The Codex Alimentarius Commission was created in 1963 by the Food Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop food standards, guidelines and related texts such as codes of practice under the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme.
The HACCP system and guidelines for its application were defined by the Codex Alimentarius Commission. This Commission implements the Joint Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations and World Health Organisation (WHO) Food Standards Programme. The Codex Alimentarius (Latin for "Food Code") is a collection of internationally recognized standards, codes of practice, guidelines, and other recommendations relating to foods, food production, and food safety.
Following an outbreak of E. coli 0157 in Scotland in 1996, the Pennington Report recommended that HACCP be adopted by all food businesses to ensure food safety.