Foodlaw-Reading Dr David Jukes, The University of Reading, UK
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Food Law News - EU - 2023

Commission Consultation, 27 April 2023

HYGIENE - Commission consultation: Food hygiene – products of animal origin (updated rules)

Commission consultation: Draft Regulation amending Annexes II and III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards specific hygiene requirements for certain fresh meat, fishery products, dairy products and eggs A copy of the draft is available on this site (click on image). A separate draft Annex is also available - see: Hygiene Amendments - Draft Annex

The consultation is open until 25 May 2023. For full details, see the Commission page: Food hygiene – products of animal origin (updated rules). The followingis the opening section of the Explanatory Memorandum:

1. CONTEXT OF THE DELEGATED ACT

Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council lays down specific rules on the hygiene of food of animal origin for food business operators. It empowers the Commission to adopt delegated acts amending Annexes II and III thereto.

Based on experience gained in the application of Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 and new scientific advice published by the European Food Safety Authority, it is proposed to amend Annexes II and III to that Regulation in order to:

allow the stunning and bleeding on the farm of a limited number of ovine and caprine animals under certain conditions and amend the conditions for all ungulates;

• introduce specific requirements for dry-ageing of beef, subject to a transitional period;
• amend the transport conditions of carcases and certain cuts of domestic ungulates and harmonise the testing of the surface temperature of such meat;
• allow the transport of farmed game slaughtered on the farm, to be transported to a game handing establishment;
• introduce alternative options to demonstrate the effectiveness of heat treatments of milk;
• allow the flavouring of eggs under certain conditions.

It is also appropriate to use this opportunity to clarify certain requirements laid down in Annexes II and III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 in order to avoid any ambiguity, in particular as regards:

• the identification marking of products of animal origin;
• the certification requirements at the point of entry into the Union of certain meat of ungulates;
• the operation to slightly decrease the temperature for slicing fresh or processed fishery products or to increase the temperature of frozen fishery products and the prohibition to store or transport fishery products at that temporarily technologically-required temperature