Food Law News - EU - 2002

FSA Consultation, 23 August 2002

HYGIENE - Proposal for detailed rules for the organisation of official controls on products of animal origin intended for human consumption.

The FSA are seeking comments on a European Commission proposal for a Regulation laying down rules for the organisation of official controls on products of animal origin intended for human consumption. This re-issued proposal forms part of the package of European Commission proposals to consolidate and simplify EU food safety legislation.

Discussions on the proposal have already begun and are scheduled to continue throughout September. Initial comments are therefore requested as soon as possible. The final date for comment is 18 November. The FSA apologise for this tight timescale, however it is important to obtain at least initial views soon so they can take account of these in shaping negotiating lines.

Discussion of the Proposal - Document COM (2002) 377

The proposal is an amended version of that originally issued in June 2000 as part of the package of hygiene proposals. That earlier proposal was withdrawn by the Commission, in particular because it did not take account of the increasing role of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles in food safety management by meat plant operators.

In addition, a revised approach is now envisaged for meat inspection to concentrate more on the audit of procedures that operators are required to put in place. The revised proposal is intended to reflect better the importance of a risk-based and integrated, farm-to-fork approach to food safety.

The proposal forms an essential part of the package in setting out the role of competent authorities in auditing the systems operators are required to put in place. In most respects, it would simply consolidate existing requirements. It is primarily concerned with rationalising requirements for official controls into a single legal instrument. In fishery product establishments and milk and dairy establishments it simply consolidates existing legislative requirements.

It would however change some aspects of existing legal requirements, in particular, the proposal would clarify the role of meat plant inspection teams in auditing procedures put in place by the plant operator. It would also increase significantly the testing requirement for biotoxin presence in live bivalve molluscs.

The Articles of the proposal set out the following:

• certain definitions;
• the role of the competent authority in the approval of establishments;
• reference to the opinion of the European Food Safety Authority in the amendment of annexes, the adoption of implementing rules and microbiological criteria;
• the role of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health; and,
• the entry into force of the regulation.

Chapter 1 of the proposal concerns the tasks to be carried out by official veterinary surgeons in meat establishments and sets out the requirements for:

• audits of good hygiene practice;
• audits of HACCP procedures;
• audits of use of guides to good practice; and,
• the performance of audits.

The first chapter lays down further methods for carrying out inspections relating to:

• food chain information;
• ante-mortem inspection;
• animal welfare;
• post-mortem inspection;
• specified risk materials;
• laboratory testing and base-line studies on pathogens;
• health and identification marking; and,
• communication of inspection results.

It also sets out rules governing the decisions to be taken after the control activities set out above.

The second chapter of the proposal lays down rules governing the responsibilities and frequencies of controls of;

• the inspection team;
• the frequency of controls;
• involvement of staff in the establishment; and,
• the professional qualifications of Official Veterinary Surgeons and Auxiliaries.

The third chapter of the proposal sets out specific requirements in relation to official controls on:

• domestic bovines;
• domestic sheep and goats;
• domestic solipeds;
• domestic swine;
• domestic poultry;
• domestic lagomorphs;
• farmed game;
• wild game;
• specific hazards, and
• health certification.

ANNEX II of the proposal sets out the rules for the designation of production areas for live bivalve molluscs. This is done according to the class of the production area as designated by the competent authority. It also sets out the monitoring, sampling and testing to be carried out by the competent authority.

ANNEX III lays down rules governing official controls on fishery products to be carried out at the time of landing or before first sale at an auction or wholesale market.

ANNEX IV provides for the inspection and control of milk production holdings, raw milk on collection and processed dairy products by the competent authority.

Procedures

In the UK, this proposal will be examined by the House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee and in the House of Lords Select Committee on the European Communities.

The proposal will be subject to the EU Co-decision procedure. The proposal will therefore be debated by the European Parliament whose views will be taken into account before Member States reach a Common Position on any necessary amendments.