. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/TBT/N/BEL/38
11 December 2003
(03-6542)
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:  French
NOTIFICATION
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6.
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   BELGIUM
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):
2. Agency responsible:
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers and E-mail and Web site
addresses, if available) of  theagency or authority designated to handle comments
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:
Federal Public Service - Public Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment
General Directorate of Animals, Plants and Food
Department of Food and Other Consumer Products
State Administrative Centre (CAE) Quartier Arcades
Boulevard Pachéco 19 Boîte 5B-1010 Brussels
Tel.:  +32 2 210-4813
Fax:  +32 2 210-4816
E-mail:  apf.food@health.fgov.be
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [  X ], 2.10.1 [    ], 5.6.2 [ X ], 5.7.1 [    ], other:
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading.
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):   Food products, food
supplements
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:   Ministerial Decree
amending the Annex to the Royal Decree of 29 August 1997 concerning the manufacture
and marketing of food products which consist of or contain plants or plant preparations(24 pages, in French)
6. Description of content:   The Annex to this draft Decree provides for amendments to the
Annex to the Royal Decree of 29 August 1997 concerning the manufacture and marketing
of food products which consist of or contain plants or plant preparations.  The draft is based
on advice from the Plant Preparations Advisory Committee.
Point 1 of the Annex to the draft provides for a ban on the use of four plants in, or
as, food products.  These plants contain toxic components and are prohibited in the interestsof public health.
Point 2 of the Annex to the draft provides  for the addition of a number of plants to
List No. 3, namely plants to be notified if present in pre-dosed form.  The Plant Preparations
Advisory Committee applied safety criteria for the purpose;  in most cases, only one plant
component is permitted and in others, provision is made for a mandatory statementnecessary to protect public health, in the form of a warning to be displayed on the labelling
of food products.G/TBT/N/BEL/38
Page 2
6. Description of content:  (cont'd)   Point 3 of the Annex to the draft provides for the
addition of an asterisk to the name of one of the plants.  Where such a plant is used, the
notification file must specify the active ingredient or marker content.
Point 4 of the Annex to the draft provides for the addition of comments and/or
restrictions regarding a number of plants already in List 3.  For these plants, the draftprovides for a maximum level of active ingredient or marker content and for mandatory
statements, necessary to protect public health, in respect of certain plants.  The setting of
maximum levels of active ingredient content is the subject of a specific supplementary rule
that may be deemed to be the same as that in Point 8 of Article 2 of Directive 2002/46 of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 10 June 2002 on the approximation of the laws
of the Member States relating to food supplements.  These maximum content levels have
been established on the basis of safety considerations or the fact that higher content levelswill entail therapeutic or prophylactic characteristics.
Point 5 of the Annex to the draft makes provision, under certain conditions, for the
moving of three plants from List 1:  Prohibited plants are moved to List 3;  or only one plant
component is permitted;  or requirements are laid down with regard to the end product.
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:
Belgium deems it necessary to tighten existing regulations on plant- and plant-
preparation-based food supplements, so as to be able to guarantee product safety andprevent the marketing, as food supplements, of products with therapeutic or prophylactic
characteristics.
The establishment of supplementary standards in Belgian legislation implies an
increase in the number of control points and hence greater product safety.
8. Relevant documents:   Royal Decree of 29 August 1997 concerning the manufacture and
marketing of food products which consist of or contain plants or plant preparations
9. Proposed date of adoption:
Proposed date of entry into force: }
10. Final date for comments:   60 days
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [  X ] or address, telephone and fax
numbers and E-mail and Web site addresses, if available, of another body:
BELNotif
E-mail:  paul.caruso@mineco.fgov.be