The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC; www.codexalimentarius.net) is a subsidiary body of the FAO and the World Health Organization (WHO) established in 1961-63 to protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in food trade. It currently has 166 members.

Codex Alimentarius, which means "food code", is a compilation of standards, codes of practice, guidelines and recommendations on food safety prepared by the Commission. In the area of foods derived from biotechnology, the Codex provides guidance on human health risk analysis in its “Principles for the Risk Analysis of Foods Derived from Modern Biotechnology” (CODEX, 2003) and in its “Working Principles for Risk Analysis for Food Safety for Application by Governments” (CODEX, 2007).