EN   EN  
 EUROPEAN  
COMMISSION 
Brussels, XXX   
SANTE/10346/2020 (POOL/E2/2020/10346/10346-EN.docx) 
[…](2020) XXX  draft 
 
COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) …/... 
of XXX  
on the conditions gov erning imports of food and feed originatin g in third countries 
following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear  power station 
(Text with EEA relevance) 
 EN 1  EN COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING  REGULATION (EU) …/... 
of XXX  
on the conditions governing imp orts of food and feed originatin g in third countries 
following the accident at the Ch ernobyl nuclear power station 
(Text with EEA relevance) 
THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION, 
Having regard to the Treaty on the  Functioning of the European Union, 
Having regard to Regulation (EC)  No 178/2002 of the European Pa rliament and of the 
Council of 28 January 2002 laying down the general principles a nd requirements of food law, 
establishing the European Food Sa fety Authority and laying down  procedures in matters of 
food safety1, and in particular Article 53(1)(b)(ii) thereof,   
Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parli ament and of the Council of 
15 March 2017 on official control s and other official activitie s performed to ensure the 
application of food and feed law , rules on animal health and we lfare, plant health and plant 
protection products, amending Regulations (EC) No 999/2001, (EC ) No 396/2005, (EC) No 
1069/2009, (EC) No 1107/2009, (EU) No 1151/2012, (EU) No 652/20 14, (EU) 2016/429 and 
(EU) 2016/2031 of the European P arliament and of  the Council, C ouncil Regulations (EC) No 
1/2005 and (EC) No 1099/2009 and Council Directives 98/58/EC, 1 999/74/EC, 2007/43/EC, 
2008/119/EC and 2008/120/EC, and repealing Regulations (EC) No 854/2004 and (EC) No 
882/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Council  Directives 89/608/EEC, 
89/662/EEC, 90/425/EEC, 91/496/EEC, 96/23/EC, 96/93/EC and 97/7 8/EC and Council 
Decision 92/438/EEC (Offici al Controls Regulation)2, and in particular point (b) of the first 
subparagraph of Artic le 54(4) and points (a), (c) and (f) of th e first paragraph of Article 90 
thereof,  
Whereas: 
(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 733/20083 had established maximum permitted levels of 
radioactivity in certain agricu ltural products originating in t hird countries. It also 
established that Member States are required to carry out checks  on such products, in 
order to ensure their compliance with the levels of radioactivi ty set out in that 
Regulation, before the product is released for free circulation . That Regulation expired 
on 31 March 2020. Given that Commission Recommendation 2003/274 /Euratom4 
refers to the maximum permitted levels of radioactivity establi shed by that Council 
 
1 OJ L 31, 1.2. 2002, p. 1. 
2 OJ L 95, 7.4. 2017, p. 1. 
3 Council Regulation (EC) No 733/2008 of 15 July 2008 on the con ditions governing imports of 
agricultural products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear 
power station (OJ L 201, 30.7.2008, p. 1). 
4 Commission Recommendation 2003/274/Euratom on the protection a nd information of the public with 
regard to exposure resulting from the continued radioactive cae sium contamination of certain wild food 
products as a consequence of the  accident at the Chernobyl nucl ear power station ((OJ L 099, 
17.4.2003, p.55) EN 2  EN Regulation, it should be amended to refer the maximum levels es tablished by this 
Regulation.  
(2) Following the accident at the Che rnobyl nuclear power station o n 26 April 1986, 
considerable quantities of radioa ctive elements were released i nto the atmosphere and 
affected a wide range of third countries. Such contamination ma y still constitute a 
threat to public and animal health  in the Union and it is there fore appropriate to have 
measures in place at Union level to ensure the safety of the fe ed and food originating 
in or consigned from thes e third countries.  
(3) Article 53(1) of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 provides for the p ossibility to adopt 
certain Union measures for food and feed imported from a third country where it is 
evident that such food or feed is likely to constitute a seriou s risk to human health, 
animal health or the environment and such risk cannot be contai ned satisfactorily by 
means of measures taken by the Member State(s) concerned. In li ne with the practice 
adopted after the accident at th e Fukushima nuclear power stati on starting with 
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 297/20115 to base such measures on 
Article 53(1)(b)(ii) of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002, the Commis sion proposes to 
introduce follow-on measures  based on that provision. 
(4) In its opinions of 15 November 20186 and of 13 June 20197, the Group of Experts 
referred to in Article 31 of the E uratom Treaty confirmed that the currently applicable 
maximum permitted levels of radioactivity in terms of radioacti ve caesium of 370 
Bq/kg for milk, milk products a nd “foodstuffs for infants” and 600 Bq/kg for all other 
products provide an adequate lev el of protection. As the term “ foodstuffs for infants” 
in the opinions of the Group of Experts refers to foodstuffs fo r children up to three 
years, it is appropriate to use the term “foodstuffs for infant s and young children”, in 
accordance with the definitions for infants and young children provided in Article 
2(2)(a) and (b) of Regulati on (EU) No 609/2013 of the European Parliament and of the 
Council8. The other products to which the maximum level of 600 Bq/kg ap plies are 
 
5 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 297/2011 of 25 Marc h 2011 imposing special conditions 
governing the import of feed and food originating in or consign ed from Japan following the accident at 
the Fukushima nuclear power stati on (OJ L 80, 26.3.2011, p. 5).  
6 Opinion of the Group of Experts referred to in Article 31 of t he Euratom Treaty on the Prolongation of 
the latest Post-Chernobyl Regulation – Council Regulation 733/2 008 amended by Council Regulation 
1048/2009 (Adopted at the meeting on 15 November 2018) Availabl e at:  
 https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites/ener/files/opinion_on_prolong ation_of_post-
chernobyl_regulations_15_november_2018.pdf   
7 Opinion of the Group of Experts referred to in Article 31 of t he Euratom Treaty on a draft proposal for an 
implementing regulation imposing conditions governing the impor t of food, minor food and feed 
originating in third countries f ollowing the accident at the Ch ernobyl nuclear power station (Adopted at 
the meeting on 13 June 2019) Available at:  
https://ec.europa.eu/energy/sites /ener/files/opinion_on_impleme nting_regulation_on_post-
chernobyl_measures_13_june_2019.pdf   
8 Regulation (EU) No 609/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 June 2013 on food 
intended for infants and young children, food for special medic al purposes, and total diet replacement for 
weight control and repealing Council Directive 92/52/EEC, Commi ssion Directives 96/8/EC, 
1999/21/EC, 2006/125/EC and 2006/141/EC, Directive 2009/39/EC o f the European Parliament and of 
the Council and Commission Regulations (EC) No 41/2009 and (EC)  No 953/2009 (OJ L 181, 29.6.2013, 
p. 35). EN 3  EN food, including minor food, other than foodstuffs for infants a nd young children, and 
feed within the meani ng of Article 1 of C ouncil Regulation (Eur atom) 2016/529. 
(5) Certain products originating in  third countries affected by the  Chernobyl accident still 
show radioactive caesium contamination exceeding the above-ment ioned maximum 
permitted levels. Findings in recent years provide evidence tha t the caesium-137 
contamination following the Ch ernobyl accident remains high for  a number of 
products originating from species  living and growing in forests  and wooded areas. 
This is related to continued significant levels of radioactive caesium in this ecosystem 
and its physical half -life of 30 years. 
(6) While the radionuclide caesium-134, with a physical half-life o f about 2 years, has 
completely decayed since the Chernobyl accident, it is appropri ate that the  maximum 
level refers only to caesium-137, as from an analytical point o f view the analysis of 
caesium-134 constitutes an additional burden.  
(7) Cases of non-compliance with the maximum levels have been notif ied in the past 10 
years to the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) in co nsignments of 
mushrooms imported from a number of third countries. In the pas t 10 years, a few 
non-compliances with the maximum le vels have been reported to t he RASFF in 
consignments of cranberries, b ilberries and other fruits and de rived products of the 
genus Vaccinium  and no non-compliance in game mea t has been reported.  
(8) It follows that food and feed imported from certain third count ries may contain 
radioactive contamination and th erefore are likely to pose a se rious risk to human 
health, animal health or the envi ronment that requires measures  at Union level before 
those products enter the Union market.   
(9) Commission Regulation (EC) No 1635/200610 lays down detailed rules for the 
application of Regulation (EC)  No 733/2008. It requires Member States to ensure that 
the competent authorities of thi rd countries affected by the Ch ernobyl accident issue 
for certain agricultural products  export certificates which att est that the products that 
they accompany comply with the maximum permitted levels set out  in Regulation 
(EC) No 733/2008. The specific third countries concerned are li sted in Annex II to 
Regulation (EC) No 1635/2006.  
(10) Commission Regulation (EC) No 1609/200011 establishes a list of products to which 
Regulation (EC) No 733/2008 applied.  
(11) Regulation (EU) 2017/625 integrates into a single legislative f ramework the rules 
applicable to official controls  on animals and goods entering t he Union in order to 
verify compliance with Union ag ri-food chain legislation and go verns obligations to 
 
9 Council Regulation (Euratom) 2016/52 of 15 January 2016 laying  down maximum permitted levels of 
radioactive contamination of food and feed following a nuclear accident or any other case of radiological 
emergency, and repealing Regulation (Euratom) No 3954/87 and Co mmission Regulations (Euratom) No 
944/89 and (Euratom) No 770/90 (OJ L 13, 20.1.2016, p. 2). 
10 Commission Regulation (EC) No 1635/2006 of 6 November 2006 lay ing down detailed rules for the 
application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 737/90 on the condit ions governing imports of agricultural 
products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power station 
(OJ L 306, 7.11.2006, p. 3). 
11 Commission Regulation (EC) No 1609/2000 of 24 July 2000 establ ishing a list of products excluded from 
the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 737/90 on the co nditions governing imports of 
agricultural products originating in third countries following the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power 
station (OJ L 185, 2 5.7.2000, p. 27). EN 4  EN present certain categories of goods from certain third countrie s at border control posts 
for official controls to be perform ed prior to their entry into  the Union. 
(12) In order to facilitate the performance of official controls at the entry into the Union, it 
i s  a p p r o p r i a t e  t o  e s t a b l i s h  a  s i ngle model official certificate  f o r  t h e  e n t r y  i n t o  t h e  
Union of food and feed subject to s pecial conditions for the en try into the Union.  
(13) Official certificates should be  issued either on paper or in el ectronic form. Therefore, it 
is appropriate to establish commo n requirements as regards issu ance of official 
certificates in both cases, in ad dition to the requirements lai d down in Chapter VII of 
Title II of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. In this regard, point (f)  of the first paragraph of 
Article 90 of that Regulation pr ovides for the adoption by the Commission of rules for 
the issuance of electronic certificates and for the use of elec tronic signatures including 
in relation to official certifi cates issued in accordance with that Regulation. In 
addition, provisions should be made to ensure that the requirem ents for official 
certificates not submitted in the  Information Management System  for Official Controls 
(IMSOC) laid down in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 20 19/62812 a l s o  
apply to official certificates issued in accordance with this R egulation. 
(14) To avoid misuse and abuse, it is important to define the cases where a replacement 
official certificate may be issu ed and the requirements that ne ed to be met by such 
certificate. Such cases have been laid down in Implementing Reg ulation (EU) 
2019/628 in relation to official c ertificates issued in accorda nce with that Regulation. 
With a view to ensure a coherent approach, it is appropriate to  provide that, in the case 
of issuing replacement certificat es, official certificates issu ed in accordance with this 
Regulation should be replaced in accordance with the procedures  for the replacement 
certificates laid down in Implem enting Regulation (EU) 2019/628 .  
(15) Due to the long lasting effects of radioactive contamination, i t is appropriate not to 
change the list of third countri es affected by the Chernobyl in cident at this stage. 
However, Bulgaria and Romania, which have become Member State i n the meantime, 
should therefore not be included in that list. Liechtenstein an d Norway, which are part 
o f  t h e  E u r o p e a n  E c o n o m i c  A r e a  ( E E A ) and therefore not subject t o the relevant 
controls, should not be included i n that list either. A review of this Regulation as 
regards the list of affected third countries should be carried out by 31 March 2030. In 
parallel, an adjustment to the m easures on a country-by-country  basis, may take place 
at an earlier stage, if a more detailed analysis of the level o f contamination in a 
respective country shows lower levels.  
(16) The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland had be en added to the list 
of countries covered by Regulation (EC) No 733/2008 through Com mission 
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/595 from the day following th at on which Union 
law ceases to apply to and in the United Kingdom.13 Regulation (EC) No 733/2008 
was later included in Annex 2 to the Protocol on Ireland/Northe rn Ireland to the 
 
12 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/628 of 8 April 20 19 concerning model official 
c e r t i f i c a t e s  f o r  c e r t a i n  a n i m a l s  a n d  g o o d s  a n d  a m e n d i n g  R e g u l a t ion (EC) No 2074/2005 and 
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/759 as regards these model ce rtificates, (OJ L 131, 17.5.2019, 
p. 101). 
13 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/595 of 11 April 2 019 amending Regulation (EC) No 
1635/2006 laying down detailed rules for the application of Cou ncil Regulation (EEC) No 737/90 by 
reason of the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain  and Northern Ireland from the Union 
(OJ L 103, 12.4.2019, p. 22). EN 5  EN Withdrawal Agreement14. Pursuant to Article 6(3) of t he Withdrawal Agreement this 
reference also includes Regulation (EC) No 1635/2006. It follow s, that for the 
purposes of the application of  Regulations (EC) No 1635/2006, a nd (EC) No 733/2008 
in combination with Regulation (EU) 2019/595, as well as of thi s Regulation replacing 
these acts, the United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland h as to apply this 
Regulation as if Northern Ireland were a Member State of the Un ion. Northern Ireland 
should therefore not be included in Annex I to this Regulation while th e rest of the 
United Kingdom should be included in that Annex. Since this Reg ulation applies only 
to third countries, the additi on of the United Kingdom to the A nnex applies only from 
the date Union law is no longer applicable to and in the United  Kingdom pursuant to 
the Withdrawal Agreement. 
(17) Given the experience with current controls and the low number o f cases exceeding the 
maximum permitted levels, it is considered sufficient to requir e documentary checks 
on all consignments of mushrooms except cultivated mushrooms an d of wild 
cranberries, bilberries and oth er fruits and de rived products o f the genus Vaccinium  
accompanied by an official certificate, complemented by identit y checks and physical 
checks, including laboratory analysis on the presence of radioa ctive caesium, of these 
consignments at a frequency of 20 %.  
(18) Since this Regulation replaces Regulations (EC) No 1609/2000 an d (EC) No 
1635/2006, those Regulations should be repealed.  
(19) In order to allow a smooth transition to the new measures, it i s appropriate to provide 
for a transitional measure as regards consignments accompanied by certificates issued 
in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1635/2006, provided that such certificates 
were issued before 1 September 2020.  
(20) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the 
Standing Committee on Plan ts, Animals, Food and Feed,  
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 
Article 1 
Scope  
1. This Regulation shall apply to food, including minor food, a nd feed within the 
meaning of Article 1 of Regulation (Euratom) 2016/52 originatin g in or consigned 
from third countries listed in A nnex I to this Regulation (‘the  products’) intended for 
placing on the Union market.  
2. This Regulation shall not apply to the following categories of consignments of the 
products, unless their gross weight exceeds 10 kg of fresh prod uct or 2 kg of dry 
product: 
(a) consignments sent as trade samples, laboratory samples or a s display items for 
exhibitions, which are not intended to be placed on the market;  
(b) consignments which form pa rt of passengers’ personal luggag e and are 
intended for personal consumption or use; 
 
14 Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Bri tain and Northern Ireland from the 
European Union and the European A tomic Energy Community (OJ L 2 9, 31.1.2020, p. 7). EN 6  EN (c) non-commercial consignments s ent to natural persons which a re not intended 
to be placed on the market; 
(d) consignments intende d for scientific purposes. 
In case of doubt on the intended use of the products referred t o in points (b) and (c), 
the burden of proof lies with t he owner of the personal luggage  and with the recipient 
of the consignment,  respectively.  
Article 2  
Definitions 
For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply: 
(1) ‘border control post’ means ‘border control post’ as define d in point (38) of Article 3 
of Regulation (EU) 2017/625; 
(2) ‘consignment’ means ‘consignment’ as defined in point (37) o f  A r t i c l e  3  o f  
Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 
Article 3  
Conditions for entry into the Union  
1. The products may only enter th e Union if they comply with th is Regulation. 
2. The products shall comply with the following accumulated max imum permitted 
levels of radioactive contamin ation in terms of  caesium-137: 
(a) 370 Bq/kg for milk and milk products and for food for infan ts and young 
children as defined in Article 2 (2)(a) and (b) of Regulation (E U) No 609/2013; 
(b) 600 Bq/kg for all othe r products concerned. 
3. Each consignment of products listed in Annex II, with refere nce to the relevant code 
from the Combined Nomenclature, from third countries listed in Annex I, shall be 
accompanied by an official certifi cate referred to in Article 4 . Each consignment 
shall be identified by means of a n identification code which sh all be indicated on the 
official certificate and on the Common Health Entry Document (C HED), as provided 
for in Article 56 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 
Article 4  
Official certificate  
1. The official certificate referred to in Article 3(3) shall b e issued by the competent 
authority of the third country of origin or of the third countr y where the consignment 
is consigned, if that country i s different from the country of origin, in accordance 
with the model set out in Annex III. 
2. The official certificate sha ll comply with the following req uirements: 
(a) it shall bear the identification code referred to in Articl e 3(3), of the 
consignment to which it relates;  
(b) it shall be issued before the consignment to which it relat es leaves the control 
of the competent authority of t he third country issuing the cer tificate;  EN 7  EN (c) it shall be valid for not more than 4 months from the date of issue, but in any 
case no longer than 6 months from the date of the results of th e laboratory 
analysis referred t o in paragraph 6. 
3. The official certificate which is not submitted in the Infor mation Management 
System for Official Controls (IMSOC) by the competent authority  of the third 
country issuing it shall also meet the requirements for model o fficial certificates not 
submitted in IMSOC laid down in Article 3 of Implementing Regul ation (EU) 
2019/628.  
4. Competent authorities may i ssue a replacement official certi ficate only in accordance 
with the rules laid down in Artic le 5 of Implementing Regulatio n (EU) 2019/628.  
5. The official certificate shall be completed on the basis of the instructions set out in 
Annex IV.  
6. The official certificate shall attest that the products comp l y  w i t h  t h e  m a x i m u m  
permitted levels laid down in Article 3(2). The official certif icate shall be 
accompanied by the results of sampling and analysis performed o n that consignment 
by the competent authority of the third country of origin or of  the country where the 
consignment is consigned from, i f that country i s different fro m the country of origin. 
Article 5  
Official controls at e ntry into the Union  
1. Consignments of products referr ed to in Article 3(3) shall b e subject to official 
controls at their entry into the Union through a border control  post and at control 
points.  
2. The competent authorities of the border control post shall c arry out identity checks 
and physical checks on these cons ignments, including a laborato ry analysis on the 
presence of caesium-137, at a frequency of 20 %. 
Article 6 
Release for free circulation  
Customs authorities shall only al low the release for free circu lation of consignments of the 
products referred to in Article 3(3), upon presentation of a du ly finalised CHED, as provided 
for in Article 57(2)(b) of Regulation (EU) 2017/625, which conf irms that the consignment is 
in compliance with the applicab le rules referred to in Article 1(2) of that Regulation. 
Article 7  
Review 
The Commission shall review this Regulation at the latest by 31  March 2030.  
A detailed assessment on the level  of contaminati on in the thir d countries referred to in Annex 
I shall be performed on the basi s of available control results and, if appropriate, on the basis 
of the outcome of this assessment, the third countries listed i n Annex I, products listed in 
Annex II and the measures referre d to in Article 5(2) shall be reviewed accordingly before 
that date.  EN 8  EN Article 8  
Repeals 
Regulations (EC) No 1609/2000 and (EC) No 1635/2006 are repeale d.  
Article 9  
Transitional provision 
For a transitional period until 31 December 2020, consignments of products referred to in 
Article 3(3) accompanied by the relevant certificates issued be fore 1 September 2020 in 
accordance with the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 1635/2006 shall be authorised for entry 
into the Union.  
Article 10  
Entry into force 
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day followi ng that of its publication in the 
Official Journal of the European Union .  
This Regulation shall be binding i n its entirety and directly a pplicable in all Member States.  
Done at Brussels, 
 For the Commission 
 The President  Ursula VON DER LEYEN