WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/N/MEX/205 
2 February 2004 
 (04-0375) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd Phytosanitary Measures  Original:   Spanish 
   
NOTIFICATION OF EMERGENCY MEASURES 
 
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   MEXICO
 
If applicable, name of local government involved:  
2. Agency responsible:  Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries 
and Food (SAGARPA) 
3. Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified in national schedules 
deposited with the WTO;  ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where 
applicable).  Live or dead aquatic crustaceans a nd the products and by-products thereof 
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent relevant or practicable:  Any of 
Mexico's trading partners 
5. Title and number of pages of the notified document:  Emergency Mexican Official 
Standard NOM-EM-006-PESC-2004 Establishing th e Aquatic Health Requirements for the 
Production of Live or Dead Aquatic Crustacean s and the Products and By-products Thereof 
and for Their Importation into the United Mexican States (16 pages, in Spanish). 
6. Description of content:  This Emergency Mexican Official Standard establishes additional 
aquatic health requirements for the productio n of aquatic crustaceans and the products and 
by-products thereof, including the use of pharm aceutical products in shrimp farming, and for 
the importation of such crustaceans into Mexican national territory. 
7. Objective and rationale:  [ X ] food safety, [ X ] animal health, [   ] plant protection, 
[   ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease, [   ] protect territory from other damage from pests  
8. Nature of the urgent problem(s) and reasons for urgent action:  A number of aquatic 
health measures were incorporated into Mexican Official Stan dard NOM-030-PESC-2000 
"Establishing Requirements for Determining the Presence of Viral Diseases in Live or Dead 
Aquatic Crustaceans and the Products and By-produc ts Thereof, in any Form of Presentation, 
and Artemia  for Importation into and Movement within the National Territory", published in 
the Diario Oficial de la Federación  (Official Journal) on 23 Ja nuary 2002.  These measures 
have, however, proved insufficient as regard s preventing the introduction of increasingly 
resistant and virulent pathogens which affect farmed populations and constitute a risk to wild 
penaeid shrimp populations and a se rious threat both to their heal th and to the sustainability 
of fishing and aquaculture.  G/SPS/N/MEX/205 
Page 2  
 
  Furthermore, it has come to light that the incorrect use of antibiotics leads to an 
accumulation of residues in the tissues and orga ns of treated specimens and that these affect 
the health of human consumers.  This is true  of chloramphenicol, nitrofurans, including 
furazolidone, nitrofurazone and other antibiotics  which have been detected in batches of 
aquatic crustaceans in transport in other coun tries and which constitute a risk since safe 
residue levels for products for human consumptio n cannot currently be determined.  There is 
therefore a need for regulations governing the use of antibiotics in the domestic shrimp 
farming industry to prevent harm both to cr ustaceans and to the consumers of fishery and 
aquaculture products.
 
 Control must also be established with rega rd to the indiscriminate and repeated use 
of antibiotics to treat diseases  affecting farmed shrimps, a factor which contributes to the 
resistance of the bacteria in question.  There is therefore an urgent need for other 
pharmaceutical products to be used in order to prevent economic and ecological harm to 
national territory. 
 In light of the above, there was an need to adopt, as a matter of urgency, aquatic 
health measures over and above those establ ished in Mexican Offici al Standard NOM-030-
PESC-2000 and thereby to prevent imminent ri sk, by strengthening preventive measures 
against the introduction and spread of more resist ant viral diseases in a quatic crustaceans, and 
to establish health-related measures for farmed  shrimp production processes, in particular 
regulation of the use of pharmaceutical products. 
 It should be noted that, as a result of th e issue of this Emerge ncy Mexican Official 
Standard and with a view to achieving greater efficiency with regard to the processes and 
verification of the requireme nts set out therein, as well as labo ratory tests to ensure the health 
of aquatic crustaceans intended  for importation into Mexico, only the major points of entry 
into national territory may be used.  
9. International standard, gu ideline or recommendation:   
[  ] Codex Alimentarius Commission,  [ X ] Office International des Epizooties,   
[    ] International Plant Protection Convention,  [   ] None  
If an international standard, guideline or recommendation exists, give the appropriate 
reference and briefly identify deviations:  Recommendations in the International Aquatic 
Animal Health Code. 
10. Relevant documents and language(s) in which these are available:  Diario Oficial de la 
Federación  (Official Journal) of 26 January 2004 (available in Spanish). 
11. Date of entry into force/period of application (as applicable):  Day after publication in 
the Official Journal / six months. 
12. Agency or authority designated to handle comments:  [ X ] National notification 
authority, [   ] National enquiry point, or  address, fax number and E-mail address (if 
available) of other body:    G/SPS/N/MEX/205 
 Page 3 
 
 
13. Texts available from:  [ X ] National notification authority, [   ] National enquiry 
point, or address, fax number and E-mail address (if available) of other body:  
Web site:  www.economia.gob.mx/?P=85  (Standards catalogue). 
General Directorate of Standards / Ministry of the Economy Enquiry Point 
E-mail:  cidgn@economia.gob.mx Tel:  (52+55) 5729-9300, Ext. 4156 Fax:  (52+55) 5520-9715