. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/SPS/N/EEC/264 
1 August 2005 
 (05-3449) 
Committee on Sanitary a nd 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 Co mmunities.  Health & Consumer 
Protection Director ate-General Directorate E – Food Safe ty:  Plant Health, Animal Health 
and Welfare, International questions 
3. Products covered (provide tariff item numbe r(s) as specified in national schedules 
deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers should be provided in addition, where applicable):  Meat and meat products (CN head ings 0201, 0202, 0203, 0204, 0206, 0207, 
0208 and 0210); liver and derived products origina ting from terrestrial animals (CN headings 
0206, 0207 and 0210); fish and fishery products  (CN headings 0302, 0303, 0304, 0305, 0306, 
and 0307); milk and milk products (CN head ings 0401, 0402, 0403, 0404, 0405, 0406) , eggs 
and egg products (CN headings  0407 and 0408); vegetable oils and fats (CN headings 1507, 
1508, 1509, 1510, 1511, 1512, 1513, 1514, 1515, 1516 and 1517) animal fat (CN headings 
0209, 1501, 1502 and 1506), fish oil for human consumption (CN heading 1504); food products derived from the abovementioned product s or containing them as ingredient (CN 
headings 1601, 1602, 1603, 1604, 1605, 1901, 1902, 1904, 1905, 2104, 2105 and 2106)   
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected , to the extent relevant or practicable:  
Member States of the Europ ean Communities (EC) and third countries exporting the products 
concerned to the EC.  
5. Title, language and number of pages of the notified document:   Draft Commission 
Regulation amending Commissi on Regulation (EC) No. 466/20 01 (Official Journal L77, 
16 March 2001;  pages 1-13) as regards di oxins and dioxin-like PCBs (SANCO/0305/2005 
rev.3.  9 pages). 
6. Description of content:  This proposal establishes harm onized maximum Community levels 
for the sum of dioxins, furans and dioxin-like PCBs  in certain foodstuffs in addition to the 
existing maximum levels for dioxins, summarised as follows (expressed in WHO-PCDD/F-
PCB-TEQ = sum of polychlorinated dibenzo- para -dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated 
dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and dioxin-like Poly chlorinated Biphenyls (DL-PCBs) expressed 
in World Health Organisation (WHO) toxic equivalents, using the WHO – TEFs (toxic equivalency factors):  
Meat and meat products originating from 
- Ruminants (bovine animals, sheep)......................................................4.50 pg/g fat 
- Poultry and farmed game .....................................................................4.00 pg/g fat - Pigs ……………….. ............................................................................1.50 pg/g fat Liver and derived products  originating from terrestrial  animals…...12.00 pg/g fat 
Muscle meat of fish and fishery products  and products thereof …..4.00 pg/g fresh weight 
Milk and milk products, including butter fat .....................................6.00 pg/g fat 
Hen eggs and egg products ...................................................................6.00 pg/g fat  G/SPS/N/EEC/264 
Page 2  
 
 Oils and fats 
- Animal fat  
- from ruminants .....................................................................................4.50 pg/g fat - from poultry and farmed game .............................................................4.00 pg/g fat  - from pigs...............................................................................................1.50 pg/g fat - mixed animal fat ...................................................................................3.00 pg/g fat 
- Vegetable oil.........................................................................................1.50 pg/g fat 
- fish oil intended for human consumption……………………………10.00 pg/g fat 
7. Objective and rationale:  [ X ] food safety, [   ] animal health, [   ] plant protection, 
[   ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease,  [   ]  protect territory from other 
damage from pests 
8. International standard, guideline or recommendation:  
[   ] Codex Alimentarius Commission, [   ] World Organization for Animal Health 
(OIE), [   ] International Plant Protection Convention, [ X ] None  
If an international standard, guideline or recommendation exists, give the appropriate 
reference and briefly identify deviations:   A CODEX standard for these substances does 
not exist.   The proposed Community measures respond to the advice of the EU Scientific 
Committee on Food and JECFA. 
9. Relevant documents and language(s ) in which these are available:  European 
Commission Document SANCO/0305/2005 rev.3 (ava ilable in English).  When adopted it 
will be published in the Offi cial Journal available at: 
http://europa.eu.int/eur-l ex/lex/JOYear.do?year=2005   
The Scientific risk assessments made by the Sc ientific Committee for Food is available at 
http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/scf/out78_en.pdf  
http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/scf/out90_en.pdf  
 
The scientific risk assessmen t performed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food 
Additives and Contaminants (JECFA) is available at  
http://www.inchem.org/documen ts/jecfa/jecmono/v48je20.htm  
 Data on the presence of dioxins and PCBs in  food and feed have been published in 2004.  
The publication "Dioxins and PCBs in Food a nd Feed – Data available to the European 
Commission (EUR 21093 EN)", Gallani et al . is available on request. 
10. Proposed date of adoption:   October 2005 (at this time it is not possible to estimate a more 
specific date). 
11. Proposed date of entry into force:   1 May 2006 
12. Final date for comments:  Sixty (60) days after the date of notification. 
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:    
13. Texts available from:  [   ] National notificati on authority, [ X ] National enquiry point, 
or address, fax number and E-mail address (if available) of other body: