Commission Decision
of 31 October 2007
amending Decision 2007/554/EC concerning certain protection measures against foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom
(notified under document number C(2007) 5284)
(Text with EEA relevance)
(2007/709/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Directive 89/662/EEC of 11 December 1989 concerning veterinary checks in intra-Community trade with a view to the completion of the internal market1, and in particular Article 9(4) thereof,
Having regard to Council Directive 90/425/EEC of 26 June 1990 concerning veterinary and zootechnical checks applicable in intra-Community trade in certain live animals and products with a view to the completion of the internal market2, and in particular Article 10(4) thereof,
Whereas:
Following recent outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in Great Britain, Commission Decision 2007/554/EC of 9 August 2007 concerning certain protection measures against foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom3 was adopted to reinforce the control measures against foot-and-mouth disease taken by that Member State in the framework of Council Directive 2003/85/EC of 29 September 2003 on Community measures for the control of foot-and-mouth disease4.
Decision 2007/554/EC lays down rules applicable to the dispatch from high and low risk areas in Great Britain of products considered safe that either were produced before the restrictions were put in place in the United Kingdom, from raw material sourced from outside those restricted areas, or that have undergone a treatment proven effective in inactivating possible foot-and-mouth disease virus.
By adopting Decision 2007/664/EC the Commission laid down rules for the dispatch of certain categories of meat from certain areas listed in an additional Annex III that have not recorded any outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease for at least 90 days prior to slaughter and which comply with certain specified conditions.
On the basis of information provided by the United Kingdom, it is now, more than an incubation period after the last confirmed outbreak, appropriate to further lift certain restrictions applied to meat and frozen semen, ova and embryos, produced from animals that have been resident in areas that did not experience an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in 2007.
However, given the epidemiological situation in and regionalisation of the United Kingdom, and taking into account the conditions for the recovery of a foot-and-mouth disease free status, it is necessary to extend the application of Decision 2007/554/EC until 15 December 2007.
Decision 2007/554/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.
The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: