Commission Decision of 6 August 2007 concerning interim protection measures with regard to foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom (notified under document number C(2007) 3852) (Text with EEA relevance) (2007/552/EC)

Article 5 U.K.

1. The United Kingdom shall not dispatch dairy products intended or not intended for human consumption from those parts of its territory listed in Annex I.

2. The prohibitions described in paragraph 1 shall not apply to dairy products intended or not intended for human consumption:

(a) produced before 15 July 2007; or

(b) prepared from milk complying with the provisions in Article 4(2) or (3), or

(c) for export to a third country where import conditions permit such products to be subject to treatment other than laid down in this Decision which ensures the inactivation of the foot-and-mouth disease virus.

3. Without prejudice to Chapter II of Section IX of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 the prohibitions described in paragraph 1 shall not apply to dairy products intended for human consumption:

(a) produced from milk of a controlled pH less than 7.0 and subject to a heat treatment at a temperature of at least 72 °C for at least 15 seconds, on the understanding that such treatment was not necessary for finished products, the ingredients of which comply with the respective animal health conditions laid down in this Decision.

(b) produced from raw milk of bovine, ovine or caprine animals which have been resident for at least 30 days on a holding situated, within an area listed in Annex I, in the centre of a circle of at least 10 km radius where no outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease has occurred during the 30 days prior to producing the raw milk, and which are subject to a maturation or ripening process of at least 90 days during which the pH is lowered below 6.0 throughout the substance, and the rind of which has been treated with 0,2 % citric acid immediately prior to wrapping or packaging.

4. The prohibitions described in paragraph 1 shall not apply to:

(a) dairy products prepared in establishments situated in the areas listed in Annex I under the following conditions:

• (a) all milk used in the establishment will either conform to the conditions of Article 4(2) or be obtained from animals outside the area listed in Annex I,

• all dairy products used in the final product will either conform to the conditions of paragraph 2(a) and (b) or 3 or be made from milk obtained from animals outside the area listed in Annex I,

• the establishment is operated under strict veterinary control,

• the dairy products must be clearly identified and transported and stored separately from milk and dairy products which are not eligible for dispatch outside the areas mentioned in Annex I,

• the control of the compliance with the above listed conditions shall be carried out by the competent authority under the responsibility of the central veterinary authorities who will communicate to other Member States and the Commission a list of those establishments which they have approved in application of these provisions;

(b) dairy products prepared in the parts of the territory outside the areas mentioned in Annex I using milk obtained before 15 July 2007 from parts of the territory mentioned in Annex I provided that the dairy products are clearly identified and transported and stored separately from dairy products which are not eligible for dispatch outside the areas mentioned in Annex I.

5. Dairy products consigned from the United Kingdom to other Member States shall be accompanied by an official certificate. The certificate shall bear the following words:

‘Dairy products conforming to Commission Decision 2007/552/EC of 6 August 2007 concerning interim protection measures with regard to foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom.’

6. Derogating from the provisions in paragraph 5 it shall be sufficient in the case of dairy products which conform to the requirements of paragraphs 2(a) and (b), 3 and 4 and have been processed in an establishment operating HACCP and an auditable standard operating procedure which ensures that standards for treatment are met and recorded, that compliance with the conditions laid down in paragraphs 2(a) and (b), 3 and 4 is stated in the commercial document accompanying the consignment, endorsed in accordance with Article 9(1).

7. Derogating from the provisions in paragraph 5 it shall be sufficient in the case of dairy products which conform to the requirements of paragraphs 2(a) and (b), 3 and 4 and which have been treated in hermetically sealed containers so as to ensure that they are shelf stable to be accompanied by a commercial document stating the heat treatment applied.