The Food Safety (Fishery Products) (Import Conditions and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 1994

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations create import conditions for fishery products imported into Great Britain, other than those which are imported from Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands. In the process of so doing, they implement the remaining parts of Council Directive 91/493/EEC laying down the health conditions for the production and placing on the market of fishery products which were not implemented by the Food Safety (Fishery Products) Regulations 1992 (“the principal Regulations”).

These Regulations also implement, in relation to both imports and domestic production, the additional health conditions contained in Commission Decision 93/25/EEC approving certain treatments to inhibit the development of pathogenic micro-organisms in bivalve molluscs and marine gastropods, Commission Decision 93/51/EEC on the microbiological criteria applicable to the production of cooked crustaceans and molluscan shellfish and Commission Decision 93/140/EEC laying down the detailed rules relating to the visual inspection for the purpose of detecting parasites in fishery products. Commission Decision 93/351/EEC determining analysis methods, sampling plans and maximum limits for mercury in fishery products and Council Decision 93/383/EEC on reference laboratories for the monitoring of marine biotoxins are both implemented in relation to imported fishery products only, as these Decisions do not require legislation for their implementation in relation to domestic fishery products.

Regulation 2 is an interpretation provision. Regulation 3 sets out the general conditions under which all fishery products must be imported into Great Britain, other than imports from Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands. There are, however, exemptions in relation to private consignments. There are also certain additional requirements in relation to imports of fishery products originating outside the European Economic Area, and these are contained in regulation 4. These additional requirements include compliance with any approved import conditions agreed by the European Commission with particular non-EEA countries, and a list of the Commission Decisions containing those approved import conditions is given in Schedule 1. Where no approved import conditions have been agreed, except in relation to products which are or were landed by third country vessels at European Community ports, importers are required to have a health certificate modelled on the specimen health certificate contained in the Annex to Commission Decision 93/185/EEC.

Regulations 5 to 8 make amendments to the Food Hygiene (Scotland) Regulations 1959, the Food Hygiene (Docks, Carriers etc.) Regulations 1960, the Food Hygiene (Markets, Stalls and Delivery Vehicles) Regulations 1966 and the Food Hygiene (General) Regulations 1970. These amendments modify the application of those sets of Regulations in relation to places where fishery products are handled, and the result is a set of partial and full exemptions from other hygiene requirements for, and for people at, markets registered under regulation 13 of the principal Regulations, and establishments and factory vessels approved under regulation 9 of the principal Regulations. There are also certain partial exemptions from certain temperature control requirements for cooked and chilled crustacean or molluscan shellfish.

Regulation 9 and Schedule 4 make amendments to the Imported Food and Feedingstuffs (Safeguards against Cholera) Regulations 1991 (“the 1991 Regulations”), implementing Commission Decisions 94/199/EC, 94/201/EC and 94/270/EC. These Commission Decisions repealed earlier Cholera safeguard measures in relation to fishery products from Brazil, Ecuador and Colombia. Because of these repeals, amendments are made to the 1991 Regulations, the effect of which is that the 1991 Regulations no longer cover imports from those countries.

Regulation 10 and Schedule 5 make various amendments to the Food Safety (Fishery Products) (Derogations) Regulations 1992 (“the Derogations Regulations”). The amendments to regulation 2 of the Derogations Regulations clarify what is meant by a fishery product and processing of products, and similar amendments have also been included in the changes to the principal Regulations set out in Schedule 6. Schedules 5 and 6 also contain the various amendments which implement Commission Decisions 93/25/EEC, 93/51/EEC and 93/140/EEC domestically, both in relation to factory vessels and establishments on land. There are some other amendments made to the Derogations Regulations to correct earlier drafting errors.

Regulation 11 implements Commission Decision 94/206/EC by amending the Imported Food (Bivalve Molluscs and Marine Gastropods from Japan) Regulations 1992 so as to limit the application of the import prohibition contained in those Regulations to bivalve molluscs and marine gastropods other than frozen or processed scallops and other pectinidae.

Some of the amendments to the principal Regulations which are made by virtue of regulation 12 and Schedule 6 have already been referred to. These amendments also include a number of technical changes which correct minor errors in the principal Regulations, but there are also some other, more substantive changes. These include: expanding the placing on the market provisions to accommodate both the new import conditions contained in these Regulations and products coming from Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands; changes to the registration requirements and related procedures for wholesale and auction markets which are not establishments, as defined in the principal Regulations; the removal of a power held by Ministers to direct food authorities in relation to how often they exercise their functions; and the inclusion of a power of entry in relation to fishing and factory vessels. Masters of vessels from third countries also now have to give food authorities 24 hours notice of the intention to arrive at a port, and modifications are made to the general monitoring responsibilities for food authorities at ports. There is a new exemption for fishermen placing on the market small quantities of cockles, and the mechanism for deciding whether a laboratory is recognised is altered so that food authorities have to have regard to guidance issued by Ministers generally, rather than advice issued by Ministers concerning suitable performance assessment schemes.

Regulation 13 contains an amendment to the Food Safety (Fishery Products on Fishing Vessels) Regulations 1992, conferring a power of entry in relation to fishing vessels.

Regulation 15 stipulates that the import conditions contained in regulations 3 and 4 should be enforced through the Products of Animal Origin (Import and Export) Regulations 1992, and regulation 14 and Schedule 7 make various amendments to those Regulations. These amendments make checks on imports of live echinoderms, tunicates and marine gastropods the responsibility of an authorised officer of a local authority, not an official veterinary surgeon, and checks on health conditions for direct landings of third country fishery products are made subject to the same procedure as exists for similar member State imports, thereby implementing article 18(3) of Council Directive 90/675/EEC laying down the principles governing the organisation of veterinary checks on products entering the European Community from third countries.

Regulation 16 contains some consequential revocations to the Imported Food and Feedingstuffs (Safeguards against Cholera) (Amendment) Regulations 1992 and to the principal Regulations.