Commission Regulation (EC) No 1237/2007 of 23 October 2007 amending Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Decision 2006/696/EC as regards the placing on the market of eggs from Salmonella infected flocks of laying hens (Text with EEA relevance)

• CELEX: Regulation (EC) No 1237/2007
• Articles: 6

Article 1

Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 is amended in accordance with Annex I to this Regulation.

Article 2

Annex II to Decision 2006/696/EC is amended in accordance with Annex II to this Regulation.

Article 3

Consignments of eggs for which certificates have been issued in accordance with Decision 2006/696/EC in its version before 1 November 2007 may be imported into the Community for a period of 60 days following that date.

Article 4

This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union .

It shall apply from:

—

1 November 2007 where Salmonella ssp. are identified in the flock of laying hens as the source of infection for humans by the consumption of eggs or egg products as a result of the epidemiological investigation of food-borne outbreaks in accordance with Article 8 of Directive 2003/99/EC,

—

1 January 2009 at the latest to all other flocks of laying hens.

Schedules & Appendices

ANNEX I

ANNEX I

In Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003, Part D is replaced by the following:

‘D.   Specific requirements concerning flocks of laying hens

1.

Eggs shall not be used for direct human consumption as table eggs unless they originate from a commercial flock of laying hens subject to a national control programme established under Article 5 and not under official restriction.

2.

Eggs originating from flocks with unknown health status, that are suspected of being infected or that are infected with Salmonella serotypes for which a target for reduction has been set or which were identified as the source of infection in a specific human foodborne outbreak, may be used for human consumption only if treated in a manner that guarantees the destruction of all Salmonella serotypes with public health significance in accordance with Community legislation on food hygiene.

Eggs originating from flocks with unknown health status, that are suspected of being infected or that are infected with Salmonella serotypes for which a target for reduction has been set or which were identified as the source of infection in a specific human foodborne outbreak, shall be:

(a)

considered as Class B eggs as defined in Article 2(4) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 557/2007 laying down detailed rules for implementing Council Regulation (EC) No 1028/2006 on marketing standards for eggs  ( 1 ) ;

(b)

marked with the indication referred to in Article 10 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 557/2007 which clearly distinguishes them from Class A eggs prior to being placed on the market;

(c)

prohibited access to packaging centres unless the competent authority is satisfied with the measures to prevent possible cross-contamination of eggs from other flocks.

3.

When birds from infected flocks are slaughtered or destroyed, steps must be taken to reduce the risk of spreading zoonoses as far as possible. Slaughtering shall be carried out in accordance with Community legislation on food hygiene. Products derived from such birds may be placed on the market for human consumption in accordance with Community legislation on food hygiene and, once applicable, part E. If not destined for human consumption, such products must be used or disposed of in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002.

4.

In order to exclude false-positive initial results, the competent authority may lift the restrictions laid down in point 2 of this Part:

(a)

when the flock of layers is not the source of infection for humans by the consumption of eggs or egg products as a result of the epidemiological investigation of food-borne outbreaks in accordance with Article 8 of Directive 2003/99/EC; and

(b)

where the flock is subjected to a national control programme established under Article 5 and Salmonella serotypes for which a target for reduction has been set, is not confirmed by the following sampling protocol carried out by the competent authority:

(i)

the technical specifications referred to in Article 5 of Commission Decision 2004/665/EC (seven samples); however, a sub-sample of 25 grams must be collected of each faecal material and dust sample for analysis; all samples must be analysed separately;

or

(ii)

bacteriological investigation of the caeca and oviducts of 300 birds;

or

(iii)

bacteriological investigation of the shell and the content of 4 000 eggs of each flock in pools of maximum 40 eggs.

In addition to the sampling in point (b), the competent authority shall verify the absence of the use of antimicrobials, potentially affecting the result of the analyses of the sampling.

( 1 )

OJ L 132, 24.5.2007, p. 5 .’

’

ANNEX II

ANNEX II

In Part 2 of Annex II to Decision 2006/696/EC, the model veterinary certificate for eggs (E) is replaced by the following:

‘Model veterinary certificate for eggs (E)

Text of image

Part I : Details of dispatched consignment

COUNTRY

Veterinary certificate to EU

I.1. Consignor

Name

Address

Tel. No

I.2. Certificate reference number

I.2.a.

I.3. Central Competent Authority

I.4. Local Competent Authority

I.5. Consignee

Name

Address

Postal code

Tel. No

I.6.

I.7. Country of origin

ISO code

I.8. Region of origin

Code

I.9. Country of destination

ISO code

I.10. Region of destination

Code

I.11. Place of origin

Name

Approval number

Address

I.12.

I.13. Place of loading

I.14. Date of departure

I.15. Means of transport

Aeroplane

Ship

Railway wagon

Road vehicle

Other

Identification:

Documentary references:

I.16. Entry BIP in EU

I.17.

I.18. Description of commodity

I.19. Commodity code (HS code)

04.07

I.20. Quantity

I.21. Temperature of product

Ambient

Chilled

Frozen

I.22. Number of packages

I.23. Identification of container/Seal number

I.24. Type of packaging

I.25. Commodities certified for:

Human consumption

I.26.

I.27. For import or admission into EU

I.28. Identification of the commodities

Approval number of establishments

Species (Scientific name)

Manufacturing plant

Cold store

Number of packages

Net weight

Text of image

Part II: Certification

E (Eggs)

II. Health information

II.a. Certificate reference number

II.b.

II.1. Health attestation

I, the undersigned official veterinarian/official inspector, declare that I am aware of the relevant provisions of Regulations (EC) Nos 178/2002, 852/2004, 853/2004 and 2160/2003 and hereby certify that the eggs described in this certificate have been obtained in accordance with those requirements, and in particular that:

II.1.1. they come from (an) establishments(s) implementing a programme based on the HACCP principles in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 852/2004;

II.1.2. they have been kept, stored, transported and delivered in accordance with the relevant conditions laid down in Section X, Chapter I of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004;

( 1 ) II.1.3. they fulfil the requirements of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1688/2005 of 14 October 2005 implementing Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards special guarantees concerning Salmonella for consignments to Finland and Sweden of certain meat and eggs;

II.1.4. the guarantees covering live animals and products thereof provided by the residue plans submitted in accordance with Directive 96/23/EC, and in particular Article 29 thereof, are fulfilled.

( 2 ) II.1.5. they fulfil the requirements in Article 10(6) of Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 November 2003 on the control of Salmonella and other specified food-borne zoonotic agents. In particular:

Eggs shall not be imported from flocks of laying hens in which Salmonella ssp. has been detected a result of the epidemiological investigation of a food-borne outbreak or if no equivalent guarantees have been provided.

[From 1 January 2009 on, eggs shall also not be imported from flocks of laying hens with unknown health status, that are suspected of being infected or from flocks infected by Salmonella ssp. for which a target for reduction has been set in Community legislation ( 3 ) and on which monitoring equivalent to the monitoring laid down in the provisions in the Annex of Regulation (EC) No 1168/2006 is not applied, or if no equivalent guarantees have been provided.]

Notes

Part I:

Box I.8: provide the code for the region of origin, if necessary, as defined under code of territory in column 2, Part 1 of Annex II of Decision 2006/696/EC [as last amended].

Box I.11: Name, address and approval number of establishment of dispatch.

Box I.15: Indicate the registration number(s) of railway wagons and lorries, the names of ships and, if known, the flight numbers of aircraft. In the case of transport in containers or boxes, the total number of these and their registration and seal numbers, where applicable, should be indicated in box I.23.

Part II:

( 1 ) Delete if the consignment is not intended for export to Sweden or Finland.

( 2 ) Only applicable in case of import of eggs, Class A in accordance with Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 1028/2006. Delete as appropriate.

( 3 ) Salmonella Enteritidis and Salmonella Typhimurium

Official veterinarian or official inspector

Name (in capitals):

Qualification and title:

Local competent authority:

Date:

Stamp:

Signature:’