kasa_balavu
Yaqona Dina
Great little video by the FAO:
"We are very, very close to having a regional standard for kava"
- Thread starter kasa_balavu
- Start date
Kavacoordinate
Kava Enthusiast
Great stuff. Would this apply to other regions?
kasa_balavu
Yaqona Dina
Well, there aren't any other kava growing regions so that wouldn't be necessary 
Alia
'Awa Grower/Collector
The overall significance of Codex* is that (if it goes through) kava will become a food/beverage considered safe to consume by the standards outlined in Codex.
This would have international implications. Hawai'i is also part of the kava/'awa growing region and has its' own unique cultivars which are currently listed within the Codex. Vanuatu, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Federated States of Micronesia, Solomon Islands, and Papua NG also have cultivars listed within the Standards. All participants have worked long and hard on this...time will tell if these Standrds are accepted.
*The Codex Alimentarius is a collection of internationally recognized standards, codes of practice, guidelines, and other recommendations relating to foods, food production, and food safety. Its name is derived from the Codex Alimentarius Austriacus.
I can't see it being anything other than a step in the right direction. It moves kava of the K@ radar once and for all and I think it will help everyone involved in the cultivation and consumptiom of kava. Win/win.
Kavacoordinate
Kava Enthusiast
it seems like most of the conversations were being had in Vanuatu maybe I wasn't watching for long enough. That's why I was asking if it would apply to other regions like say the Solomon islands and Fiji and Micronesia and New Guinea. Because obviously other than Fiji those other regions have always been known to produce IsaWell, there aren't any other kava growing regions so that wouldn't be necessary
Alia
'Awa Grower/Collector
The meetings are being held in Vanuatu but they include representatives from USDA Codex, FDA, and representatives for the earlier listed regions in previous post.
There are lots of cultivars listed for each specific region. Isa is not included on the list.
kastom_lif
Kava Lover
Oh please, Fiji just trans-ships it.
Zaphod
Kava Lover
What does this mean for a cultivar that is not listed in the Codex?
Zaphod
Kava Lover
Okay. What would be the point of listing cultivars in the Codex versus just declaring piper methysticum a food/beverage that is recognized as safe to consume?
Zaphod
Kava Lover
@Bula Kava House and @verticity I would be curious if this version of the Codex addressed any of your previous concerns outlined in this thread:
http://kavaforums.com/forum/threads/some-extra-insight-into-the-vanuatu-noble-tudei-situation.13851/
http://kavaforums.com/forum/threads/some-extra-insight-into-the-vanuatu-noble-tudei-situation.13851/
verticity
I'm interested in things
I haven't seen it. Sounds like it's not public yet.
Kojo Douglas
The Kavasseur
SelfBiasResistor
Persist for Resistance!
You don't think kava will ever be grown in other regions?Well, there aren't any other kava growing regions so that wouldn't be necessary
Kojo Douglas
The Kavasseur
My perspective is that really strong outliers like wild Kava or harsh Tudeis will always randomly turn up on the market, and that most people will not drink them more than once. I’ve only ran into wild Kava once - it was awful - and I reported rather widely about it. I feel like pushing for “food” and “non-food” labels for Kava just generally pushes it back into the “danger” category.
kasa_balavu
Yaqona Dina
Coffee and caffeine pills exist side-by side in the market. Caffeine overdoses kill people every now and then, but this has never prompted legislative action against coffee.
I'm hopeful that this is a step towards that for the kava industry.
fait
Position 5 Hard Support
How do you differentiate between kava the plant and kava the beverage in your neck of the woods? I try to use "grog" but the word can be ambiguous since that may refer to watered-down booze, which a kava drink certainly isn't.
verticity
I'm interested in things
This appears to be the draft standard that is being considered (dated July 2019)
http://www.fao.org/fao-who-codexalimentarius/sh-proxy/en/?lnk=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fworkspace.fao.org%2Fsites%2Fcodex%2FMeetings%2FCX-732-15%2FWorking+documents%2Fna15_13e.pdf
Can anyone confirm? What I don't know if there have been any changes during the recent meetings...
There is a list of noble kava cultivars, but it is described as "non-exhaustive". There are also quantitative standards for minumum KLs and maximum FKs, and maximum moisture for dry kava, so presumably any kava that met those standards would be OK even if not explicitly on the list.
Also for reference, the 2012 version that was posted here a while ago:
http://kavaforums.com/forum/threads...a-standard-for-kava-products.2862/#post-29278
http://www.fao.org/fao-who-codexalimentarius/sh-proxy/en/?lnk=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fworkspace.fao.org%2Fsites%2Fcodex%2FMeetings%2FCX-732-15%2FWorking+documents%2Fna15_13e.pdf
Can anyone confirm? What I don't know if there have been any changes during the recent meetings...
There is a list of noble kava cultivars, but it is described as "non-exhaustive". There are also quantitative standards for minumum KLs and maximum FKs, and maximum moisture for dry kava, so presumably any kava that met those standards would be OK even if not explicitly on the list.
Also for reference, the 2012 version that was posted here a while ago:
http://kavaforums.com/forum/threads...a-standard-for-kava-products.2862/#post-29278
Last edited:
Alia
'Awa Grower/Collector
I think August 2019 was the last time the Draft was distributed.