Food Law News - UK - 1997
19 August 1997: FISH HYGIENE - Draft Food Safety (Fishery Products and Live Shellfish)(Hygiene) Regulations 1998
DoH Letter, 19 August 1997
Draft Food Safety (Fishery Products and Live Shellfish)(Hygiene) Regulations 1998
The Department has invited comments on draft Food Safety (Fishery Products and Live Shellfish)(Hygiene) Regulations 1998. Although these Regulations are primarily a consolidation of the existing eight sets of Food Safety fish and shellfish legislation they do introduce a number of changes. The main changes are as follows:
- bringing into UK legislation Council Directive 95/71/EC, which amends the Annex to Council Directive 91/493/EEC laying down the health conditions for the production and placing on the market of fishery products;
- bringing into UK legislation paragraph 1. Section II, Chapter III, Annex A of Council Directive 96/43/EC which requires that direct landings of fishery products from third country vessels will be subject to a charge for fish hygiene inspection;
- bringing into UK legislation Commission Decision 94/356/EC which lays down detailed rules for own checks on fishery products, as required by Council Directive 91/493;
- the abandonment of the concept of “other shellfish”. This term has been replaced by “live shellfish” when talking about live bivalve molluscs, echinoderms, tunicates and marine gastropods, and “live bivalve molluscs” when talking about live bivalve molluscs;
- the introduction into UK legislation of Commission Decision 97/20/EC which establishes the list of third countries fulfilling the equivalence conditions for the production and placing on the market of bivalve molluscs, echinoderms, tunicates and marine gastropods. Bivalve molluscs, etc coming from a country other than one of those on the list may not be imported into the EU;
- the introduction into UK legislation of Commission Decision 97/296/EC which draws up the list of third countries from which the import of fishery products is authorised for human consumption.
Other changes include:
- removing redundant derogation provisions;
- new posers for food authorities to revoke approvals and cancel market registrations, and
- new powers for food authorities to enable enforcement action at all stages in the food production chain.
The Department has requested comments by 19 November 1997.
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