eu regulations on cadmium in cocoa beans in october 2011 ecuador expressed concern that the european union was considering modifying the maximum level of cadmium in cocoa and cocoa products and was planning to apply a maximum limit between 0.3 and 0.5 milligrams per kilogram mg kg in the context of regulation eu no 420 2001. ecuador urged the european union to base any maximum limits on cadmium on appropriate scientific studies. the joint fao who expert committee on food additives jecfa had established a level of acceptable weekly consumption of 5.8 micrograms of cadmium per kilogram of body weight g kg more than twice the tolerable weekly intake concluded by the european food safety agency efsa . ecuador requested further information on the eu risk analysis and stressed that any possible maximum residue limit mrl should be set as low as reasonably possible alarp principle . some of ecuadors soil contained cadmium but it had adopted mitigation measures so as to produce high-quality cocoa not detrimental to human health. brazil colombia costa rica dominican republic nicaragua peru and venezuela shared the concerns raised by ecuador. they asked the european union to provide the technical and scientific basis on which it was considering regulating cadmium in cocoa and chocolate and stressed that any possible maximum limits should be based on science. the european union recalled that neither it nor codex had established a maximum level for cadmium in cocoa or cocoa products to date. however jecfa had reviewed its toxicity in commodities in 2010 and set the tolerable weekly intake at approximately six micrograms per kilogram of body weight. in contrast efsa had identified a lower tolerable weekly intake of 2.5 g kg of body weight in 2009 and in 2010. based on the 2009 and 2010 efsa scientific opinions for cadmium the european union had initiated a review of maximum levels for cadmium in different types of foodstuffs including chocolate and cocoa products sold to the final consumer since cocoa and chocolate products contribute significantly to human exposure and in particular exposure of children. discussions were still on-going but any limits would be based on realistic occurrence data of cadmium in cocoa and cocoa products compiled from different geographical origins and would be set as low as reasonably achievable. in july 2012 ecuador on behalf also of cameroon colombia ghana mexico nicaragua and peru recalled the previously raised concern about the eu decision to amend regulation ec no. 1881 2006 to modify the maximum acceptable levels of cadmium in cacao and chocolate products g sps gen 1173 rev.1 . the co-authors requested the european union to clearly demonstrate the relative contribution of chocolate to dietary cadmium exposure and its adverse effects. in light of the significant differences in the jecfa and efsa recommendations for tolerable weekly intake twi and tolerable monthly intake tmi levels for cadmium they urged the european union to convene a joint efsa-jecfa meeting with a view to reaching an agreement on the methodology used to establish such limits and the outcomes. they stressed that the european union should ensure that any limit it applied was in accordance with the sps agreement and should take into account new data to review and harmonize methodologies to determine the cadmium content in relevant chocolate products. they also requested that if the new measure were adopted the european union allow a transition period of at least five years to permit producers to adapt to the measures. cameroon colombia costa rica cuba dominican republic ghana guatemala jamaica mexico nicaragua peru and venezuela echoed this concern. the european union noted that this was not a new concern and that they were prepared to respond despite this being raised under other business. the eu clarified that any amendment to regulation 1881 2006 was intended to focus primarily on foodstuffs for whic