The Poultry Breeding Flocks and Hatcheries Scheme Order (Northern Ireland) 2007

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order revokes and remakes the Poultry Breeding Flocks and Hatcheries Scheme Order (Northern Ireland) 1994 (S.R. 1994 No. 118).

The Order implements the national control programme for domestic fowl of the species Gallus gallus—

(a) required by Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the control of salmonella and other specified food-borne zoonotic agents (O.J. No. L 325, 12.12.2003, p 1); and

(b) approved by the European Commission in accordance with Article 6 of that Regulation.

The national control programme is available from Surveillance, Zoonoses and Emerging Issues Division Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, 1A Page Street, London SW1P 4PQ or from the Defra website (www.defra.gov.uk).

The Order enforces Commission Regulation (EC) No 1003/2005 implementing Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 as regards a Community target for the reduction of the prevalence of certain salmonella serotypes in breeding flocks of Gallus gallus and amending Regulation (EC) No 2160/2003 (O.J. No. L 170, 1.7.2005, p12) as amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1168/2006 (O.J. No. L 211, 1.8.2006, p 4).

Article 4 requires the occupier of a poultry hatchery with a total incubator capacity of 1000 eggs or more to notify the Department. Article 5 requires the occupier of a holding on which breeding flocks of 250 poultry or more are kept to notify the Department.

Articles 6 to 12 apply to the occupier of a holding on which breeding flocks of domestic fowl of the species Gallus gallus are kept. Article 7 requires the occupier to notify the Department of the arrival of breeding flocks at the holding and Article 8 requires him to notify when those flocks will move to the laying phase or laying unit and reach the end of the production cycle. Article 9 requires him to take samples from those flocks and Article 10 requires him to submit those samples to an approved laboratory for testing for salmonella. Articles 11 and 12 impose record-keeping requirements on the occupier.

Article 13 sets out the duties of an approved laboratory to prepare and test the samples and report the results of tests to the occupier.

Article 14 prohibits the administering of any antimicrobial to domestic fowl of the species Gallus Gallus, other than in accordance with Article 2 of Commission Regulation 1177/2006. Article 15 prohibits the administering of any live salmonella vaccine to such species, other than in accordance with Article 3(1) of that Regulation.

Article 16 imposes record-keeping requirements on the occupier of a poultry hatchery.

Article 17 – 19 relates to production of records, tampering with of any samples taken which may affect the result except as specified in the Scheme and powers of the Department.

Failure to comply with this Order is an offence under Article 52 of the Diseases of Animals Order (Northern Ireland) 1981.