COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION of 1 March 1996 concerning a coordinated programme of inspections in 1996 to ensure compliance with maximum levels of pesticide residues in and on certain products of plant origin, including fruit and vegetables (96/199/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Directive 90/642/EEC of 27 November 1990 on the fixing of maximum levels for pesticide residues in and on certain products of plant origin, including fruit and vegetables (1), as last amended by Directive 95/61/EC (2), and in particular Article 4 (3) thereof,

After consulting the Standing Committee on Plant Health,

Whereas Article 4 (2) of Directive 90/462/EEC requires the Member States to send to the Commission by 1 August 1995 all necessary information on the implementation during 1994 of their national programmes of inspection to ensure compliance with maximum levels of pesticide residues set in Annex II to the said Directive; whereas, nevertheless, it has not been possible for all Member States to formally submit their national reports by this date;

Whereas Article 4 (1) of Directive 90/462/EEC requires Member States to draw up forward programmes laying down the nature and frequency of the inspections to be carried out to ensure compliance with the established list of maximum levels of pesticides residues; whereas Commission recommendation 95/156/EC of 8 March 1995, concerning a coordinated programme of inspections in 1995 to ensure compliance with maximum levels of pesticide residues in and on certain products of plan origin, including fruit and vegetables (3), recommended the Member States to send to the Commission by 1 September 1995 their intended national monitoring programmes for 1996; whereas nevertheless, it has not been possible for all Member States to formally submit their intended national monitoring programmes for 1996 by this date;

Whereas Annex II of Directive 90/642/EEC has been completed by lists of maximum residue levels for certain pesticides by Council Directive 93/58/EEC (4), by Council Directive 94/30/EC (5) and by Council Directive 95/38/EC (6), to be implemented by the Member States not later than 1 July 1996 and has been amended by Council Directive 95/61/EC, to be implemented by the Member States not later than 31 October 1996; whereas the harmonized maximum levels of pesticide residues set out in Annex II should therefore be subject to the national and coordinated programmes of inspections in 1996;

Whereas the amount of information made available to the Commission has not been sufficient to permit a complete overview of the Member States' pesticide residues monitoring activities during 1994 or to allow a comprehensive evaluation of the Member States' monitoring intentions for 1996; whereas, nevertheless, sufficient information is available to coordinate a programme of specific pesticides/product combinations at Community level; whereas examination of a systematic statistical approach to numbers of samples to be taken in the specific coordinated exercise has not been completed;

Whereas it remains necessary to recommend general basic arrangements for the inspections for pesticide residues to be carried out by the Member States during 1996 in order to ensure compliance with the mandatory maximum levels of pesticide residues and to contribute to the completion and operation of the internal market;

Whereas it is important that information on current national quality assurance measures applied to sampling and analyses of pesticide residue levels is made available by the Member States as a basis for further discussion;

Whereas it would also be helpful for the establishment of future recommendations for the Commission to be informed in advance of the Member States' forward programmes for 1997 for the monitoring of maximum levels of pesticide residues provided for by Directive 90/642/EEC;

Whereas information on the results of monitoring programmes and details of intended national monitoring programmes are particularly appropriate for treatment, storage and transmission by electronic/informatic methods; whereas formats have been developed for supply in diskette form to the Member States by the Commission; whereas Member States should therefore be able to send their reports for 1995 and intended national monitoring programmes for 1997 to the Commission in the standard format; whereas, however, it should be noted that the electronic/informatic treatment, storage and transmission of data is currently under study by the Member States and the Commission;

Whereas the inspections and check sampling by Member States to ensure compliance with the maximum levels of pesticide residue set out in the list referred to in Article 1 (1) of Directive 90/642/EEC should be carried out in accordance with the requirements of Commission Directive 79/700/EEC of 24 July 1979 establishing Community methods of sampling for the official control of pesticide residues in and on fruit and vegetables (7), Council Directive 85/591/EEC of 20 December 1985 concerning the introduction of Community methods of sampling and analysis for the monitoring of foodstuffs intended for human consumption (8), Council Directives 89/397/EEC of 14 June 1989 on the official control of foodstuffs (9) and Council Directive 93/99/EEC of 29 October 1993 on the subject of additional measures concerning the official control of foodstuffs (10),

HEREBY RECOMMENDS THE MEMBER STATES TO:

1. as a priority criterion, monitor products from a significant proportion of the groups of products set out in Annex I to Directive 90/642/EEC;

2. as a priority criterion, take a minimum number of samples reflecting production, consumption and importation into the Community of each product regularly throughout 1996 or during the marketing season of the product, with clearly recorded origin and stage of trade or marketing;

3. as a priority criterion, analyse for residues of as many pesticides listed in Annex II to Directive 90/642/EEC as is possible, bearing in mind the analytical methods employed;

4. as a priority criterion, draw up a general report on the current application of their quality assurance measures applied to sampling and analyses of pesticide residues, for information, at the same time as the report referred to in recommendation 6;

5. as a specific exercise for 1996, sample and analyse for the product/pesticide residue combinations set out in Annex I, on the basis of a target number of 30 samples of each product, reflecting as appropriate, national, Community and third country shares of the Member State's market and report the results, including analytical methods used and quality assurance measures, by 1 July 1997 if possible, but at the latest by 1 August 1997;

6. by 1 July 1996 if possible, but at the latest by 1 August 1996, send to the Commission all the information as required by Article 4 (2) of Directive 90/642/EEC and, in particular, report the results of the monitoring exercise 1995 concerning pesticides listed in Annex II to Directive 90/642/EEC using, as a far as possible, the model report forms as set out in Annex II to this recommendation (in electronic/informatic form if possible); and

7. by 1 September 1996, send to the Commission their intended national monitoring programme for the year 1997 using, as far as possible, the model forms as set out in Annex III (in electronic/informatic form if possible).

Done at Brussels, 1 March 1996.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ No L 350, 14. 12. 1990, p. 71.

(2) OJ No L 292, 7. 12. 1995, p. 27.

(3) OJ No L 103, 6. 5. 1995, p. 38.

(4) OJ No L 211, 23. 8. 1993, p. 6.

(5) OJ No L 189, 23. 7. 1994, p. 70.

(6) OJ No L 197, 22. 8. 1995, p. 14.

(7) OJ No L 207, 15. 8. 1979, p. 26.

(8) OJ No L 372, 31. 12. 1985, p. 50.

(9) OJ No L 186, 30. 6. 1989, p. 23.

(10) OJ No L 290, 24. 11. 1993, p. 14.

ANNEX I

MRLs to be monitored in the specific exercise for 1996 set out in point 5 of the recommendation

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ANNEX II A

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ANNEX II B

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ANNEX II C

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ANNEX III A

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ANNEX III B

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