The European Commission has actually extended constraints on imports of bivalve mollusks from Turkey.
The procedures for bivalve mollusks, such as clams, oysters, and mussels, will now use up until completion of December 2026.
The brief life span of live and cooled bivalve mollusks efficiently dismiss screening at the border. This implies imports are prohibited. Consignments of frozen and processed bivalve mollusks are checked for marine biotoxins, and deliveries of frozen mollusks are checked for E. coli.
Steps were presented following DG Sante audits, which recognized issues in carrying out main controls by Turkish authorities on the production of bivalve mollusks sent out to Europe and member states’ reports of non-compliant consignments from Turkey due to microbiological issues.
Onsite audits in 2022 and 2023 recognized consistent shortages in the main control system for bivalve mollusks. Checks exposed structural food security imperfections within Turkish facilities authorized for exporting these items to the EU.
If existing protective procedures were raised, these unsolved concerns would posture substantial food security dangers for items exported from these properties, stated the EU Commission.
In January 2020, Turkish authorities sent out info on restorative procedures to resolve the issues discovered in a 2015 audit. These had actually been examined positively on paper.
An extension of the steps for 3 years intends to permit Turkey to attend to the suggestions from previous audits and for these actions to be examined by the EU Commission.
Authorized control strategies and import modifications
Numerous modifications have actually likewise been made to the list of nations with authorized control strategies, enabling them to export numerous items of animal origin to Europe.
Israel informed the Commission that it is no longer thinking about sending out eggs to the EU, so the legislation required upgrading.
Jamaica has actually not sent a control prepare for honey, however Morocco and Rwanda have actually done so. As these strategies offer adequate warranties, they ought to be authorized, however Jamaica’s entry has actually been gotten rid of.
Following a DG Sante audit in July and August 2023, it was discovered that Colombia could not ensure oestradiol 17-beta is not utilized in heifers and cows. As Colombia currently exports composite items to the EU consisting of processed milk from another nation with control prepare for pharmacologically active compounds, pesticides, and impurities, the nation’s listing for milk will be altered.
A two-month shift duration permits entry to the EU for consignments of shelf-stable composite products produced from processed milk items of Colombian origin dispatched before the guideline enters into force on Feb. 11, 2024.
South Africa’s control prepare for some items, which covers mollusks and marine gastropods from aquaculture, is likewise set to be authorized as it ensures food security.
Bangladesh, Chile, the Falkland Islands, Guernsey, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, and Uruguay have actually notified the EU Commission they are not thinking about exporting composite items produced utilizing processed aquaculture items or processed milk and processed egg items. A marking suggesting their intent to export will be gotten rid of.
Kenya and Mozambique plan to export composite items used processed milk or processed egg items from a member state or another nation with the appropriate control strategies. They have actually stopped working to send proof and warranties of compliance with EU guidelines so that the marking will be erased.
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