The Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (Scotland) Regulations 2010

Regulation 5(f)

SCHEDULE 7SSpecified risk material, mechanically separated meat and slaughtering techniques

This schedule has no associated Executive Note

[F1Appointment of Food Standards Scotland as the competent authority]S

1.  The [F2Food Standards Scotland] must carry out the duties F3... in point 11.1 and point 11.2 of Annex V (removal of specified risk material) to the EU TSE Regulation in relation to this Schedule and may grant authorisations for the purposes of point 4.3(a) of that Annex (controls).

Textual Amendments

[F4TrainingS

2.  The occupier of any slaughterhouse or cutting plant where specified risk material is removed must ensure that staff receive any training necessary to comply with the occupier’s duties under this schedule; and failure to do so is an offence.]

Textual Amendments

Mechanically separated meatS

3.—(1) Any person who fails to comply with point 5 of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (measures concerning mechanically separated meat) is guilty of an offence.

(2) Any person who uses any mechanically separated meat produced in contravention of that point in the preparation of any food for sale for human consumption or of any feedingstuffs is guilty of an offence.

PithingS

4.  Any person who fails to comply with point 6 of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (measures concerning laceration of tissues) is guilty of an offence.

Tongue harvestingS

5.  Any person who fails to comply with point 7 of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (harvesting of tongues from bovine animals) is guilty of an offence.

Head meat harvestingS

6.  Any person who fails to comply with point 8.1 [F5or point 9] of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (harvesting of bovine head meat) is guilty of an offence.

Textual Amendments

Removal of specified risk materialS

7.—(1) Any person who removes specified risk material at any premises or place other than premises or a place where that specified risk material may be removed under point 4.1 or point 4.3(a) of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (removal of specified risk material) is guilty of an offence.

(2) In the case of a cutting plant, it is an offence to remove—

(a)any part of the vertebral column that is specified risk material from any bovine animal unless the plant is authorised under paragraph 13(1)(a); or

(b)the spinal cord from any sheep or goat aged over 12 months at slaughter, or that has a permanent incisor erupted through the gum, unless the plant is authorised for the purpose of such removal under paragraph 13(1)(b).

Bovine animals in a slaughterhouseS

8.—(1) When a bovine animal is slaughtered in a slaughterhouse or the carcase of a bovine animal is transported to a slaughterhouse following emergency slaughter elsewhere, the occupier of the slaughterhouse must remove all specified risk material [F6from the carcase] (other than those parts of the vertebral column that are specified risk material F7...) as soon as is reasonably practicable after slaughter and in any event before post-mortem inspection.

(2) The occupier must—

(a)as soon as reasonably practicable after post mortem inspection, consign any offal that has been removed from the carcase and that contains or is attached to specified risk material to an appropriate area of the slaughterhouse; and

(b)as soon as reasonably practicable after the offal is consigned there and in any event before the offal is removed from the slaughterhouse, remove the specified risk material [F8from the remaining offal].

(3) The occupier must as soon as is reasonably practicable after slaughter consign any meat containing those parts of the vertebral column that are specified risk material to—

(a)a cutting plant authorised under paragraph 13(1)(a);

(b)a cutting plant located in another part of the United Kingdom and authorised under the corresponding provision applicable in that part; or

(c)[F9a] Member State in accordance with point 10.2 of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (rules on trade and export).

F10(4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[F11(5) In accordance with point 11.3(a) of Annex V to the EUTSE Regulation, when the removal of the vertebral column is required, carcases or wholesale cuts of carcases of bovine animals containing vertebral column must be identified by a clearly visible red stripe on the label referred to in that point.]

(6) Failure to comply with this paragraph is an offence.

Textual Amendments

Sheep and goats in a slaughterhouseS

9.—(1) When a sheep or goat is slaughtered in a slaughterhouse or the carcase of a sheep or goat is transported to a slaughterhouse following emergency slaughter elsewhere, the occupier of the slaughterhouse must remove all specified risk material [F12from the carcase] (other than the spinal cord F13...) as soon as is reasonably practicable after slaughter and in any event before post-mortem inspection.

(2) The occupier must—

(a)as soon as reasonably practicable after post mortem inspection, consign any offal that has been removed from the carcase and that contains or is attached to specified risk material to an appropriate area of the slaughterhouse; and

(b)as soon as reasonably practicable after the offal is consigned there and in any event before the offal is removed from the slaughterhouse, remove the specified risk material [F14from the remaining offal].

(3) In the case of a sheep or goat aged over 12 months at slaughter, or that has a permanent incisor erupted through the gum, the occupier must as soon as is reasonably practicable after slaughter—

(a)remove the spinal cord at the slaughterhouse before the post-mortem inspection; or

(b)send the meat to—

(i)a cutting plant authorised under paragraph 13(1)(b);

(ii)a cutting plant located in another part of the United Kingdom and authorised under the corresponding provision applicable in that part; or

(iii)in accordance with point 10.1 of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (rules on trade and export), a cutting plant located in [F15a] Member State, provided that the [F16Food Standards Scotland] has entered into a written agreement with the competent authority of the receiving Member State and the dispatch is in accordance with that agreement.

(4) In sub-paragraph (3)(b)(iii), “cutting plant” means an establishment—

(a)approved or conditionally approved as such under [F17Article 148 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625]; or

(b)operating as such under Article 4(5) of Regulation 853/2004 (registration and approval of establishments) pending such approval.

(5) Failure to comply with this paragraph is an offence.

Textual Amendments

Bovine animals, sheep and goats in other places of slaughterS

10.—(1) When a bovine animal, sheep or goat is slaughtered in a place that, for the purposes of point 4(1)(a) of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (removal of specified risk material), is an other place of slaughter, the person carrying out the slaughter must remove all specified risk material as soon as is reasonably practicable after slaughter.

(2) Failure to comply with this paragraph is an offence.

Young lamb and goat stampsS

11.—(1) An inspector may stamp a sheep or goat in a slaughterhouse with a young lamb stamp or a young goat stamp if the animal does not have a permanent incisor erupted through the gum and the documentation, if any, relating to the animal does not indicate that it is aged over 12 months at slaughter.

(2) The stamp must mark the meat with a circular mark 5 centimetres in diameter with the following in capital letters one centimetre high—

(a)“[F18FSS]”; and

(b)in the case of—

(i)a sheep, “YL”; or

(ii)a goat, “YG”.

(3) It is an offence for any person other than an inspector to apply the stamp or a mark resembling the stamp, or to possess the equipment for applying it.

(4) It is an offence to mark a sheep or goat with a stamp that is or resembles a young lamb stamp or a young goat stamp unless it is an animal permitted to be marked in accordance with sub-paragraph (1).

Textual Amendments

Removal of spinal cord from sheep and goatsS

12.  It is an offence to remove the spinal cord or any part of it from a sheep or goat aged over 12 months at slaughter or that had one or more permanent incisors erupted through the gum (other than for the purposes of veterinary or scientific examination) except by—

(a)longitudinally splitting the whole vertebral column; F19...

(b)removing a longitudinal section of the whole vertebral column including the spinal cord; [F20or

(c)an alternative method authorised in accordance with paragraph 12A.]

Textual Amendments

[F21Authorisation of alternative method of removalS

12A.  Food Standards Scotland may authorise an alternative method of removal at specified premises provided that the occupier of those premises demonstrates to the satisfaction of Food Standards Scotland that—

(a)the method is appropriate to achieve the objectives of the EUTSE Regulation;

(b)the equipment used to carry out the removal is fully effective; and

(c)the persons using the equipment are properly trained and skilled in its use and maintenance.]

Textual Amendments

[F22Authorisation of cutting plants by Food Standards Scotland] S

13.—[F23(1) If Food Standards Scotland is satisfied that the provisions of Annex 5 to the EUTSE Regulation and this schedule will be complied with, Food Standards Scotland may authorise a cutting plant to:

(a)remove those parts of the vertebral column of bovine animals that are specified risk material;

(b)remove the spinal cord from sheep and goats aged over 12 months at slaughter, or that have a permanent incisor erupted through the gum; and

(c)harvest the head meat from bovine animals in accordance with point 9 of  Annex V.]

if the Agency is satisfied that the provisions of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (specified risk material) and this Schedule will be complied with.

(2) The procedures in regulations 6, 8, 9 and 10 apply, with references to the Scottish Ministers being construed as references to the [F24Food Standards Scotland].

Textual Amendments

Removal of specified risk material at a cutting plant authorised under paragraph 13(1)S

14.—(1) The occupier of a cutting plant authorised under paragraph 13(1) shall ensure that as soon as reasonably practicable after arrival at the plant of meat and in any event before the meat leaves the plant all specified risk material of the kind to which the authorisation relates is removed from the meat.

(2) Failure to comply with this paragraph is an offence.

Meat from [F25a] Member StateS

15.  F26... Where meat containing those parts of the vertebral column of a bovine animal that are specified risk material is brought into Scotland from [F27a] Member State, the importer must send it directly to a cutting plant authorised under paragraph 13(1)(a), and failure to do so is an offence.

Textual Amendments

Staining and disposal of specified risk materialS

16.—(1) The occupier of any premises where specified risk material is removed commits an offence if that occupier fails to comply with point 3 of Annex V to the EU TSE Regulation (marking and disposal).

(2) For the purposes of that point—

[F28(a)indelible staining must involve treating the material (whether by immersion, spraying or other application) with a blue colouring agent using a solution of such a strength that the staining is clearly visible and remains visible after the specified risk material has been chilled or frozen; and]

(b)the stain must be applied in such a way that the colouring is and remains clearly visible—

(i)over the whole of the cut surface and the majority of the head in the case of the head of a sheep or goat; or

(ii)in the case of all other specified risk material, over the whole surface of the material.

(3) This paragraph does not apply in relation to any specified risk material that is destined for use as provided for in Article 1(2)(b) and (c) of the EU TSE Regulation (scope).

Textual Amendments

Security of specified risk materialS

17.—(1) Pending consignment or disposal from the premises or place where it was removed, the occupier of the premises or place must ensure that specified risk material is adequately separated from any food, feedingstuff or cosmetic, pharmaceutical or medical product and held in an impervious covered container that is labelled as either—

(a)containing specified risk material; or

(b)Category 1 animal by-products and including the words “For disposal only”.

(2) The occupier must ensure that the container is thoroughly washed as soon as is reasonably practicable each time that it is emptied, and disinfected before use for any other purpose.

(3) Failure to comply with this paragraph is an offence.

Prohibition on the sale, supply or possession for sale or supply of specified risk material for human consumptionS

18.  It is an offence to sell, supply or possess for sale or supply—

(a)any specified risk material, or any food containing specified risk material, for human consumption; or

(b)any specified risk material for use in the preparation of any food for human consumption.

[F29Determination of the age of sheep or goatsS

19.  For the purposes of this schedule, “aged over 12 months” means that the age of the animal has been determined to be over 12 months in accordance with a method of ageing approved by the Scottish Ministers.]

Textual Amendments