1. ------IND- 2012 0220 CZ- EN- ------ 20120419 --- --- PROJET 
 
REGULATION  
of ……………… 2012, 
 
on veterinary requirements for slaughtering crocodiles and further processing of meat 
and animal products originating from crocodiles 
 
The Ministry of Agriculture establishes the following in accordance with Section 78 of 
Act No 166/1999 Coll. on veterinary care and amending certain re lated laws (the Veterinary 
Act), as amended by Act No 131/2003 Coll., Act No 316/2004 Coll., Act No 48/2006 Coll., Act 
No 182/2008 Coll., Act No 227/2009 and Act No 308/2011 Coll. implementing Section 21 
Paragraph 15, Section 23 Paragraph 4 and Secti on 24 Paragraph 2 Letter a) of the Veterinary 
Act:  
  
Section 1 
Subject of the Regulation 
   (1) This Regulation regulates the following in connection with the directly applicable legislation of the European Union
1) 
a) the method of preparing the crocodiles, thei r bodies, meat, organs and other parts for 
veterinary examination,  
b) the veterinary and hygienic requi rements for establishments, plants and other facilities in 
which animal products originating from crocodiles are handled and the technical 
conditions for their design, or ganisation and furnishing, 
c) the examination of crocodiles and animal products originating from crocodiles, the 
assessment and labelling of said  products on the basis of thei r veterinary examination as 
well as the veterinary conditions for re leasing said products into circulation. 
 
(2) This Regulation was notified in accordance with European Parliament and Council 
Directive 98/34/EC of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information 
in the field of technical sta ndards and regulations and of rules on Information Society 
services, as amended by Directive 98/48/EC. 
 
Section 2 
Definition of terms 
                                                 
1)  European Parliament and Council (EC) Regulation No 178/2002 of 28 January 2002 laying down the general 
principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down 
procedures in matters of food safety, as amended. European Parliament and Council (EC) Regulation No 852/2004 of 29 April 2004 on the hygiene of foodstuffs, 
as amended. 
European Parliament and Council (EC) Regulation No 853/2004 of 29 April 2004 laying down specific hygiene rules for food of animal origin, as amended. 
  
            For the purposes of this Regulation,  
a) a crocodile is defined as an an imal born and raised in captivity2) and belonging to 
offspring of the second generation3) and further of breeding stock4) of the crocodile or 
alligator family which meets the requirements of  the directly applicable legislation of the 
European Union on the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein
5) and the Act on Trade in Endangered Species6) and is intended for slaughter and 
meat processing and whose meat is intended for human consumption,  
b) crocodile meat intended for human consumption is defined as skeletal striated muscle 
originating from crocodiles. 
 
Section 3 
Requirements for slaughterhouse furnishing 
 
In order to prevent meat contaminati on, operators of slaughterhouses in which 
crocodiles are slaughtered (hereina fter referred to as ‘slaughter houses’), shall ensure that said 
slaughterhouses: a) have areas suitable for: 
1. immobilisation minimising pre-slaughter st ress and for the stunning and exsanguination 
of the crocodiles, 
2. washing the bodies of the slaughtered crocodiles, 
3. skinning the crocodiles,  
4. evisceration and further proces sing of the crocodile bodies, 
5. refrigerating crocodile meat, 
6. storing the crocodile skins and, if these act ivities are conducted at  the slaughterhouse, a 
separate room for processi ng the crocodile skins,  
7. storing animal by-products, 
 
b) enable spatial or temp oral separation of the: 
                                                
 
2) Article 54 of European Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) No 865/2006 of 4 May 2006 laying down 
detailed rules concerning the implementation of Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 on the protection of species 
of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein, as amended.  
3) Article 1 Paragraph 2 of European Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) No 865/2006. 
4) Article 1 Paragraph 3 of European Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) No 865/2006. 
5) Article 8 of Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 of 9 December 1996 on the prot ection of species of wild 
fauna and flora by regulating trade therein. 
Articles 59 and 61 of European Parliament and Council (EC) Regulation No 865/2006.  
6) Section 15a of Act No 100/2004 Coll. on trade in en dangered species, as amended by Act No 346/2009 Coll. 
 
 21. stunning and exsanguination of the crocodiles, 
2. washing of the bodies of the slaughtered crocodiles, 
3. skinning of the crocodiles, 
4. evisceration and further proces sing of the crocodile bodies, 
5. refrigeration of the crocodile meat, 
6. shipping of the crocodile meat,  
7. handling of animal by-products, 
c) are configured in such a manner that the cr ocodile meat cannot come into contact with the 
floor and walls, 
d) are equipped with: 
1. equipment for disinfecting tools with hot wate r at a temperature of at least 82°C or an 
alternative system with a similar effect, 
2. equipment for cleaning the hands of employ ees who handle unpackaged crocodile meat; 
said equipment must be furnished in such a manner that contamination cannot spread, 
3. a lockable facility for the refrigerated  storage of detain ed crocodile meat; 
slaughterhouses need not be equipped with this facility and may store said detained 
crocodile meat together with other crocodile meat in a single refrigerated room as long 
as it is not crocodile meat from crocodiles which are suspected of contagion; such 
crocodile meat must be stored in such a manner that it cannot a dversely affect other 
crocodile meat,  
4. a separate lockable facility for storing crocodile meat which was declared to be 
unsuitable for human consumption in accordance with Annex I Secti on II Chapter V of 
European Parliament and Council (EC) Regulation No 854/2004.  
 
 
Section 4 
Slaughter hygiene 
 
(1) The slaughterhouse opera tor shall ensure that: 
a) only live crocodiles intended for slaughter or the bodies of cr ocodiles slaughtered outside 
of slaughterhouses are trans ported to the slaughterhouses,  
b) the crocodiles are cleaned with a stream of drinking water,  
c) the crocodiles are slaughtered under the conditio ns and use of the methods established by 
the act on the protection of  animals against cruelty7). 
(2) The slaughterhouse operator shall furthe rmore ensure that the immobilisation 
minimising pre-slaughter stress, stunning and exsanguination are conducted without 
unreasonable delay and using a method which preven ts the meat from be ing contaminated; in 
the process, he shall ensu re in particular that: 
a) the bodies of the crocodiles are washed with drinking water as quickly as possible after 
slaughter,  
                                                 
7) Act No 246/1992 Coll. on the protection of animals against cruelty, as amended.  
 
 3b) the crocodile bodies are skinned,  
c) the head and limbs of the crocodiles are handled in such a manner that the rest of the meat 
is not contaminated, 
d) the heads and limbs of crocodiles inte nded for further processing are skinned, 
e) the outer surface of the crocodile skin does not make contact with the surface of the 
muscle during the process of skinning the crocodile, 
f) employees and equipment coming into contact w ith the outer surface of the crocodile skin 
does not touch the crocodile meat, 
g) crocodile carcasses are not visibly contam inated by faeces; otherwise, the visible 
contamination must immediately be elim inated by excision or other method with 
equivalent effect, 
h) crocodile carcasses do not come into contact with the floor or walls, 
i) measures are taken during the evisceration pro cess to ensure that the contents of the 
digestive tract are not discharged,  
j) the spinal cord is separated,  
k) the refrigeration of the meat is initiated as quickly as possible afte r evisceration, and the 
bodies of the crocodiles are separated unt il the post-slaughter inspection has been 
completed, while retaining identif ication of the original body from the individual parts of 
the crocodile bodies.  
(3) Until the post-slaughter inspection has been completed, the slaughterhouse 
operator shall ensure th at the parts of the slaughtered cr ocodile which are subject to the 
inspection: 
a) remain identifiable so that they can be  allocated to the carcass in question,  
b) do not come into contact with other carcasses, tripe or entrails, incl uding those for which a 
post-slaughter inspection ha s already been conducted. 
 (4) After the post-slaughter inspection, the slaughterhouse op erator shall ensure that: 
a) detained meat or meat declared to be uns uitable for human consumption and by-products 
of animal origin do not come into contact w ith meat declared to be suitable for human 
consumption,   
b) the meat is stored in accordance with the provisions of Section 9. 
 (5) If the slaughterhouse does not have lock able facilities rese rved for slaughtered 
diseased crocodiles or crocodiles suspected of be aring contagion or disease, the facility used 
for slaughtering such crocodiles must be cleane d, washed and disinfected under supervision of 
an official veterinary physicia n after the slaughter or  before initiating the slaughter of other 
crocodiles. 
 
 
Section 5 
Requirements for cutting rooms 
 
 Operators of cutting rooms in which crocodile  meat is handled must ensure that the 
cutting room8) 
a) is designed to prevent meat contamin ation from taking place, in particular 
                                                 
8) Annex I Point 1.17 of European Parliament and Council (EC) Regulation No 853/2004.   
 
 41. by enabling a smooth workflow,  
2. ensuring that various production batches are separated, 
b) has  
1. refrigerated rooms for the separate storage of packaged and unpackaged crocodile meat, 
unless it is stored at different times or stored using such means that the packaging 
material and method of storage cannot be a source of contamination for the crocodile 
meat, 
2. operating areas for cutting which are furnished so as to meet the requirements of cutting 
and deboning hygiene, 
3. facilities in which employees handing unpack aged crocodile meat wash their hands 
using taps which are designed so as to prevent the spreading of contamination,  
4. equipment for disinfecting tools with hot wate r at a temperature of at least 82°C or an 
alternative system with a similar effect. 
Section 6 
Cutting and deboning hygiene 
 
 (1) The cutting room operator shall ensure that work with meat during the cutting and 
deboning of the crocodile meat is organised in a manner which precludes or minimises 
contamination of the meat; in the process, it  is particularly necessary to ensure that: 
a) the meat intended for cutting is brought to  the workplace gradually as needed,  
b) during cutting, deboning, trimming, cutting into slices or c ubes, initial packaging and 
further packaging, which must be complete d within no more than 24 hours as of the 
slaughter, a meat temperature not exceeding 4° C was maintained, with the help of an 
ambient temperature of 12°C or othe r system with equivalent effect. 
 (2) The meat may be cut and deboned before  the temperature speci fied in Paragraph 1 
Letter b) is reached if the cutting room is  located in the immediate vicinity of the 
slaughterhouse.  In this case, the meat must be transported to  the cutting room from the slaughterhouse areas or 
after unhanging in refrigerated rooms. Upon cu tting and potential packaging, the meat must 
be cooled to the temperature sp ecified in Paragr aph 1 Letter b). 
Section 7 
Emergency slaughter of crocodiles 
 
(1) Meat from crocodiles which were slaughtered in emergencies outside of 
slaughterhouses may be used for human consump tion if it meets the following requirements:  
a) the healthy crocodile died of injuries whic h prevented it from being transported to the 
slaughterhouse for reasons of respect ing animal welfare conditions,   
b) a veterinary physician conducted an inspection of the crocodile  before the slaughter,   
c) the slaughtered and exsanguinated crocodile was transported to the slaughterhouse in a hygienic manner and without unreasonable delay,  
 5d) the stomach and intestines were removed at the location of the emer gency slaughter under 
supervision of a veterinary physician and further processing was not conducted; all 
entrails removed were transported to th e slaughterhouse along w ith the slaughtered 
animal and it was checked to ensure that they belong to the animal in question,   
e) the crocodile was refrigerated, if more than  2 hours elapsed betw een the slaughter and 
transport to the slaughterhouse; this does not apply if climatic conditions did not require 
this,   
f) a declaration from the keeper was attached to the slaughtered cr ocodile upon delivery to 
the slaughterhouse; said declaration must id entify the animal, specify all veterinary 
pharmaceutical preparations administered and examinations of the crocodile which were 
conducted, the dates of administering the pharmaceutical preparations and protection 
periods,   
g) a declaration issued by a veterinary physician was attached to the slaughtered crocodile 
upon delivery to the slaughterhous e; said declaration must c ontain a statement that the 
result of the inspection prior to slaughter wa s favourable, the date, time and reason for the 
emergency slaughter and the nature of all examinations conducted by the veterinary 
physician,   
h) the slaughtered crocodile is suitable for human consumption on the basis of the post-
slaughter inspection conducted in accordance w ith Section 10 of this  Regulation at the 
slaughterhouse, including all further supplem entary tests required in the event of an 
emergency slaughter,   
i) the slaughterhouse operator followed all instruct ions concerning the use of crocodile meat 
which were issued by the official veterinary  physician upon the post-sl aughter inspection,   
j) the slaughterhouse operator marked the crocodile meat from the emergency slaughter as 
edible with a circular health suitability mark 4 cm in diameter, containing the following:  1. the abbreviation ‘CZ’, 
2. the approval number of the slaughterhouse,   
3. the European Union abbreviation ‘EU’.  
(2) Crocodile meat which meets the requirements specified in Paragraph 1 may 
only be placed on the market in the Czech Republic.  
 
Section 8 
Crocodile meat labelling 
 
 (1) Crocodile meat which has been evaluated as 
a) edible shall be labelled with  an oval health suitability mark  which is at least 6.5 cm in 
width and 4.5 cm in height a nd contains the following:  
1. the abbreviation ‘CZ’, 
2. the approval number of the slaughterhouse,   
3. the European Union abbreviation ‘EU’, 
b) edible upon processing 
1. crocodile meat which is intended for processi ng into thermally tr eated products due to 
contagion, in particular with  respect to the type  and nature of the contagion, risks of 
spreading and hazard to human health shal l be labelled with an oval-shaped stamp 
 6crossed through by two straight lines which cross at a right angle, intersecting in the 
centre of the oval mark, and information on the mark which is easily legible, or 
2. crocodile meat which, for other reasons, is in tended for processing into thermally treated 
products by means and under conditions corres ponding to the results of the veterinary 
examination and evaluation, shall be labelled with an oval-shaped stamp crossed 
through by two parallel lines which are at leas t 1 cm apart from one another, intersect 
the oval mark horizontally and are positioned in such a manner that the information on the mark remains easily legible, or 
c) inedible 
1. for contagion reasons or due to  the crocodile being diseased, 
2. due to the presence of residue or contam inating substances exceeding the stipulated 
limits, 
3. due to non-compliance with the parasitologica l and microbiological cr iteria pursuant to 
the Annex to this Regulation, or 
4. due to other reasons for which the meat woul d be declared to be unsuitable for human 
consumption, 
 shall be labelled with a triangular stamp with a side length of 5 cm. 
 (2) The labelling of the meat specified in Paragraph 1 Letters a) and b) may only be 
conducted on crocodiles which underwent a pre-slaughter in spection and post-slaughter 
inspection in accordance with this Regulation and for which there are no reasons to declare 
the meat to be inedible. The meat may only be labelled with a health suitability mark before the results of the examination for trichinosis ha ve been obtained if it is guaranteed that the 
meat from the animal in question will only be  placed on the market if the results are 
satisfactory. The labelling is placed on the out er surface of the carcass by stamping it with an 
ink stamp or by burning a brand into  it, by such means that every part of the carcass will bear 
a health suitability mark if th e carcass is divided. The letters must be at least 0.8 cm tall and 
the numbers must be at least 1 cm tall. The dye used must be in accordance with other 
legislation
9).  
 
(3) The labelling of the meat specified in Paragraph 1 Letter b) shall be positioned on 
the outer surface of the carcass by such means that every part is  fitted with a corresponding 
mark. The surfaces which appear when altered parts of the meat are removed shall also be marked.  
 (4) The labelling of the meat specified in Paragraph 1 Letter c) shall be conducted by 
such means that the meat cannot be misused. Th e labelling of entire bodies or halves shall 
furthermore be supplemented by deep cuts into the tissue; the labelling of smaller parts of 
meat or tripe may be substituted by colouring them. 
                                                
 
9) Section 4 of Regulation No 4/2008 Coll., establishi ng the types and conditions of use of additives and 
extraction solvents in the production of foodstuffs, as amended by Regulation No 130/2010 Coll. 
 
 7 
Section 9 
Storage and transport 
 
 (1) The operator of an establishment, plan t or other facility in  which crocodiles are 
slaughtered and animal products originating from croc odiles are obtained, produced, 
processed, treated, packaged, stored, transported and placed onto the market shall ensure the 
following when storing crocodile meat: a) the refrigeration of the crocodile meat at a temperature not exceeding 4°C. The crocodile 
meat must be cut and deboned in accordance with Section 6 Paragrap h 2 during the course 
of refrigeration, 
b) sufficient ventilation, so that vapour does not condense on the surface of the crocodile meat, 
c) separate refrigeration and storage of unpackaged  crocodile meat from packaged crocodile 
meat,  
d) storage and transport at the temp erature specified in Letter a). 
 (2) Crocodile meat intended for freezing mu st be frozen without unreasonable delay, 
in which the time of curing prior to refriger ation must be taken into account as needed. 
Freezing temperature must be retained during the c ourse of the storage and transport of frozen 
crocodile meat.   
 (3) Frozen meat may only be thawed if doing so is essent ial for its further processing 
into crocodile meat products  for technologi cal reasons.  
 
Performance of supervision and inspections 
Section 10  
(1) The performance of state veterinary s upervision and inspec tions encompasses: 
a) audits for proper hygienic practice, which focus in particular on:  
1. checking information on the food chain,  
2. organisation and maintenance of the rooms and equipment,  
3. hygiene before commencing the activity, during the activity and after it,  
4. personal hygiene,  
5. training on hygiene and work processes,  
6. pest control,  
7. water quality,  
8. temperature control,   
9. inspection of the food products entering into the facility and leav ing the facility and 
inspection of the documents enclosed,  
b) audits of the processes established for hazard an alysis and analysis of the critical control 
points (HACCP), which in particular verifies whether the products of animal origin from 
crocodiles:   
1. meet the microbiological criteria establis hed in the Annex to this Regulation,  
 82. meet the requirements on residue, contam inants and prohibited substances,   
3. do not contain physical hazard sources, such as foreign bodies,  
c) official inspections of crocodile meat at slaughterhouses and in cutting rooms which place 
said meat onto the market which focus in particular on:   
1. information on the food chain,  
2. pre-slaughter inspections,  
3. good living conditions of the animals,  
4. post-slaughter inspections,  
5. by-products of animal origin,   
6. laboratory tests,   
d) special tasks for audits defined in the annexes to European Parliament and Council (EC) 
Regulation No 854/2004.  
 
(2) When performing state supervision and inspections, the official veterinary 
physician must proceed in accordance with Anne x I Section I to European Parliament and 
Council (EC) Regulation No 854/2004; during the pro cess, he or she shall in particular:   
a) verify whether the operator of an establishment,  plant or other facil ity in which crocodiles 
are slaughtered and animal products originating from crocodiles are obtained, produced, processed, treated, package d, stored, transported and placed onto the market 
systematically adheres to its own processes regarding collection, tr ansportation, storage, 
handling and processing for by-pr oducts of animal origin, as well as the use or liquidation 
thereof, including the specified hazardous materi al for which the operator is responsible, 
b) check whether the operator’s processes guarantee  to the greatest extent possible that the 
meat: 
1. does not exhibit pathological deviations and changes, or  
2. is not contaminated with faeces or other impurities,  
c) check and analyse the corresponding informa tion from the records of the farm from 
which the animal intended to be slaughtered originates, both before and after the slaughter.  
 
Section 11 
 
 (1) The official veterinary physician must  conduct the following immediately once the 
crocodile has been slaughtered:  a) an inspection of the entire outer surface of the carcass,  
b) inspection and palpation or potentially incisi on of those parts of the body which are altered 
or suspect for other reasons (if necessary), 
c) a visual inspection of the head, 
d) a visual inspection or poten tially palpation of the l ungs, throat and oesophagus, 
e) a visual inspection and palpation of the pericardium and heart, 
 9f) a visual inspection and palpati on or potentially incision of the organs of the thoracic and 
abdominal cavities,  
g) an evaluation of the nutritional state,  colour, odour, symmetry and sufficient 
exsanguination, contamination, pa rasitic infections, pathologi cal signs, signs after the 
application of medications, abrasions and injuries and other abnormalities in the muscle, 
bone, joints and other tissues. 
 (2) If necessary, the official veterinary  physician will conduct further examinations 
and palpations of the carcass and tripe and incisions thereof, as well as laboratory 
examinations for the purpose of evaluating whethe r the crocodile meat is  edible, edible upon 
processing or inedible in  accordance with Section 8. 
 
Section 12 
Legal effect 
  
 This Regulation shall ente r into legal effect on ………..  
Minister:  
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 10 11Annex to Regulation No …/2012 Coll. 
 
Parasitological and microbiologi cal criteria for crocodile meat 
 
I. Parasitological criteria:  
1. Examination for the presence of trichi na (trichinella) and non-encapsulated 
forms thereof conducted in a laboratory which was issued a certification of 
accreditation to conduct this gastrointest inal examination using a method in 
accordance with Annex III of th e directly applicable European Union legislation 
laying down specific rules on official contro ls for trichinella in meat (Regulation 
[EC] No. 2075/2005). 
2. Examination for the presence of Spirometra. 
3. Examination for the presence of Pentastomida. 
4. Examination for the presence of Anisakis. 
 
II. Microbiologica l criteria:  
1. Salmonella 0/25g. 
2. Aeromonosa hydrophila 0/25 g.