The National Secretary of the IDF National Committee of The Netherlands, Jurgen Jansen, took on the helm as the new chair of the ISO/TC 34/SC 5 for milk and milk products in January this year, succeeding Harrie van den Bijgaart whose term ended last December. Mr Jansen’s appointment is for a period of six years from 2018 to 2023.

The ISO/TC 34/SC 5 on milk and milk products is the ISO subcommittee collaborating with the relevant IDF Standing Committees in the field of standardization to develop joint standards for methods of analysis and sampling for milk and milk products.

“Being from a nation that exports about two-thirds of its milk pool to places all around the globe, I am fully convinced of the great importance of the work of standardization,” said Mr Jansen. “Standardization is the lubricating oil for international trade and it is of great value to businesses and consumers all over the world.  But the global world of standardization is also a challenging field of expertise, with an increasing level of diversity and complexity,” he added.

“Nowadays, we see standards emerging for many more aspects related to the food chain, among them sustainability and food integrity. Today’s globalized world and the increasing integration of supply chains have added to the ongoing trend of international harmonization and convergence. International developments within the WTO context like the SPS agreement further spurred the importance of globally recognized standards,” Mr Jansen noted.

Mr Jansen said it is important for organisations such as the IDF and ISO to jointly make progress in this dynamic field. He added that the IDF-ISO analytical programme is useful in helping to harmonize analytical standards for milk and milk products through the joint development of IDF/ISO standards. This, he said, creates value by aligning regulatory frameworks and reducing the risk of trade disputes which could arise from the use of different analytical methods.

“The IDF-ISO collaboration to contribute to the science-based development of harmonized standards, guidelines and codes of practice greatly benefits the global dairy sector. It’s a privilege to be given the opportunity to join this challenging field of work and I hope that through my chairmanship, I can make a modest contribution to facilitate this important process in the footsteps of my excellent expert predecessor,” said Mr Jansen.

Mr Jansen has held the post of National Secretary of the IDF National Committee of The Netherlands since 2014. He is working for ZuivelNL, the supply chain organization of the Dutch dairy sector. As part of his duties, he also chairs the Dutch mirror committee of ISO-TC34-SC5 (NC 370 005) since November 2017. Prior to his assignment with ZuiveINL, Mr Jansen worked for the former Dutch Dairy Board, and has chalked up more than 18 years of experience in the dairy sector to date.  Before that, he also spent five years in the international service with the FAO with postings in South America and Africa.

Meanwhile, Mr Van den Bijgaart remains as chair of the IDF Methods and Standards Steering Group until the end of his term in October 2018.