Fresh Meat (Beef Controls) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996

Now therefore the said Department concerned, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by Articles 15(1)(f), 25(1) and (3), 26(3), 44(1) and 47(2) of the Food Safety (Northern Ireland) Order 1991(1) and of every other power enabling it in that behalf and after consultation in accordance with Article 47(3) of the said Order with such organisations as appear to it to be representative of interests likely to be substantially affected by these Regulations, hereby makes the following Regulations:—

Part I Introduction

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Fresh Meat (Beef Controls) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 and shall come into operation on 1st September 1996.

Interpretation

2.  In these Regulations—

“the Department” means the Department of Agriculture;

“meat” means any part of an animal that is suitable for human consumption;

“official number” means the identification number allocated by the Department in accordance with the provisions of the Tuberculosis Control Order (Northern Ireland) 1964(2);

“the Order” means the Food Safety (Northern Ireland) Order 1991;

“sell” includes possess for sale, and offer, expose or advertise for sale.

Part II Controls on sale of meat

Prohibition of sale of meat from older bovine animals

3.—(1) Subject to paragraph (3), a person shall not sell for human consumption any meat derived from a bovine animal slaughtered on or after 29th March 1996 and which, at the time of slaughter, was more than 2½ years of age.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1) the age of a bovine animal shall be ascertained—

(a) in the first instance by reference to records kept in relation to that animal by the Department (in whatever form); or

(b) where necessary, by dentition.

(3) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to meat derived from a bovine animal which—

(a) was accompanied, at the time of slaughter, by a certificate issued under regulation 5(1);

(b) was accompanied on admission to the slaughterhouse, by a veterinary certificate issued under regulation 5(2); or

(c) was born, reared and slaughtered in one of the countries specified in Schedule 2.

Part III Beef Assurance Scheme

Registration of herds

4.—(1) The owner of any herd may apply to the Department in writing for that herd to be registered as a member of the Beef Assurance Scheme.

(2) The Department shall maintain a register for the purposes of paragraph (1) and it shall enter in that register any herd—

(a) in respect of which an application has been made under paragraph (1); and

(b) which, at the time of the application, meets the conditions of eligibility set out in Part I of Schedule 1.

(3) The Department shall remove from the Register any herd—

(a) where it appears to it that, at any time before registration the herd did not meet the conditions of eligibility set out in Part I of Schedule 1; or

(b) which fails to meet the conditions of continued eligibility set out in Part II of Schedule 1.

Duties of owners of registered herds

5.—(1) The owner of a registered herd shall ensure that any bovine animal from that herd sent for slaughter for human consumption meets the conditions set out in Part III of Schedule 1 and where the animal does so, a veterinary inspector or other officer of the Department shall certify that fact in writing.

(2) The owner of a registered herd shall ensure that the carcase of any slaughtered bovine animal from that herd which is admitted to a slaughterhouse meets the conditions set out in Part IV of Schedule 1 and, where the animal does so, a veterinary inspector or other officer of the Department shall certify the fact in writing.

Interpretation of Part III

6.  In this Part—

“the Beef Assurance Scheme” means the Scheme for the registration of herds under and for the purposes of this Part and for the certification of animals belonging to such herds;

“beef herd” means a herd of bovine animals kept wholly or mainly for the production of meat;

“dairy herd” means a herd of bovine animals kept wholly or mainly for the production of milk;

“herd” means one or more bovine animals in the same ownership;

“Register” means the register kept by the Department under regulation 4(2) and “registered” in relation to any herd means for the time being entered in the Register under that paragraph;

“veterinary inspector” means a person appointed by the Department to be an inspector for the purposes of the Diseases of Animals (Northern Ireland) Order 1981(3), being a member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons or any veterinary practitioner qualified as approved by the Department.

Part IV General

Offences and penalties

7.—(1) If any person—

(a) contravenes any provision of these Regulations; or

(b) furnishes to any person acting in the execution of these Regulations any information which he knows to be false or misleading,

he shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) Any person guilty of an offence under paragraph (1) shall be liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum; or

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both.

Application of various provisions of the Order

8.  The following provisions of the Order shall apply for the purposes of these Regulations as they apply for the purposes of Articles 7, 13 and 14 of the Order and, accordingly, a reference in them to the Order shall be construed as a reference to these Regulations—

(a) Articles 2(4) and 3 (extended meaning of “sale” etc);

(b) Article 4 (presumptions that food intended for human consumption);

(c) Article 8 (inspection and seizure of suspected food);

(d) Article 34 (obstruction, etc., of officers);

(e) Article 35 (time limit for prosecutions).

Enforcement

9.  In premises licenced under the Slaughter Houses Act (Northern Ireland) 1953(4) these Regulations shall be enforced and executed by the Department of Agriculture, and in any other case these Regulations shall be enforced and executed by each district council within its district.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Agriculture on 31st August 1996.

L.S.

Evelyn Cummins

Assistant Secretary