilitation process and increase trade activity in both imports and exports. The Enquiry Point is an information center where domestic, regional and international stakeholders can request and obtain information about Bhutan’s and other country’s measures, regulations, standards, test procedures, certification requirements, etc.
The detail of SPS Enquiry Point for Bhutan is as follows;
Dr Chador Wangdi
Specialist-III
Plant and Animal Biosecurity Division
Bhutan Food and Drug Authority (BFDA)
Ministry of Health (MoH)
P.O. Box 1071, Thimphu, Bhutan
Phone: (+975) 232 7031 / 32 5790 / 32 5993
Fax: (+975) 2 32 7032
Email: cwangdi@bfda.gov.bt
Bhutan became a party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in 1995 and ratified the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (CPB) in 2002. As obligated under this protocol (http://bch.cbd.int/protocol/text/) and in an effort to protect animals and human health from the unintended effects of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), the Biosafety Act of Bhutan was enacted in 2015, and Biosafety Rules and Regulations in 2018. BFDAis designated as a national focal point for CPB and national competent authority for the implementation and enforcement of the biosafety legislation.
The detail of the CPB Focal Point of Bhutan is as below:
Jambay Dorji
Deputy Chief Regulatory and Quarantine Officer
Bhutan Food and Authority (BFDA)
Ministry of Health (MoH)
P.O. Box 1071, Thimphu, Bhutan
Phone: (+975) 232 7031 / 32 5790 / 32 5993
Fax: (+975) 2 32 7032
Email: cpbfocalbhutan@gmail.com
The International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN) is a joint FAO/WHO entity which assists Member States in managing food safety risks and in ensuring rapid sharing of information during food safety emergencies. The aim is to stop the spread of contaminated food from one country to another. INFOSAN also facilitates the sharing of experiences and tested solutions at the national level and between countries in order to optimize future interventions to protect the health of consumers. National authorities of 188 Member States are part of this network. The INFOSAN Emergency Contact Point (ECP) is responsible for reporting urgent food safety events and responding to verification requests from the INFOSAN Secretariat. INFOSAN Focal Points (FP) work with the INFOSAN ECP on food safety events, share information and disseminate information from INFOSAN as appropriate. The INFOSAN ECP for Bhutan is located in the Bhutan Food and Durg Authority (BFDA), Ministry of Health (MoH).
The detail of INFOSAN Emergency Contact Point is as follows
Ms. Dechen Wangmo
Chief Regulatory and Quarantine Officer
Food Quality and Safety Division
Bhutan Food and Durg Authority (BFDA)
Ministry of Health (MoH).
P.O. Box 1071, Thimphu, Bhutan
Phone: (+975) 232 7031 / 32 5790 / 32 5993
Fax: (+975) 2 32 7032
Email: bafrainfosanfp@gmail.com
The detail of INFOSAN Focal Point for Food Safety is as follows:
Mr. Jambay Dorji
Deputy Chief Regulatory and Quarantine Officer
Food Quality and Safety Division
Bhutan Food and Durg Authority (BFDA)
Ministry of Health (MoH).
P.O. Box 1071, Thimphu, Bhutan
Phone: (+975) 232 7031 / 32 5790 / 32 5993
Fax: (+975) 2 32 7032
Email:jambaydorji@bfda.gov.bt