The Beef Labelling (Enforcement) Regulations 1998

• Citation: S.I. 1998/616
• Sections: 6

Section 1 Title, commencement and interpretation

(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Beef Labelling (Enforcement) Regulations 1998 and shall come into force on 1st April 1998.

(2) In these Regulations—

“the Commission Regulation” means Commission Regulation ( EC ) No. 1141/97 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No. 820/97 as regards the labelling of beef and beef products ;

“the Council Regulation” means Council Regulation (EC) No. 820/97 establishing a system for the identification and registration of bovine animals and regarding the labelling of beef and beef products .

Section 2 Enforcement of the Council Regulation

(1) Any person who fails to comply with Article 12.1 of the Council Regulation shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) Where beef has been labelled and marketed in a manner which does not comply with a specification established under Article 14 or 15 of the Council Regulation, an officer of a food authority enforcing these Regulations may serve a notice on the person in possession of the beef requiring its removal from sale until the label is removed or until the beef is relabelled in accordance with those Articles; and any person who fails to comply with the provisions of that notice shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) The Minister shall be the competent authority for the purposes of Article 14 of the Council Regulation.

Section 3 Enforcement of the Commission Regulation

(1) Any person who fails to comply with Article 2, Article 3.1 or Article 3.4 of the Commission Regulation shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) The Minister shall be the competent authority for the purposes of Article 3 of the Commission Regulation.

Section 4 Enforcement bodies

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this regulation, each food authority shall enforce and execute these Regulations in its area.

(2) Each port health authority (or, in Scotland, each port local authority) shall enforce and execute these Regulations in its district in relation to imported beef.

(3) In this regulation “food authority” does not include the council of a district in a non-metropolitan county in England except where the county functions have been transferred to that council under a structural change.

Section 5 Penalties

(1) A person guilty of an offence under regulation 2 or 3 above shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

(2) Where an offence under these Regulations is committed by a Scottish partnership and is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of, a partner, he as well as the partnership shall be guilty of an offence and liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

Section 6 Application of various provisions of the Food Safety Act 1990

(1) The following provisions of the Food Safety Act 1990 shall apply for the purposes of these Regulations as they apply for the purposes of sections 8, 14 or 15 of that Act and unless the context otherwise requires any reference to them in that Act shall be construed as a reference to these Regulations—

(2) Sections 32 and 33 of the Food Safety Act 1990 (powers of entry, obstruction etc. of officers) shall apply for the purposes of these Regulations as they apply for the purposes of that Act; and any reference to the Act in those sections shall be construed for the purposes of these Regulations as including a reference to Article 12.1 of the Council Regulation and Articles 2 and 3 of the Commission Regulation.