1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COUNCILDIRECTIVE92/45/EEC
of16June1992
onpublic health andanimal health problems relating to the killing of wild game andthe placing
onthemarketofwild-gamemeat
(OJ L 268, 14.9.1992, p. 35)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Directive 92/116/EEC of 17 December 1992 L 62 1 15.3.1993
►M2Council Directive 96/23/EC of 29 April 1996 L 125 10 23.5.1996
Amended by:
►A1Act of Accession of Austria, Sweden and Finland C241 21 29.8.1994
(adapted by Council Decision 95/1/EC, Euratom, ECSC) L 1 1 1.1.1995
▼B
COUNCILDIRECTIVE92/45/EEC
of16June1992
onpublichealthandanimalhealthproblemsrelatingtothekilling
ofwildgameandtheplacingonthemarketofwild-gamemeat
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European EconomicCommunity, and in particular Article 43 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission(
1),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament(2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee(3),
Whereas game meat is included in the list of products in Annex II to
the Treaty; whereas the placing on the market of wild game meat
constitutes an additional source of income for part of the farming popu-
lation;
Whereas, in order to ensure the rational development of this sector and
to improve productivity, rules concerning public health and animalhealth problems affecting the production and placing on the market of
wild game meat must be laid down at Community level;
Whereas disparities as regards animal health and public health condi-
tions in the Member States should be eliminated in order to encourageintra-Community trade in suchmeat, witha view to th e completion ofthe internal market;
Whereas diseases communicable to domestic animals and humans may
be spread by suchmeat; wh ereas it is necessary to lay down rules
enabling these risks to be controlled;
Whereas it is necessary to lay down the hygiene conditions in which
wild game meat must be obtained, processed and inspected, in orderto prevent food-borne infections or food poisoning;
Whereas it is necessary to stipulate the hygiene rules to be complied
with by wild game processing houses for the purposes of approval for
trade;
Whereas, in respect of the organization of, and the follow-up to, the
checks to be carried out by the Member State of destination and thesafeguard measures to be implemented, reference should be made to
general rules laid down in Council Directive 89/662/EEC of 11
December 1989 concerning veterinary checks in intra-Community tradewith a view to the completion of the internal market(
4);
Whereas wild game and wild-game meat imported from third countries
should be subject to the minimum requirements laid down by thisDirective for trade between Member States, and compliance therewith
should be monitored in accordance with the principles and rules set out
in Directive 90/675/EEC(
5);
Whereas it is appropriate to permit derogations for small quantities of
wild game meat;
Whereas it is appropriate to grant temporary derogations to allow wild
game processing houses to comply with the new requirements;1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 2
(1) OJ No C 327, 30. 12. 1989, p. 40, and OJ No C 311, 12. 12. 1990, p. 5.
(2) OJ No C 260, 15. 10. 1990, p. 154.
(3) OJ No C 124, 21. 5. 1990, p. 7.
(4) OJ No L 395, 30. 12. 1989, p. 13. Last amended by Directive 91/496/EEC
(OJ No L 268, 24. 9. 1991, p. 56).
(5) Council Directive 90/675/EEC of 10 December 1990, laying down the prin-
ciples governing the organization of veterinary checks on products entering
the Community from third countries (OJ No L 373, 31. 12. 1990, p. 1).
Amended by Directive 91/496/EEC (OJ No L 268, 24. 9. 1991, p. 56).
▼B
Whereas the Commission should be charged with adopting measures to
implement this Directive; whereas, to that end, a procedure should beset up establishing close and effective cooperation between the
Commission and the Member States within the Standing Veterinary
Committee;
Whereas the deadline for transposition into national law, set at 1
January 1994 in Article 23, should not affect the abolition of veterinary
checks at frontiers on 1 January 1993,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
CHAPTER I
General provisions
Article 1
1. This Directive lays down public health and animal health rules
applicable to the killing of wild game and to the preparation andplacing on the market of wild game meat.
2. This Directive shall not apply to:
(a) small numbers of wild game, unskinned or unplucked, and, in the
case of small wild game, ineviscerated, supplied directly by thehunter to the consumer or to the retailer;
(b) small quantities of wild-game meat supplied directly to the final
consumer;
(c) the cutting and storage of wild-game meat in retail shops or in
premises adjacent to sales points, where the cutting and storage
are performed solely for the purpose of supplying the consumer
directly on the spot.
The above operations shall continue to be subject to the public health
checks provided for in national rules governing retailing.
3. The provisions of this Directive concerning trade or imports from
third countries shall not apply to trophies or to killed wild game carried
by travellers in their private vehicle provided that only a small quantity
of small wild game or a single large wild game animal is involved andthe circumstances indicate that there is no question of the meat of suchgame being intended for trade or commercial use, and provided that thegame in question does not come from a country or a part of a country
trade from which is prohibited pursuant to Article 11 (2) and 3 or
Article 18.
Article 2
1. For the purposes of this Directive, the following definitions shall
apply:
(a) ‘wild game’: wild land mammals which are hunted (including
wild mammals living within an enclosed area under conditions offreedom similar to those enjoyed by wild game) and wild birdswhich are not covered by Article 2 of Council Directive 91/495/EEC of 27 November 1990, concerning public health and animal
health problems affecting the production and placing on the
market of rabbit meat and farmed game meat(
1);
(b) ‘large wild game’: wild ungulates;(c) ‘small wild game’: wild mammals of the Leporidae family and
wild game birds intended for human consumption;
(d) ‘wild-game meat’: all parts of wild game which are fit for human
consumption;
(e) ‘wild game processing house’: an establishment approved in
accordance withArticle 7 in wh ichwild game is processed and1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 3
(1) OJ No L 268, 24. 9. 1991, p. 41.
▼B
wild game meat is obtained and inspected in accordance withth e
hygiene rules laid down in this Directive;
(f) ‘collection centre’: any place where killed wild game is kept in
accordance with the hygiene rules in Annex I, Chapter IV (2)prior to being transported to a processing house;
(g) ‘placing on the market’: holding or displaying for sale, offering
for sale, selling, delivering or any other form of placing on the
market of wild game meat for human consumption in the Commu-nity, excluding supplies pursuant to Article 1 (2);
(h) ‘trade’: trade between Member States within the meaning of
Article 9 (2) of the Treaty.
2. For the purposes of this Directive the definitions in Article 2 of
Directive 89/662/EEC and Directive 90/425/EEC of 26 June 1990concerning veterinary and zootechnical checks applicable in intra-Community trade in certain live animals and products witha view tothe completion of the internal market(
1), and the definition of fresh
meat in Article 2 (b) of Council Directive 64/433/EEC of 26 June
1964 on health problems affecting intra-Community trade in fresh
meat(2), shall apply as necessary.
CHAPTER II
ProvisionsapplicabletoCommunityproductionandtrade
Article 3
1. Member States shall ensure that wild game meat:
(a) comes from wild game which:
— has been killed in a hunting area by means authorized under
national legislation governing hunting,
— does not come from a region subject to restrictions pursuant to
Council Directive 72/461/EEC of 12 December 1972 on healthproblems affecting intra-Community trade in freshmeat(
3),
Council Directive 91/494/EEC of 26 June 1991 on animal
health conditions governing intra-Community trade in andimports from third countries of fresh poultrymeat(
4) and
Council Directive 91/495/EEC or from a hunting area subjectto restrictions pursuant to Articles 10 and 11 of this Directive,
— immediately after killing has been prepared in accordance with
Annex I, Chapter III, and transported within a maximum of 12hours to a processing house as referred to in (b) or to a collec-
tion centre where it must be chilled to the temperatures
specified in Annex I, Chapter III, and from which it must betaken to a processing house as referred to in (b) within 12 hoursor, in the case of remote regions where climatological condi-tions so permit, within a period to be fixed by the competentauthority to enable the official veterinarian of the said proces-
sing house to carry out the post mortem inspection provided
for in Annex I, Chapter V, under satisfactory conditions.►
A1The Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission,
may lay down specific rules applicable to the collection of wildgame under special climatic conditions ◄;
(b) is obtained:
(i) either in a wild game processing house fulfilling the general
conditions of Annex I, Chapters I and II, and approved for thepurposes of the present Chapter in accordance with Article 7;1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 4
(1) OJ No L 224, 18. 8. 1990, p. 29. Last amended by Directive 91/496/EEC
(OJ No L 268, 24. 9. 1991, p. 56).
(2) OJ No L 121, 29. 7. 1964, p. 2012/64. Last amended by Directive 91/497/
EEC (OJ No L 268, 24. 9. 1991, p. 69).
(3) OJ No L 302, 31. 12. 1972, p. 24. Last amended by Directive 91/266/EEC
(OJ No L 134, 29. 5. 1991, p. 45).
(4) OJ No L 268, 24. 9. 1991, p. 35.
▼B
(ii) in the case of large wild game, in an establishment approved in
accordance withArticle 10 of Directive 64/433/EEC, or, in th ecase of small wild game, in accordance withArticle 5 of
Council Directive 71/118/EEC of 15 February 1971 on health
problems affecting trade in freshpoultrymeat(
1) provided that:
— suchgame is skinned in rooms separate from th ose reserved
for meat covered by those Directives, or at different times,
— such establishments are given special approval for the
purposes of this Directive,
— measures are taken to allow clear identification of meat
obtained pursuant to the present Directive and meat
obtained pursuant to Directives 64/433/EEC and 71/118/EEC;
(c) comes from killed animals which have undergone visual inspection
by the official veterinarian:
— to detect any anomalies. The official veterinarian may base his
diagnosis on any information supplied by the hunter, where
appropriate on the basis of a certificate laid down by the
authority responsible for hunting rules, on the behaviour of theanimal before killing,
— to check that death is not due to causes other than hunting;
(d) comes from wild game which:
— has been handled under satisfactory hygiene conditions, in
accordance withAnnex I, Ch apters III and IV,
— has undergone, in accordance with Annex I, Chapter V, post-
mortem inspection by an official veterinarian or, by auxiliariesholding the professional qualifications to be specified in accor-dance withth e procedure laid down in Article 22, acting under
the supervision of the official veterinarian,
— has not shown any change except for traumatic lesions which
occurred during killing or localized malformations or changes,
provided that it is established, if necessary by appropriatelaboratory tests, that these do not render the meat unfit forhuman consumption or dangerous to human health,
— on which, in the case of small wild game which has not imme-
diately after killing been eviscerated in accordance withAnnexI, Chapter V (1), an official veterinary health inspection has
been carried out on a representative sample of animals from
the same source.
If the official veterinarian finds a disease communicable to man
or defects as referred to in Annex I, Chapter V (4), he mustcarry out more checks on the entire batch. In the light of theresults of these further checks, he must either exclude the entirebatchfrom h uman consumption or inspect eachcarcase indivi-
dually.
2. The official veterinarian must ensure that wild game meat is
excluded from human consumption:
(i) if it is found to contain defects as referred to in Annex I, Chapter
V (3) (e), or if it has been seized in accordance with paragraph 4
of that Chapter;
(ii) if the checks provided for in the third indent of paragraph 1 (d) of
this Article have revealed the presence of a disease communicableto man;
(iii) if it comes from animals which have ingested substances which
are likely to make the meat dangerous or harmful to human healthand on which a decision has been taken, by the procedure laiddown in Article 22, after the opinion of the Scientific Veterinary
Committee has been obtained. Pending the implementation of
such a decision, national rules on these substances shall remain inforce, subject to the general provisions of the Treaty;1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 5
(1) OJ No L 55, 8. 3. 1971, p. 23. Last amended by Directive 90/654/EEC (OJ
No L 353, 17. 12. 1990, p. 48).
▼B
(iv) if, without prejudice to any Community legislation applicable to
ionization, it has been treated with ionizing or ultra-violet radia-tion or by means of substances likely to affect its organoleptic
properties or using colourings other than those used for health
marking.
3. Meat of wild boar or of other species susceptible to trichinosis
must undergo analysis by the digestion method in accordance withCouncil Directive 77/96/EEC of 21 December 1976 on the examinationfor trichinae (trichinella spiralis) upon importation from third countries
of freshmeat derived from domestic swine(
1) or a trichinoscopic exam-
ination withmicroscopic observation of several samples from each
animal taken from the jaw and diaphragmatic muscles, from themuscles of the lower front leg, from the intercostal muscles and thetongue muscles at least.
Before 1 January 1994, the Council, acting by a qualified majority on a
proposal from the Commission and after obtaining the opinion of theScientific Veterinary Committee, shall lay down the methods for theanalysis by digestion which are suitable for detecting trichinosis in
wild boar or other species of wild game susceptible to trichinosis; the
same procedure shall apply with regard to the trichinoscopic or micro-scopic examination for the detection of trichinosis.
4. Wild game meat declared fit for human consumption must:
(i) bear a health mark in accordance with Annex I, Chapter VIII.
A decision may be taken, where appropriate, to amend or supple-
ment the provisions of the aforementioned Chapter in accordance
withth e procedure provided for in Article 22, in order to take into
account notably the different forms of commercial presentation,providing they conform to the hygiene rules laid down in thisDirective.
The provisions of point 68 of Chapter XII of Directive 71/118/
EEC on the health marking of large packaging shall be applicablemutatis mutandis to meat of small wild game;
(ii) after post-mortem inspection, be stored in accordance withAnnex
I, Chapter X, under satisfactory hygiene conditions in wild gameprocessing houses approved in accordance with Article 7 of thisDirective, or in establishments approved in accordance withArticle 10 of Directive 64/433/EEC or Article 5 of Directive 71/118/EEC, or in cold stores approved and inspected in accordance
withArticle 10 of Directive 64/433/EEC;
(iii) be accompanied during transportation by:
— an accompanying commercial document as authorized by the
official veterinarian. This document must:
— in addition to the particulars provided for in Annex I,
Chapter VII (2), including in the case of frozen meat themonthand year of freezing in clear, bear a code numberby which the official veterinarian can be identified,
— be kept by the consignee for at least one year so that it can
be produced at the request of the competent authority.
Detailed rules for applying this point, and in particular those
concerning the allocation of code numbers and the compilation
of one or more lists identifying the official veterinarians, shallbe adopted in accordance withth e procedure laid down inArticle 22,
— a public animal health certificate corresponding to the
specimen in Annex II, in the case of meat from a wild gameprocessing house situated in a restricted region or area or1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 6
(1) OJ No L 26, 31. 1. 1977, p. 67. Last amended by Directive 89/321/EEC (OJ
No L 133, 17. 5. 1989, p. 33).▼M1
▼B
▼B
meat to be sent to another Member State after transit through a
third country in a sealed lorry;
(iv) be transported under satisfactory hygiene conditions in accordance
withAnnex I, Ch apter XI;
(v) in the case of parts of carcases or boned meat of small wild game
birds, also be obtained in conditions similar to those provided forin Article 3 B. of Directive 71/118/EEC, in establishmentsspecially approved for this purpose in accordance with Article 7
of the present Directive;
(vi) without prejudice to Council Directive 79/112/EEC of 18
December 1978 on the approximation of the laws of the Member
States relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of
foodstuffs for sale to the ultimate consumer(
1), be labelled with
an indication of the animal species.
Article 4
1. Member States shall ensure that:
(a) meat declared unfit for human consumption can be clearly distin-
guished from meat declared fit for human consumption;
(b) meat declared unfit for human consumption is treated in accor-
dance withCouncil Directive 90/667/EEC of 27 November 1990laying down the veterinary rules for the disposal and processing of
animal waste, for its placing on the market and for the prevention
of pathogens in feedstuffs of animal or fish origin and amendingDirective 90/425/EEC(
2).
2. Meat from an area subject to animal health restrictions shall be
subject to specific rules to be determined on a case-by-case basis inaccordance withth e procedure laid down in Article 22.
3. Detailed rules for implementing this Article shall if necessary be
determined in accordance withth e procedure laid down in Article 22.
Article 5
Member States shall ensure that only the following are the subject of
trade:
1. skinned and eviscerated wild game meeting the requirements of
Articles 3 and 4, or freshwild game meat;
2. unskinned or unplucked and uneviscerated small game, not frozen or
deep-frozen which is controlled in accordance with the third indentof Article 3 (1) (b) (ii), provided it is handled and stored separatelyfrom freshmeat covered by Directive 64/433/EEC, poultry meat andskinned or plucked game meat;
3. unskinned large game which:
(a) meets the requirements of Article 3 (1) (a) first and second
indents, Article 3 (1) (c), and Article 3 (1) (d) first indent;
(b) the viscera of which have undergone post-mortem inspection in
a wild game processing house;
(c) is accompanied by a health certificate corresponding to a
specimen to be drawn up in accordance withth e procedure laiddown in Article 22, signed by the official veterinarian to certifythat the result of the post mortem inspection provided for in (b)was satisfactory and that the meat has been declared fit forhuman consumption;
(d) has been cooled to a temperature of between - 1 ºC and:
(i) + 7 ºC and kept at that temperature during transportation to
a processing house within a maximum period of seven daysfrom the post mortem inspection referred to in (b), or1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 7
(1) OJ No L 33, 8. 2. 1979, p. 1. Last amended by Directive 91/72/EEC (OJ No
L 42, 16. 2. 1991, p. 27).
(2) OJ No L 363, 27. 12. 1990, p. 51.
▼B
(ii) + 1 ºC and kept at that temperature during transportation to
a processing house within a maximum period of 15 daysfrom the post-mortem inspection referred to in (b).
Meat from such unskinned wild game cannot bear the health
mark provided for in Article 3 (4) (i) unless, after skinning inthe processing house of destination, it has undergone postmortem inspection in accordance withAnnex I, Ch apter V, andhas been declared fit for human consumption by the official
veterinarian.
Article 6
Member States shall ensure that:
— wild game processing houses which do not meet the standards laid
down in Annex I, Chapter I, and which are not covered by the dero-
gations provided for in Article 8 cannot be approved in accordance
with Article 7 and that products from such establishments do notbear the health mark provided for in Annex I, Chapter VII andcannot be the subject of trade,
— wild game which does not meet the requirements of Article 3
cannot be the subject of trade or be imported from third countries,
— offal of wild game declared fit for human consumption cannot be
the subject of trade unless it has undergone appropriate treatmentin accordance withCouncil Directive 77/99/EEC on h ealthproblems affecting intra-Community trade in meat products(
1).
Article 7
1. EachMember State sh all draw up a list of approved wild game
processing houses, each having a veterinary approval number. MemberState may approve, for the processing of wild game, establishmentsapproved in accordance withDirective 64/433/EEC and 71/118/EEC,provided that such establishments are equipped to process wild gamemeat and that they work in conditions ensuring compliance with the
hygiene rules. Member States shall send this list to the other Member
States and to the Commission.
A Member State shall not approve a wild game processing house
unless it is satisfied that it complies with this Directive.
Where hygiene is found to be inadequate and where the measures
provided for in Annex I, Chapter V (5), second subparagraph haveproved insufficient to remedy the situation, the competent authorityshall temporarily suspend approval.
If the operator or manager of the wild game processing house does not
make good the shortcomings noted within the period fixed by thecompetent authority, the latter shall withdraw approval.
The Member State in question shall take account of the conclusions of
any check carried out in accordance with Article 12. The other Member
States and the Commission shall be informed of the suspension or
withdrawal of approval.
2. The operator or manager of the wild game processing house must,
in accordance with paragraph 4, conduct regular checks on the generalhygiene of conditions of production in his establishment, inter alia, bymeans of microbiological controls.
Checks must cover utensils, fittings and machinery at all stages of
production and, if necessary, products.
The operator or manager of the wild game processing house must
inform the official veterinarian or the Commission's veterinary expertsof the nature, frequency and results of the checks conducted to thisend, together with the name of the investigating laboratory if need be.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 8
(1) OJ No L 26, 31. 1. 1977, p. 85 and for the consolidated enacting terms, OJ
No L 57, 2. 3. 1992, p. 4. Last amended and updated by Directive 92/5/EEC
(OJ No L 57, 2. 3. 1992, p. 1).
▼B
The nature of the checks, their frequency, as well as the sampling
methods and the methods for bacteriological examination shall beestablished in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 22.
3. The operator or manager of the wild game processing house must
establisha staff training programme enabling workers to comply with
conditions of hygienic production adapted to the production structure.
The official veterinarian responsible for the wild game processing
house must be involved in the planning and implementation of thatprogramme.
4. Inspection and supervision of wild game processing houses shall
be carried out under the responsibility of the official veterinarian, whomay be assisted by auxiliaries in accordance withArticle 9 of Directive64/433/EEC. The official veterinarian must at all times have freeaccess to all parts of processing houses in order to ensure that this
Directive is being complied with and, where there is doubt as to the
origin of meat or killed wild game, to relevant documents which enablehim to trace the hunting area of origin.
The official veterinarian must regularly analyse the results of the
checks provided for in paragraph 2. He may, on the basis of thisanalysis, conduct further microbiological examinations at all stages ofproduction or on the products.
The result of these analyses shall be written up in a report, the conclu-
sions and recommendations of which shall be notified to the operator
or manager of the establishment, who shall rectify the shortcomings
noted witha view to improving h ygiene.
Article 8
1. Member States may, until 31 December 1996, authorize wild
game processing houses which, on the date on which this Directive is
notified, have not been judged to comply with the conditions for
approval, to derogate from some of the requirements laid down inAnnex I provided that meat from such establishments bears the nationalmark.
2. Derogations as referred to in paragraph1 may be granted only to
processing houses which have, before 1 April 1993, submitted an appli-cation for a derogation to the competent authority.
This application must be accompanied by a work plan and programme
indicating the period within which it would be possible for the proces-sing house to comply with the requirements referred to in paragraph 1.
3. Member States shall communicate to the Commission before 1
October 1992 the criteria which they have adopted to determine
whether an establishment or category of establishments is covered by
the provisions of this Article.
Article 9
Member States shall entrust to a central service or body the tasks of
collecting and making use of the results of the post-mortem inspection
carried out by the official veterinarian as regards the diagnosis ofdiseases communicable to man.
Whereas such a disease is diagnosed, the results of the specific case
shall be communicated as soon as possible to the competent veterinaryauthorities responsible for supervision of the hunting area where thewild game in question originated.
Member States shall submit to the Commission information on certain
diseases and particularly cases where diseases communicable to manhave been diagnosed.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 9
▼B
The Commission acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 22, shall adopt detailed rules for implementing this Article, andin particular:
— the frequency with which information must be submitted to the
Commission,
— the type of information,— the disease to which the collection of information is to apply,— procedures for collecting and using information.
Article 10
1. Member States shall ensure that a survey of the health of wild
game is performed in hunting areas on their territories at regular inter-vals.
2. To this end a central service or body shall be entrusted with the
task of collecting and using the results of the health inspections carriedout in accordance with this Directive, where diseases communicable to
man or to animals or the presence of residues in excess of permitted
levels are diagnosed.
3. Where a disease or condition as referred to in paragraph 2 is diag-
nosed, the survey results relating to the specific case shall becommunicated as soon as possible to the competent authority respon-sible for supervision of the hunting area.
4. Depending on the epizootic situation, the competent authority
shall carry out specific tests on wild game in order to detect thepresence of the diseases referred to in Annex I to Council Directive82/894/EEC of 21 December 1982 on the notification of animaldiseases within the Community(
1).
The presence of these diseases shall be communicated to the Commis-
sion and to the other Member States in accordance with the said
Directive.
Article 11
2. Taking into account the results of the monitoring referred to in
paragraph 1 and in Article 10 (4), Member States shall ensure that
wild game and wild game meat from hunting areas implicated by the
monitoring is excluded from trade.
3. The Commission shall adopt detailed rules for implementing this
Article in accordance withth e procedure laid down in Article 22.
Article 12
Veterinary experts from the Commission may, in so far as is necessary
for the uniform application of this Directive and in cooperation withthe competent national authorities, make on-site checks. In particular,
they may verify by checking a representative percentage of wild game
processing houses whether the competent authorities are ensuring thatapproved processing houses are complying with this Directive. TheCommission shall inform the Member States of the results of thechecks carried out.
A Member State in whose territory a check is being carried out shall
give all the necessary assistance to the experts in carrying out their
duties.
Detailed rules for implementing this Article shall be adopted in accor-
dance withth e procedure laid down in Article 22.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 10
(1) OJ No L 378, 31. 12. 1982, p. 58. Last amended by Decision 90/134/EEC
(OJ No L 76, 22. 3. 1990, p. 23).▼M2
▼B
▼B
Article 13
1. With prejudice to the specific provisions of this Directive, the
official veterinarian or the competent authority shall, where it issuspected that veterinary legislation has not been complied with orthere is doubt as to whether wild game meat is fit for consumption,carry out any veterinary checks he or it deems appropriate.
2. Member States shall take administrative and/or penal measures to
penalize any infringement of Community veterinary legislation, inparticular where it is found that the certificates or documents drawnup do not correspond to the actual state of the wild game meat, that
identification marks do not comply with the rules, that the wild game
meat was not presented for inspection or that such meat was not usedfor the purpose originally intended.
Article 14
1. The rules laid down in Council Directive 89/662/EEC concerning
veterinary checks to be carried out in intra-Community trade with aview to the completion of the internal market shall apply in particularto the organization of and the action to be taken following the checks
carried out by the country of destination and to the safeguard measures
to be applied in relation to health problems affecting the productionand distribution of wild game meat in the territory of the Community.
2. Directive 89/662/EEC shall be amended as follows:
(a) in Annex A, the following indent shall be aded:
‘— Council Directive 92/45/EEC of 16 June 1992 on public health
and animal health problems relating to the killing of wild game
and the placing on the market of wild game meat (OJ No L268, 14. 9. 1992, p. 35).’;
(b) in Annex B, the indent ‘— wild game meat’ shall be deleted.
3. In Article 2 (d) of Directive 77/99/EEC, the following indent
shall be added:
‘— Article 2 (1) (d) of Council Directive 92/45/EEC (*), and
meeting the requirements of Articles 3 and 5,
(*) OJ No L 268, 14. 9. 1992, p. 35.’
CHAPTER III
ProvisionsapplicabletoimportsintotheCommunity
Article 15
The conditions applicable to the placing on the market of wild game
meat imported from third countries shall be at least equivalent to thoselaid down for the production and placing on the market of wild gamemeat obtained in accordance with Chapter II, excluding those in Arti-cles 6 and 8.
Article 16
1. For the purpose of uniform application of Article 15, the provi-
sions of the following paragraphs shall apply.
2. In order to be imported into the Community, wild game or wild
game meat must:
(a) come from third countries or parts of third countries from which
imports are not prohibited on animal health grounds;
(b) come from a third country on the list to be drawn up in accordance
withparagraph3 (a);
(c) be accompanied by a health certificate corresponding to a specimen
to be drawn up in accordance withth e procedure laid down inArticle 22, signed by the competent authority and certifying thatthe products meet the requirements of Chapter II or any additional1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 11
▼B
conditions or offer the equivalent guarantees referred to in para-
graph 3 (c) and come from establishments offering the guaranteesprovided for in Annex I.
3. The following shall be established in accordance with the proce-
dure laid down in Article 22:
(a) a provisional list of third countries or parts of third countries able
to provide Member States and the Commission with the conditions
and guarantees referred to in paragraph2 (c) and a list of establish -
ments for which they are able to give these guarantees.
This provisional list shall be compiled from the lists of establish-
ments approved and inspected by the competent authorities of theMember States, once the Commission has checked that they abide
by the principles and general rules laid down in this Directive;
(b) updates of that list in the light of the checks provided for in para-
graph4;
(c) the specific conditions and the equivalent guarantees relating to the
requirements of this Directive, other than those enabling meat to be
excluded from human comsumption in accordance with Article 3
(2) (d) and those of Article 5 and those laid down in Annex I,Chapters IV and V, and, as regards the trichinoscopic examinationby the digestion method, in accordance with Directive 77/96/EEC,on the understanding that such conditions and guarantees may notbe less stringent than those laid down in Chapter II, excluding
those in Articles 6 and 8.
4. Experts from the Commission and the Member States shall carry
out on-the-spot inspections to verify whether:
(a) the guarantees given by the third country regarding the conditions
of production and placing on the market can be considered equiva-
lent to those applied in the Community;
(b) the conditions of Article 18 are fulfilled.
The experts from the Member States responsible for these inspections
shall be appointed by the Commission acting on a proposal from theMember States.
These inspections shall be made on behalf of the Community, which
shall bear the cost of any expenditure in this connection. The frequencyof and procedure for these inspections shall be determined in accor-
dance withth e procedure laid down in Article 22.
5. Pending the organization of the inspections referred to in para-
graph 4, national rules applicable to inspection in third countries shall
continue to apply, subject to notification, through the Standing Veter-inary Committee, of any failure to comply withh ygiene rules foundduring these inspections.
Article 17
1. Member States shall ensure that wild game or wild game meat
covered by this Directive is imported into the Community only if it:
— is accompanied by the certificate provided for in Article 16 (1) (c),
covering public and animal health requirements issued by thecompetent authority at the time of loading,
— has satisfied the checks required by Directive 90/675/EEC.
2. Pending the establishment of detailed rules for implementing this
Article:
— the national rules applicable to imports from third countries for
which such requirements have not been adopted at Community
level shall continue to apply, provided they are not more favourable
than those laid down in Chapter II,
— imports must take place under the conditions laid down in Article
11 of Directive 90/675/EEC,1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 12
▼B
— trade in wild game or wild game meat imported in accordance with
this paragraph must be subject to the prior agreement of the countryof destination.
Article 18
The lists provided for in Article 16 (2) may include only third countries
or parts of third countries:
(a) from which imports are not prohibited as a result of the existence
of one of the diseases referred to in Annex A to the OIE list, or ofany other disease exotic to the Community, or pursuant to Articles
6, 7 and 14 of Directive 72/462/EEC(
1), or Articles 9 to 12 of
Directive 91/494/EEC;
(b) which, in view of their legislation and the organization of their
veterinary services and of their inspection services, the powers of
such services and the supervision to which they are subject, have
been recognized, in accordance withArticle 3 (2) of Directive 72/462/EEC or Article 9 (2) of Directive 91/494/EEC, as capable ofguaranteeing the implementation of their legislation in force; or
(c) the veterinary services of which are able to guarantee that health
requirements at least equivalent to those laid down in Chapter IIare being complied with.
Article 19
1. The principles and rules laid down in Directive 90/675/EEC shall
apply, withparticular reference to th e organization of and follow-up to
the inspections to be carried out by the Member States and the safe-
guard measures to be implemented.
Pending implementation of the decisions provided for in Article 8 (3)
and Article 30 of Directive 90/675/EEC, the relevant national rules forapplying Article 8 (1) and (2) of that Directive shall continue to apply,without prejudice to compliance with the principles and rules referred
to in the first subparagraph of this Article.
CHAPTER IV
Finalprovisions
Article 20
This Directive shall not affect Community rules adopted for the conser-
vation of wildlife.
Article 21
The Annexes shall be amended by the Council acting by a qualified
majority on a proposal from the Commission in particular to adaptthem to advances in technology.
Article 22
1. Where the procedure laid down in this Article is to be followed,
matters shall without delay be referred to the Standing VeterinaryCommittee (hereinafter called ‘the Committee’) set up by Decision
68/361/EEC(
2) by its Chairman, either on his own initiative or at the
request of a Member State.
2. The representative of the Commission shall submit to the
Committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The Committee shalldeliver its opinion on the draft within a time limit which the Chairmanmay lay down according to the urgency of the matter. The opinion1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 13
(1) Council Directive 72/462/EEC of 12 December 1972 on health and veter-
inary inspection problems upon importation of bovine animals and swine
and freshmeat from th ird countries (OJ No L 302, 31. 12. 1972, p. 28).
Last amended by Directive 91/497/EEC (OJ No L 268, 24. 9. 1991, p. 69).
(2) OJ No L 255, 18. 10. 1968, p. 23.
▼B
shall be delivered by the majority laid down in Article 148 (2) of the
Treaty in the case of decisions which the Council is required to adopton a proposal from the Commission. The votes of the representatives of
the Member States within the Committee shall be weighted in the
manner set out in that Article. The Chairman shall not vote.
3. (a) The Commission shall adopt the measures envisaged and imple-
ment them immediately if they are in accordance with theopinion of the Committee.
(b) If the measures envisaged are not in accordance with the opinion
of the Committee, or if no opinion is delivered, the Commissionshall without delay submit to the Council a proposal relating tothe measures to be taken. The Council shall act by a qualifiedmajority.
If, within three months from the date of referral to the Council, the
Council has not acted, the Commission shall adopt the proposed
measures save where the Council has rejected the said measures by asimple majority.
Article 23
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and
administrative provisions necessary to comply withth is Directivebefore 1 January 1994. They shall forthwith inform the Commissionthereof.
When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a refer-
ence to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference on the
occasion of their official publication. The methods of making such areference shall be laid down by the Member States.
2. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the test of
the main provisions of national law which they adopt in the fieldgoverned by this Directive.
3. The setting of the deadline for transposition into national law at 1
January 1994 shall be without prejudice to the abolition of veterinary
checks at frontiers provided for in Directive 89/662/EEC.
Article 24
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 14
▼B
ANNEX I
CHAPTER I
Generalconditionsfortheapprovalofprocessinghouses
Processing houses must have at least:1. the following rooms:
— a sufficiently large refrigerated room for reception of wild game,
— a room for inspection and, if necessary, evisceration, skinning and
plucking,
— a sufficiently large room for cutting and other preparation, in so far as
this is done by the establishment; this room must have an adequate chil-
ling facility as well as a temperature-measuring instrument,
— a room for packaging and dispatching, where these operations are
carried out in the processing house and where the conditions laid down
in Chapter VIII, point 5 of this Directive are met; if these conditions are
not met there must be a separate room for dispatching,
— sufficiently large chilling or refrigeration rooms for storing wild game
meat;
2. in rooms where meat is produced, worked on or stored and in areas and
corridors through which meat is transported:
(a) waterproof flooring which is easy to clean and disinfect, rotproof and
laid in such a way as to facilitate the draining of water; the water
must be channelled towards drains fitted with gratings and traps to
prevent odours.
However:— in the case of chilling or refrigeration rooms a device with which
water may easily be removed is sufficient,
— in the case of stores and in areas and corridors through which meat
is transported, waterproof and rotproof floorig is sufficient;
(b) smooth, durable, impermeable walls, with a light-coloured, washable
coating up to a height of at least two metres; in chilling or refrigeration
rooms and in stores the walls must be coated at least to storage height.
Wall-to-floor junctions must be rounded or similarly finished except in
stores.
However, the use of wooden walls in stores in wild game processing
houses in operation on the date of notification of this Directive does
not constitute grounds for withholding approval;
(c) doors in hard-wearing, non-corrodible material and, if of wood, with a
smoothand impermeable covering on all surfaces;
(d) insulation materials which are rotproof and odourless;
(e) adequate ventilation and good extraction of steam;
(f) adequate natural or artificial lighting which does not distort colours;
(g) a clean and easily cleaned ceiling; failing that, a roof covering with an
interior surface which fulfils these conditions;
3. (a) as near as possible to the work stations, a suffcicient number of facil-
ities for cleaning and disinfecting hands and for cleaning tools with
hot water. Taps must not be hand operable. For washing hands, these
facilities must have hot and cold running water or water premixed to a
suitable temperature, cleaning and disinfecting products and hygienic
means of drying hands;
(b) facilities for disinfecting tools, with hot water supplied at not less than
82 ºC;
4. appropriate arrangements for protection against pests suchas insects and
rodents;
5. (a) instruments and working equipment suchas cutting tables, tables with
detachable cutting surfaces, containers, conveyor belts and saws, made
of corrosion-resistant material not liable to taint meat andeasy to clean
and disinfect. Surfaces coming into, or capable of coming into, contact
withmeat, including welds and joins, must be maintained smooth . Use
of wood is forbidden except in rooms where the only meat stored is
hygienically packaged meat;
(b) corrosion-resistant fittings and equipment meeting hygiene requirements
for:
— meat handling,1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 15
▼B
— storing meat containers, in such a way that neither the meat nor the
containers come into direct contact withth e floor or walls;
(c) facilities, including suitably laid out and equipped reception and
marshalling areas, for the hygienic handling and protection of meat
during loading and unloading;
(d) special watertight non-corrodible containers, with lids and fasteners to
prevent unauthorized persons from removing things from them, for
keeping meat not intended for human consumption, or a lockable room
for such meat if the quantities are large enough to necessitate this or if
the meat is not removed or destroyed at the end of each workingday.
Where such meat is removed through conduits, these must be so
constructed and installed as to avoid any risk of contamination of the
meat;
(e) facilities for the hygienic storage of materials for wrapping and packa-
ging where such activities are carried out in the establishment;
6. refrigeration equipment to keep the internal temperature of the meat at the
levels required by this Directive. This equipment must include a system for
draining off water of condensation without any possibility of contamination
of the meat;
7. an adequate pressurized supply of potable water complying withth e para-
meters laid down in Annexes D and E to Directive 80/778/EEC. However,
a non-potable water supply is authorized in exceptional cases for steam
production, fire fighting and the cooling of refrigeration equipment,
provided that the pipes installed for this purpose preclude the use of this
water for other purposes and present no risk of contamination of meat.
Non-potable water pipes must be clearly distinguished from those used for
potable water;
8. an adequate supply of hot potable water within the meaning of Directive 80/
778/EEC(1);
9. liquid and solid disposal systems which meet hygiene requirements;
10. an adequately equipped lockable room for the exclusive use of the veter-
inary service; or, in the case of stores, suitable facilities;
11. facilities enabling the veterinary inspections provided for in this Directive to
be carried out efficiently at any time;
12. an adequate number of changing rooms with smooth, waterproof, washable
walls and floors, washbasins, sh owers and flushlavatories so equipped as
to protect the clean parts of the building from contamination.
Lavatories must not open directly onto the work rooms. Showers are unne-
cessary in cold stores receiving and storing hygienically packaged meat
only. Wash basins must have hot and cold running water or water premixed
to a suitable temperature, materials for cleaning and disinfecting the hands
and hygienic means of drying hands. Wash basin taps must not be hand or
arm-operable. There must be a sufficient number of such wash basins near
the lavatories;
13. a place and adequate facilities for cleaning and disinfecting means of trans-
port except in the case of cold stores receiving and dispatching hygienically
packaged meat only. However, these places and facilities are not compul-
sory if provisions exist requiring that means of transport be cleaned and
disinfected at officially authorized facilities;
14. a room or a secure place for the storage of detergents, disinfectants and
similar substances.
CHAPTER II
Hygieneofthestaff,premisesandequipmentintheestablishments
1. Absolute cleanliness shall be required of staff, premises and equipment.
Specifically:
(a) staff handling meat or working in rooms and areas in which meat is
handled, packaged or transported must in particular wear clean and easily
cleanable headgear and footwear, light-coloured working clothes and,
where necessary, neck shields or other protective clothing. Staff engaged
in working on or handling meat must wear clean working clothes at the
commencement of eachworking day and must renew suchcloth ing
during the day as necessary and must wash and disinfect their hands1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 16
(1) Council Directive 80/778/EEC of 15 July 1980 relating to the quality of water intended
for human consumption (OJ No L 353, 17.12.1990, p. 59).
▼B
several times during the working day and each time work is resumed.
Persons who have been in contact with infected game or infected meat
must immediately afterwards carefully wash their hands and arms with
hot water and then disinfect them. Smoking is forbidden in work rooms,
storerooms, load-in, reception, marshalling and load-out areas, and in
other areas and corridors through which wild game meat is transported;
(b) no animal may enter the establishments. Rodents, insects and other
vermin must be systematically destroyed;
(c) equipment and instruments used for working on meat shall be kept clean
and in a good state of repair. They shall be carefully cleaned and disin-
fected several times during the working day, at the end of the day's work
and before being reused when they have been soiled.
2. Premises, instruments and working equipment must not be used for purposes
other than work on fresh meat, poultry meat or game meat. The cutting of
wild game animals and wild game birds must be carried out at a different
time and the cutting room must be completely cleaned and disinfected before
being made use of again for the cutting of meat of another category.
Meat-cutting instruments must be used solely for cutting meat.
3. Implements must not be left in the meat; cleansing of meat by wiping with a
cloth or other materials, and inflation, are prohibited.
4. Meat and meat containers must not come into direct contact withth e ground.
5. Potable water must be used for all purposes. However, non-potable water
may be used in exceptional cases for steam production provided that the
pipes installed for this purpose preclude the use of this water for other
purposes and present no danger of contamination of meat. In addition, non-
potable water may be used in exceptional cases for cooling refrigeration
equipment. Non-potable water pipes must be clearly distinguished from pipes
used for potable water.
6. The spreading of sawdust or any other similar substance on the floor of the
workrooms and meat storage rooms is prohibited.
7. Detergents, disinfectants and similar substances must be used in sucha way
that instruments, working equipment and meat are not affected. Such instru-
ments and working equipment must be rinsed thoroughly with potable water
after use.
8. Persons likely to contaminate meat are prohibited from working on it and
handling it.
When recruited, any person working on and handling meat shall be required
to prove, by a medical certificate, that there is no medical impediment to
suchemployment. Th e medical supervision of sucha person sh all be
governed by the national legislation in force in the Member State concerned.
CHAPTER III
Hygiene in respect of the preparation of wild game and the cutting and
handlingofwildgamemeat
1. Wild game must undergo the following operations immediately after killing:
— large wild game must be drawn and eviscerated,
— the thoracic viscera, even if detached from the carcase, and the liver and
the spleen, must accompany the game and be identified in such a way
that the official veterinarian can carry out the post-mortem inspection of
the vicera in conjunction with the rest of the carcase; the other abdominal
viscera must be removed and inspected on the spot. The head may be
removed as a trophy,
— small wild game may, without prejudice to the case provided for in the
third indent of Article 3 (1) (a) of this Directive, be totally or partially
eviscerated on the spot or in a processing house where the game is trans-
ported to the said house at an ambient temperature not exceeding 4 ºC
within 12 hours of being killed.
2. Wild game must be chilled immediately after the operations provided for in
paragraph 1 so that the internal temperature is + 7 ºC or lower in the case of
large game or + 4 ºC or lower in the case of small game. If the external
temperature is not sufficiently low, killed game must be moved as soon as
possible, and in any event not more than 12 hours after being killed, to a
wild game processing house or to a collection centre on the understanding
that:
— large wild game must be transported under satisfactory hygiene condi-
tions, in particular avoiding heaping and stacking, to a wild game1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 17
▼B
processing house as soon as possible after the operations provided for in
paragraph1,
— during transportation to the processing house, wild game whose viscera
have already undergone veterinary inspection must be accompanied by a
certificate issued by the veterinarian attesting to the favourable outcome
of the inspection and stating the estimated time of killing.
3. Evisceration must be carried out without undue delay upon arrival at the wild
game processing house, except in the case provided for in Article 3 (1) (d), if
it has not been carried out on the spot. The lungs, heart, liver, kidney, spleen
and mediastinum may either be detached or left attached to the carcase by
their natural connections.
4. Until the inspection has been completed, it must not be possible for carcases
and offal not inspected to come into contact withcarcases and offal already
inspected, and the removal, cutting or further treatment of the carcase shall
be forbidden.
5. It must not be possible for meat detained or declared unfit for human
consumption, stomachs, intestines and inedible by-products to come into
contact with meat declared fit for human consumption, and the former must
be placed as soon as possible in special rooms or containers located and laid
out in sucha way as to avoid any contamination of oth er meat.
6. The dressing, handling, further treatment and transport of meat, including
offal, must be performed in compliance withall h ygiene requirements.
Where such meat is packaged, the conditions of Chapter VIII must be
complied with. Packaged meat must be stored in a separate room from
exposed meat.
7. The competent authorities shall lay down specific rules applicable to inspec-
tion of trophies to be kept by the hunter.
CHAPTER IV
Requirementsforwildgamemeatintendedforcutting
1. Cutting pieces smaller than carcases, or half-carcases in the case of large
wild game, and boning are authorized only in processing houses approved
in accordance withArticle 7 of th is Directive or in accordance withDirec-
tives 64/433/EEC and 71/118/EEC and equipped withskinning and cutting
rooms.
2. The operator or manager of the establishment must facilitate operations for
supervising the plant, in particular any handling which is considered neces-
sary, and must place the necessary facilities at the disposal of the
supervisory service. In particular, he must be able on request to inform the
official veterinarian responsible for supervision of the source of meat brought
into his establishment or the origin of killed wild game.
3. (a) Wild game meat must be brought into the work rooms as and when it is
needed. As soon as it is cut, and where appropriate packaged, the meat
must be transferred to an appropriate chilling or refrigeration room.
(b) Wild game meat entering a cutting room must be checked and, if neces-
sary, trimmed. The work station for these operations must be equipped
withsuitable facilities and adequate ligh ting.
(c) During cutting, boning, wrapping and packaging the internal temperature
of the wild game meat must be kept at a constant + 7 ºC or lower in the
case of large wild game or + 4 ºC or lower in the case of small wild
game. During cutting, the temperature of the cutting room must not
exceed + 12 ºC.
(d) Cutting must be carried out in sucha way as to avoid any soiling of th e
wild game meat. Splinters of bone and clots of blood must be removed.
Meat obtained from cutting and not intended for human consumption
must be collected in the facilities, containers or rooms provided for in
Chapter I, point 5 (d) as it is cut.
CHAPTER V
Post-mortemhealthinspection
1. All parts of wild game must be inspected, within 18 hours of admission to
the processing house, to determine whether the wild game meat is fit for
human consumption; in particular, the body cavity must be opened to permit
visual inspection.
2. If the official veterinarian so requires, the spinal column and the head must
be split lengthwise.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 18
▼B
3. In his post-mortem inspection, the official veterinarian must carry out:
(a) a visual inspection of the wild game and the organs belonging to it.
If the results of the visual inspection do not enable an assessment to be
made, a more extensive inspection must be carried out in a laboratory.
These more extensive inspections may be restricted to a number of
samples sufficient to assess all the game killed during a hunt;
(b) investigation of anomalies of consistency, colour or odour;
(c) palpation of organs, if he considers it necessary;
(d) an analysis of residues by sampling, particularly where there are serious
grounds for believing it to be justified.
Where a more extensive inspection is carried out on the basis of such
serious grounds, the veterinarian must wait until that inspection has
been concluded before going on to assess all the game killed during a
specific hunt, or parts of it which may be supposed, owing to the circum-
stances, to present the same anomalies;
(e) detection of characteristics indicating that the meat presents a health risk.
This applies particularly in the following cases:
(i) abnormal behaviour or disturbance of the general condition of the
live animal reported by the hunter;
(ii) presence of tumours or abcesses where they are numerous or affect
different internal organs or muscles;
(iii) arthritis, orchitis, changes in the liver or the spleen, inflammation
of the intestines or the umbilical region;
(iv) presence of foreign bodies in the body cavities, especially in the
stomach and intestines or in the urine, where the pleura or the peri-
toneum are discoloured;
(v) formation of a significant amount of gas in the gastro-intestinal
tract withdiscolouring of th e internal organs;
(vi) considerable anomalies in the colour, consistency or odour of
muscle tissues or organs;
(vii) open fractures in so far as they are not directly linked to the hunt;
(viii) emaciation and/or general or localized oedema;
(ix) signs that organs have recently adhered to the pleura and the peri-
toneum;
(x) other obvious extensive changes, such as discolouring and putre-
faction.
4. The official veterinarian must order the confiscation of any wild game meat:
— presenting lesions, apart from recent lesions stemming from the killing,
and localized malformations or anomalies, in so far as these lesions,
malformations or anomalies render the wild game meat unfit for human
consumption or dangerous to human health,
— from animals which have not been killed in accordance with national
rules on hunting,
— in respect of which the findings listed in paragraph 3 (e) were made
during post mortem inspection,
— from small wild game which has been seized in accordance with the
fourthindent of Article 3 (1) (d),
— which has been found to be infested with trichinae.
5. In the event of doubt, the official veterinarian may perform the further cuts
and inspections of the relevant parts of the animals necessary in order to
reacha final decision.
Where the official veterinarian finds that the hygiene rules laid down in this
Chapter are clearly being breached or that adequate health inspection is being
hampered, he shall be empowered to take action with regard to the use of
equipment or premises and to take any measure required, up to and including
an interruption of the production process.
6. The results of the post-mortem health inspections shall be recorded by the
official veterinarian and, where diseases communicable to man as referred
to in the third indent of Article 3 (1) (d) or Article 9 are diagnosed, commu-
nicated to the competent veterinary authorities responsible for supervision of
the hunting area from which the wild game originated, as well as to the
person responsible for the said area.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 19
▼B
CHAPTER VI
Health controlofcutwildgamemeatandstoredwildgamemeat
Superverision by the official veterinarian must include the following tasks:
— supervision of the entry and exit of meat,
— health inspection of meat held in processing houses,
— health inspection of meat prior to cutting and when it leaves the processing
houses referred to in the second indent,
— supervision of the cleanliness of the premises, facilities and instruments
provided for in Chapter I, and of staff hygiene, including their clothing,
— any other supervision which the official veterinarian considers necessary for
ensuring compliance withth is Directive.
CHAPTER VII
Healthmarking
1. Health marking must be carried out under the responsibility of the official
veterinarian, who shall keep for that purpose:
(a) instruments for meat health marking, to be handed over to the assistant
staff only at the actual time of marking and for the lenght of time neces-
sary for this purpose;
(b) labels and wrappers where these already bear one of the marks or of the
seals referred to in paragraph 2. These labels, wrappers and seals shall be
handed over in the required number by the official veterinarian to the
assistant staff at the time when they are to be used.
2. (a) The health mark must be:
(i) a pentagonal mark bearing, in perfectly legible characters, the
following information:
— on the upper part the full name or the initial letter or letters of
the country of dispatch in capitals: for the Community, the
following letters: ►A1AT/◄B/D/DK/EL/ESP/F/ ►A1FI/
◄IRL/I/L/NL/P/ ►A1SE/◄UK,
— in the centre, the veterinary approval number of the wild game
processing house or, where appropriate, the cutting premises,
— on the lower part, one of the following sets of initials: CEE,
EØF, EWG, EOK, EEC, EEG ►A1, ETY◄, or initials identi-
fying the third country of origin.
The height of the letters and the figures must comply with the
requirements of Annex I, Chapter XI, of Directive 64/433/EEC in
the case of large wild game, and of Annex I, Chapter III, of Direc-
tive 91/495/EEC in the case of small wild game;
(ii) a pentagonal stamp sufficiently large to contain the information
listed in point (a);
(b) The material used for marking must meet all hygiene requirements and
the information referred to in point (a) must appear on it in perfectly
legible form.
(c) (i) The health marking referred to in point (a) must be applied:
— to exposed carcases by means of a seal containing the informa-
tion listed in point (a),
— on or visibly beneathwrappers or oth er packaging of packed
carcases,
— on or visibly beneathwrappers or oth er packaging of parts of
carcases or offal wrapped in small quantities.
(ii) The health marking referred to in point (a) (ii) must be applied to
large packaging.
CHAPTER VIII
Wrappingandpackagingofwildgamemeat
1. (a) Packaging (for example packing cases, paperboard boxes) must fulfil all
rules of hygiene, and in particular:
— must not alter the organoleptic characteristics of the meat,
— must not be capable of transmitting to the meat substances harmful to
human health,
— must be strong enoughto ensure effective protection of th e meat
during transportation and handling.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 20
▼B
(b) Packaging must not be reused for wild game meat unless it is made of
corrosion-resistant materials which are easy to clean and has been
previously cleaned and disinfected.
2. Where cut wild game meat is wrapped, this operation must be carried out
immediately after cutting and in accordance withh ygiene requirements.
Suchwrapping must be transparent and colourless and must also fulfil th e
conditions of the first and second indents of paragraph 1 (a); it may not be
used again for wrapping wild game meat.
3. Wrapped wild game meat must be packaged.4. However, when wrapping fulfils all the protective conditions of packaging it
need not be transparent and colourless and placing in a second container is
not necessary provided that the other conditions of paragraph 1 are fulfilled.
5. Cutting, boning, wrapping and packaging operations may take place in the
same room subject to the following conditions:
(a) the room must be sufficiently large and so arranged that the hygiene of
the operations is assured;
(b) the packaging and wrapping must be enclosed in a sealed protective
cover immediately after manufacture; this cover must be protected from
damage during transport to the establishment and stored under hygienic
conditions in a separate room in the establishment;
(c) the rooms for storing packaging material must be dust and vermin-free
and have no air connection with rooms containing substances which
might contaminate meat. Packaging must not be stored on the floor;
(d) packaging must be assembled under hygienic conditions before being
brought into the room;
(e) packaging must be hygienically brought into the room and used without
delay. It must not be handled by staff handling meat;
(f) immediately after packaging the meat must be placed in the storage room
provided.
6. The packaging referred to in this chapter may contain only cut wild game
meat from the same animal species.
CHAPTER IX
Healthcertificate
The original copy of the health certificate which must accompany wild game
meat during transportation to the place of destination must be issued by an offi-
cial veterinarian at the time of loading.
The certificate must correspond in form and content to the specimen in Annex II
and be drawn up in the official language or languages of the place of destination
at least. It must consist of a single sheet of paper.
CHAPTER X
Storage
After post mortem inspection, wild game meat must be chilled or frozen and
kept at a temperature which must not at any time exceed 4 ºC in the case of
small wild game and 7 ºC in the case of large wild game if chilled or − 12 ºC
if frozen.
CHAPTER XI
Transport
1. Wild game meat must be dispatched in such a way that during transport it is
protected from anything liable to contaminate it or to impair it, having regard
to the duration and conditions of transport and to the means of transport
employed. In particular, vehicles used for this transport must be equipped in
such a way as to ensure that the temperatures laid down in Chapter X are not
exceeded.
2. Wild game meat may not be transported in a vehicle or container which is
not clean and has not been disinfected.
3. Carcases, or half carcases, excluding frozen meat packaged in accordance
with hygiene requirements, must be suspended throughout transport except
in the case of air transport.
Other cuts must be suspended or placed on supports if not packaged or
contained in corrosion-resistant containers. Suchsupports, packaging or1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 21
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containers must meet hygiene requirements and, in particular as regards
packaging, the provisions of this Directive. They may only be reused after
cleaning and disinfection.
4. The official veterinarian must ensure before dispatch that transport vehicles
and loading conditions meet the hygiene requirements of this Chapter.1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 22
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ANNEX II
1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 23
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1992L0045 — EN — 01.07.1997 — 003.001 — 24