Commission Regulation (EU) No 206/2010 of 12 March 2010 laying down lists of third countries, territories or parts thereof authorised for the introduction into the European Union of certain animals and fresh meat and the veterinary certification requirements (Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Directive 92/65/EEC of 13 July 1992 laying down animal health requirements governing trade in and imports into the Community of animals, semen, ova and embryos not subject to animal health requirements laid down in specific Community rules referred to in Annex A (I) to Directive 90/425/EEC⁽¹⁾, and in particular Articles 17(2)(b) and 17(3)(a), the first subparagraph of Article 17(3)(c), the fourth indent of Article 18(1) and Article 19 thereof,

Having regard to Council Directive 2002/99/EC of 16 December 2002 laying down the animal health rules governing the production, processing, distribution and introduction of products of animal origin for human consumption⁽²⁾, and in particular Article 8, Article 9(2)(b) and Article 9(4) thereof,

Having regard to Council Directive 2004/68/EC of 26 April 2004 laying down animal health rules for the importation into and transit through the Community of certain live ungulate animals, amending Directives 90/426/EEC and 92/65/EEC and repealing Directive 72/462/EEC⁽³⁾, and in particular the first and second subparagraphs of Article 3(1), the first subparagraph of Article 6(1), Article 7(e), Article 8, the first paragraph of Article 10 and Article 13(1) thereof,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs⁽⁴⁾, and in particular Article 12 thereof,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 laying down specific hygiene rules for food of animal origin⁽⁵⁾, and in particular Article 9 thereof,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 854/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 laying down specific rules for the organisation of official controls on products of animal origin intended for human consumption⁽⁶⁾, and in particular Article 11(1) and Article 16 thereof,

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on official controls performed to ensure the verification of compliance with feed and food law, animal health and animal welfare rules⁽⁷⁾, and in particular Article 48(1) thereof,

Whereas:

1. Council Directive 72/462/EEC of 12 December 1972 on health and veterinary inspection problems upon importation of bovine, ovine and caprine animals and swine, fresh meat or meat products from third countries⁽⁸⁾ provided for a list to be drawn up of the countries or parts thereof from which Member States are to authorise the importation of certain live animals and fresh meat of certain animals.

2. Accordingly, Council Decision 79/542/EEC of 21 December 1976 drawing up a list of third countries or parts of third countries, and laying down animal and public health and veterinary certification conditions, for importation into the Community of certain live animals and their fresh meat⁽⁹⁾ was adopted. That Decision establishes the sanitary conditions for the importation into the European Union of live animals excluding equidae, and for the importation of fresh meat of such animals, including equidae, but excluding meat preparations. Annexes I and II to that Decision also set out lists of third countries or parts thereof from which certain live animals and their fresh meat may be imported into the Union as well as models of veterinary certificates.

3. Since the date of adoption of that Decision, a number of new animal health and public health requirements have been laid down in other Union acts, constituting a new regulatory framework in this area. Also, Directive 72/462/EEC has been repealed by Directive 2004/68/EC.

4. Article 20 of Directive 2004/68/EC states that implementing rules on import established in accordance with Decisions adopted pursuant to Directive 72/462/EEC, inter alia Decision 79/542/EEC, shall remain in force until replaced by measures adopted under the new regulatory framework.

5. In accordance with Article 4(3) of Directive 2004/41/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April 2004 repealing certain Directives concerning food hygiene and health conditions for the production and placing on the market of certain products of animal origin intended for human consumption and amending Council Directives 89/662/EEC and 92/118/EEC and Council Decision 95/408/EC⁽¹⁰⁾, once the necessary provisions on the basis of Regulations (EC) No 852/2004, (EC) No 853/2004, (EC) No 854/2004 or Directive 2002/99/EC are adopted, the implementing rules adopted on the basis of Directive 72/462/EEC shall cease to apply.

6. Decision 79/542/EEC has been amended several times and import provisions based on the new regulatory framework have already been introduced in Decision 79/542/EEC. For the sake of clarity and transparency the measures that are laid down in Decision 79/542/EEC should be laid down in a new legal act. This Regulation includes all the provisions of Decision 79/542/EEC. Consequently, by the entry into force of the present Regulation Decision 79/542/EEC is lapsed and thus no longer applies, pending the explicit repeal of it.

7. Directive 92/65/EEC lays down the animal health requirements governing trade in and imports into the Union of live animals, semen, ova and embryos not subject to the animal health requirements laid down in the specific Union acts referred to in Annex F to that Directive. Pursuant to that Directive, those live animals, semen, ova and embryos may be imported into the Union only from a third country which is on a list drawn up in accordance with the procedure referred to in that Directive. In addition, such live animals are to be accompanied by a health certificate corresponding to a specimen drawn up in accordance with the procedure referred to therein.

8. Council Directive 96/93/EC of 17 December 1996 on the certification of animals and animal products⁽¹¹⁾ lays down the rules to be observed in issuing the certificates required by veterinary legislation to prevent misleading or fraudulent certification. It is appropriate to ensure that rules and principles at least equivalent to those laid down in that Directive are applied by the official inspectors or veterinarians of third countries. Certain third countries, which are listed in Annex II to this Regulation, have provided sufficient guarantees as to the existence and implementation of such rules and principles. It is therefore appropriate to authorise the introduction of certain live animals into the Union from those third countries, provided that no further restrictions are required by their specific disease situation.

9. Directive 2002/99/EC lays down the animal health rules concerning the introduction into the Union of products of animal origin and products obtained therefrom intended for human consumption. Pursuant to that Directive, lists are to be drawn up of the third countries or regions of third countries from which imports of specified products of animal origin are permitted and those imports are to comply with certain veterinary certification requirements.

10. Directive 2004/68/EC lays down the animal health requirements for the importation into and transit through the Union of certain live ungulates. The importation of those live ungulates into and their transit through the Union is authorised only from third countries and territories that appear on a list or lists drawn up in accordance with the procedure referred to in that Directive and those imports are to comply with certain veterinary certification requirements.

11. Save the provisions of article 17(2) last subparagraph of Directive 92/65/EEC, live animals, and products of animal origin to which Directives 92/65/EEC, 2002/99/EC and 2004/68/EC apply are to be imported into or transit through the Union only if they are accompanied by a veterinary certificate and comply with the relevant requirements laid down in Union legislation.

12. Accordingly, for the implementation of Directives 92/65/EEC, 2002/99/EC and 2004/68/EC, it is appropriate to lay down in this Regulation lists of third countries, territories and parts thereof and the specific import conditions including model veterinary certificates for certain live animals and the fresh meat of certain animals.

13. In the interest of consistency of Union legislation, this Regulation should also take into account the public heath requirements laid down in other Union acts and in particular in Regulations (EC) Nos 852/2004, 853/2004 and 854/2004 which lay down rules concerning the hygiene of foodstuffs and food of animal origin and rules for the organisation of official controls on products of animal origin intended for human consumption, as well as the requirements of Council Directive 96/23/EC of 29 April 1996 on measures to monitor certain substances and residues thereof in live animals and animal products⁽¹²⁾, and of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 laying down rules for the prevention, control and eradication of certain transmissible spongiform encephalopathies⁽¹³⁾.

14. Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 lays down general rules governing the performance of official controls carried out in the areas of food and feed, animal health and animal welfare. Article 48 thereof empowers the Commission to adopt a list of third countries from which specific products may be imported into the Union. Regulation (EC) No 854/2004 provides specific rules for the organisation of official controls on products of animal origin intended for human consumption, including the establishment of lists of third countries from which imports of products of animal origin are permitted. Those rules provide that those lists may be combined with other lists drawn up for public and animal health purposes.

15. The model certificates set out in the Annexes to this Regulation should therefore include attestations certifying that the public health requirements laid down in Directive 96/23/EC and Regulations (EC) No 999/2001, 852/2004, 853/2004 and 854/2004, are fulfilled.

16. The model certificates set out in the Annexes to this Regulation should also include attestations certifying that animal welfare requirements laid down in Council Directive 93/119/EC of 22 December 1993 on the protection of animals at the time of slaughter and killing⁽¹⁴⁾ and Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 of 22 December 2004 on the protection of animals during transport and related operations⁽¹⁵⁾ are fulfilled.

17. In order to ensure that the health of live animals introduced into the Union is not jeopardised during their transport from the third country of origin to the Union, certain requirements relating to the transport of live animals should be laid down, including requirements on assembly centres.

18. In the interest of ensuring the protection of animal health in the Union, live animals should be conveyed directly to their place of destination in the Union.

19. Fresh meat introduced into the Union for transit to another third country poses a negligible risk to public health. Such meat should, however, comply with all the relevant animal health requirements. Accordingly, specific provisions on the transit, and storage before transit, of fresh meat should therefore be laid down.

20. Specific conditions for transit via the Union of consignments to and from Russia should be provided for owing to the geographical situation of Kaliningrad which affects only Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.

21. Consignments of fresh meat, excluding offal and minced meat, of farmed non-domesticated animals of the order Artiodactyla, originating from animals caught in the wild should be authorised for introduction into the Union. In order to rule out any possible animal health risks which could be posed by such introduction, it is appropriate that those animals be separated from wild animals for a period of three months prior to the introduction into the Union of such consignments. Accordingly, the model veterinary certificate for those consignments (RUF) should take that into account.

22. Commission Decision 2003/881/EC of 11 December 2003 concerning the animal health and certification conditions for imports of bees (Apis mellifera and Bombus spp.) from certain third countries⁽¹⁶⁾ lays down the animal health and certification conditions for imports of bees from certain third countries. In the interest of simplification of Union legislation, the measures laid down in that Decision should be included in this Regulation. Consequently, Decision 2003/881/EC should be repealed.

23. It's appropriate to introduce a transitional period to allow Member States and industry to take the necessary measures to comply with the requirements laid down in this Regulation.

24. The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: