THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on official controls performed to ensure the verification of compliance with feed and food law, animal health and animal welfare rules, and in particular Article 15(5) thereof,
Whereas:
(1)
Commission Regulation (EC) No 669/2009 lays down rules concerning the increased level of official controls to be carried out on imports of feed and food of non-animal origin listed in Annex I thereto (‘the list’), at the points of entry into the territories referred to in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 882/2004.
(2)
Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 669/2009 provides that the list is to be reviewed on a regular basis, and at least quarterly, taking into account at least the sources of information referred to in that Article.
(3)
The occurrence and relevance of food incidents notified through the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF), the findings of missions to third countries carried out by the Food and Veterinary Office, as well as the quarterly reports on consignments of feed and food of non-animal origin submitted by Member States to the Commission in accordance with Article 15 of Regulation (EC) No 669/2009 indicate that the list should be amended.
(4)
In particular, the list should be amended by decreasing the frequency of official controls of the commodities for which the information sources indicate an overall improvement of compliance with the relevant requirements provided for in Union legislation and for which the current level of official control is therefore no longer justified.
(5)
The list should also be amended to increase the frequency of official controls of the commodities for which the same sources of information show a higher degree of non-compliance with the relevant Union legislation, thereby warranting an increased level of official controls.
(6)
In addition, certain other commodities for which the information sources indicate a degree of non-compliance with the relevant safety requirements, thereby warranting the introduction of an increased level of official controls, should be included in the list.
(7)
The entries in the list for certain imports from India and for certain other commodities imported from the Dominican Republic should therefore be amended accordingly. In addition, an entry concerning consignments of nutmeg and mace from Indonesia should be inserted in the list.
(8)
The amendment to the list concerning the reduction in the frequency of official controls on imports of yardlong beans, bitter melon, peppers and aubergines from the Dominican Republic should apply as soon as possible, as the original safety concerns have been partially solved. Accordingly, the amendments to the list concerning the entry for that third country should apply from the date of entry into force of this Regulation.
(9)
Taking into account the number of amendments that need to be made to Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 669/2009, it is appropriate to replace it by the text in the Annex to this Regulation.
(10)
Regulation (EC) No 669/2009 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(11)
The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: