On the morning of August 2, 2026, the pre-departure meeting of the Chinese delegation to the 28th Plenary Meeting of ISO/TC 34/SC 6was held at Wyndham Chongqing Yuelai. The meeting was organized by the China General Chamber of Commerceand hosted by Southwest University. Liu Zhenyu, Deputy Secretary-General of the China General Chamber of Commerce, Director of the Department of Standards and Regulations, and Secretary-General of the National Technical Committee on Meat, Poultry and Egg Products (SAC/TC399), presided over the meeting. Vice President Fan Daming of the University attended the meeting and delivered a speech. Experts and representatives from national research institutes, universities, inspection and testing institutions, and industry enterprises participated in the meeting.

In his speech, Vice President Fan Daming stated that this meeting is not only a concentrated work refinement for the upcoming 28th Plenary Meeting of ISO/TC 34/SC 6, but also an important practice in promoting the transformation of more Chinese technologies into international standard outcomes. Southwest University will continue to leverage its strengths in food science disciplines, research platforms, and industrial collaboration, and, relying onthe China-Hungary Belt and Road Joint Laboratory of Food Science, will deeply implement the national standardization strategy and promote the high-quality development of the modern food industry.

During the meeting, the conveners of each working group and the leads of the new work item proposals delivered presentations in English, respectively. Working Group 20 (WG20, Slaughter Operation Procedures), WG23 (Determination of Additives), WG24 (Determination of Contaminants), WG26 (Determination of Basic Composition and Quality Elements), WG28 (Determination of Pesticide and Veterinary Drug Residues), WG30 (Dried Aquatic Products), WG31 (Edible Bird's Nest), as well as the Ad Hoc Group 2 (AHG2, Steak) and AHG3 (Cell-Cultured Meat), each reported on their respective progress.

During the session for new work item proposals, experts from institutions including the Guangzhou Quality Inspection and Testing Institute, the China Meat Food Research Center, Southwest University (China-Hungary Belt and Road Joint LaboratoryofFood Science), the Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, the Hunan Provincial Institute of Product and Commodity Quality Inspection, Fujian Guangyang Egg Industry Co., Ltd., and the Shanghai Animal Disease Prevention and Control Center, presented eight new work item proposals, covering: determination of five bisphenol compounds in aquatic products; general technical requirements for processing of ready-to-eat dry-cured ham; general technical requirements for processing of fermented sausages; product specification for imitation crab meat; product specification for frozen fish balls; product specification for salted duck egg products; determination of sulfonamide residues in fish; and determination of tylvalosin and 3-acetyltylosin residues in muscle of pigs, chickens, and cattle.

The participating experts conducted rigorous deliberations on the presentations of each working group and on the dimensions of technological innovation, industrial applicability, necessity for project initiation, and feasibility of each new work item proposal, and clarified the Chinese delegation's division of responsibilities and unified messaging for the 28th Plenary Meeting of ISO/TC 34/SC 6. This pre-departure meeting is an important practice in implementing the National Standardization Development Outline, promoting the translation of more of China's advantageous technologies and industrial expertise into international standards, and also serves as a critical step in ensuring the successful approval of the new work item proposals led by China.

(Contributed by Dai Hongjie with text and photos; proofread by Hu Zi; reviewed by Zhang Binjia and Wu Junping.)