. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SPS/N/EEC/219
15 October 2003
(03-5467)
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Original:  English
NOTIFICATION
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
If applicable, name of local government involved:
2. Agency responsible:   Commission of the European Communities.  Health & Consumer
Protection Directorate-General Directorate E – Food Safety:  Plant Health, Animal Health
and Welfare, International Questions
3. Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified in national schedules
deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers should be provided in addition, where
applicable):  Meat of fish from aquaculture (CN 0302, 0303 and 0304).  ICS: 67.120.30
Fish and fishery products
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent relevant or practicable:
Member States of the European Communitie s (EEC) and third countries exporting the
products concerned to the EEC.
5. Title, language and number of pages of the notified document:   SANCO/4163/2003.
Draft Commission decisi on amending Commissi on Decision 2002/657/EC of
12 August 2002 implementing Council Directiv e 96/23/EC concerning the performance of
analytical methods and the interpretation of results, as regards the setting of minimum
required performance limits (MRPLs) for certain residues in food of animal origin.
6. Description of content:  This proposal aims to facilitate trade by setting European
Community's harmonized minimum required performance limits (MRPLs) of 2 micrograms
per kg (µg/kg) for the analytical determin ation of the sum of malachite green and
leuchomalachite green in the meat of fish from aquaculture.
7. Objective and rationale:  [ X ] food safety, [   ] animal health, [   ] plant protection,
[  ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or di sease,  [   ]  protect territory from other
damage from pests
8. International standard, gu ideline or recommendation:
[   ] Codex Alimentarius Commission, [   ] Office International des Epizooties,
[   ] International Plant Prot ection Convention, [ X ] None
If an international standard , guideline or recommendation exists, give the appropriate
reference and briefly identify deviations:
No international guidelines exist for mi nimum required performance limits (MRPLs) for
malachite green in aquaculture products.
The Community Reference Laboratory responsible for malachite green analysis (Laboratoire
d'études et de recherches sur les médicaments vétérinaires et les désinfectants, AFSSAFougères (France)) has advised, after discussing  with the National References Laboratories in
the member States, on the most suitable analytic al methods to detect malachite green and its
metabolites leucho malachite green, and has proposed a MRPL in aquaculture products.  For
more information go to http://crl.fougeres.afssa.fr/G/SPS/N/EEC/219
Page 2
9. Relevant documents and language(s) in which these are available:  European
Commission Document SANCO/4163/ 2003 available in all EC languages.  When adopted it
will be published at the Oficial Journal available at:  http://europa.eu.int/eur-
lex/en/oj/index.html
10. Proposed date of adoption:   End of November 2003
11. Proposed date of entry into force:   December 2004
12. Final date for comments:  45 days after circulation of the notification
Agency or authority designated to handle co mments:  [ X ] EC  notification authority,
[   ] National enquiry point, or address, fax number and E-mail address (if available) of
other body:
13. Texts available from:  [   ] National notification authority, [ X ] EC enquiry point, or
address, fax number and E-mail address (if available) of other body: