Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the "Proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 91/68/EEC as regards reinforcement of controls on movements of ovine and caprine animals"

(COM(2002) 504 final - 2002/0218 (CNS))

(2003/C 85/10)

On 9 October 2002 the Council decided to consult the European Economic and Social Committee, under Article 95 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned proposal.

The Specialised Section for Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 13 November 2002. The rapporteur was Mr Fakas.

At its 395th plenary session on 11 and 12 December 2002 (meeting of 11 December), the European Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 97 votes to 1, with 5 abstentions.

1. Introduction

1.1. In the middle of the 1960s the Council adopted, based on a proposal of the Commission, Directive 64/432/EEC on animal health problems affecting intra-Community trade in bovine animals and swine; this was subsequently updated and amended by Directive 97/12/EC in order to take account of the new requirements created by the single European market.

1.2. A corresponding, or at least equivalent, system for the transport of sheep and goats within the EEC was not adopted at that time; nor was it in the 1970s or 1980s, because of the limited movement of sheep and goats within the EU, but also because of the absence of a common regime in this sector until the beginning of the 1980s.

1.3. The lack of such legislation first became noticeable when intra-Community trade in live sheep and goats increased, mainly because of the creation of a common policy for sheep meat and goat meat in 1981, the EEC's progressive enlargement to include new countries with a sizeable number of sheep and goats - namely Greece, Spain and Portugal - but also because of the operation of the single market from 1991 onwards.

1.4. Thus the start of the 1990s saw the adoption of Directive 91/68/EEC on "animal health conditions governing intra-Community trade in ovine and caprine animals", corresponding to the conditions laid down by Directive 64/432/EEC on bovine animals and swine, but without a precise equivalence between the two Directives.

1.5. The differences between these two Directives can be summed up as relating to approved assembly centres and their facilities, inspections, and the conditions governing movement of the animals.

1.6. The relevant provisions on sheep and goats were not comprehensively updated in the 1990s, despite the fact that the Community acquis was constantly extended to include animal health conditions for intra-Community trade in animals, animal welfare and the traceability to the point of origin in the event of emergencies.

1.7. Strong pressure for making the health conditions for the movement of sheep and goats equivalent to those for bovine animals and swine developed during the foot-and-mouth crisis of 2001, in which sheep and goats were of major epidemiological importance. They are susceptible to infection, may develop a carrier state as do other ruminants. and frequently display only very mild clinical signs easily overlooked and in many cases masked by similar symptoms of different etiology.

1.8. During the 2001 FMD epidemic the Commission adopted specific Decisions restricting the dispatch from infected Member States or regions thereof of live animals of susceptible species, their germinal products and products derived form such animals. In addition and as a matter of precaution the Commission also adopted right from the beginning restrictions on the movement within and between FMD-free Member States of animals of susceptible species. On 24 April 2001 Commission Decision 2001/327/EC concerning restrictions to the movement of animals of susceptible species with regard to foot-and-mouth disease was adopted, which will remain in force at least until 31 December 2002. The latter Decision includes provisions on reinforced controls on intra-Community trade in sheep and goats and the use of staging points established for animal welfare reasons.

1.9. The proposed amendment of Directive 91/68/EEC, which is in line with the provisions of Decision 2001/327/EC, arose from the need for a complete, permanent and long-term response to the problems arising from dangerous epizootic diseases during the transport of sheep and goats, and for consolidation of piecemeal legislation created during the foot-and-mouth crisis as emergency measures for dealing with it.

2. The new legislation

2.1. The proposal involves replacing parts of articles, and in some cases whole articles, of Directive 91/68/EEC which governs:

- the approved assembly centres and their facilities;

- inspections;

- marking, registration and identification of animals;

- time taken to transport animals in the intra-Community market;

- mode of transport;

- the minimum period for which animals should have remained on a single holding of origin, thus excluding frequent movements of animals between holdings;

- limitations on the time when new animals can be introduced into the holding of origin before dispatch for export.

2.2. The assembly centres and their installations must be approved and must correspond to those for bovine animals and swine in terms of infrastructure, hygiene, organisation and management.

2.3. The duration of transport for trade purposes may not exceed six days, except for transport by sea and allowing for the resting time spent in a staging point in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1255/97.

2.4. The animals may transit through only one approved assembly centre, in the Member State of origin, but animals for slaughter may in addition also pass through one approved centre in a Member State of transit.

2.5. In the case of sheep and goats for breeding and fattening, the animals must remain for at least 30 days, or since birth if less than 30 days old, on the same holding of origin before being sent to another Member State.

2.6. No sheep and goats may be introduced into the holding of origin for at least 21 days of that mandatory residence period, nor may any biungulate animal imported from a third country be introduced into the holding during the 30 days before loading, unless the introduced animal has been completely isolated.

3. General comments

3.1. The EESC notes that the proposed amendment aims mainly to update and upgrade the legislation on health checks in intra-Community trade in sheep and goats, in line with the Community acquis created in the 1990s on animal health conditions for intra-Community trade in bovine animals and swine. This updating is regarded as necessary, since the Directive which is to be amended does not refer to Directive 92/102/EEC on the identification and registration, of animals, despite the fact that it has been in force and applied since 1992; nor does it refer to Directive 91/628/EEC and Regulation (EC) No 1255/97, which are regarded as conditions on welfare during the transport of animals in intra-Community trade.

3.2. The EESC takes the view that, apart from the formal matter of adapting the relevant legislation to the constantly developing Community acquis, control of the movement of sheep and goats within the EU should be enhanced and harmonised on a uniform basis, in the light of experience and lessons drawn from the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak of 2001. It recalls that, at that time, pressures developed in intra-Community trade in sheep and goats, because they were thought to be principal carriers of the disease.

3.3. Similarly, the planned enlargement to include certain CEECs necessitates a review of the system of health conditions for animals in intra-Community trade.

3.4. At all events, the EESC notes that the amendments aim to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease and other infectious disease through checks on the movement and handling of animals susceptible to such diseases. For that reason it would be useful to make it clear that the amendment does not create measures to deal with a risk in the context of the legislation on food safety, since foot-and-mouth disease is not a threat to public health.

4. Specific comments

4.1. In the proposed amendment, in line with existing definitions in other Directives, assembly centres mean any site or place, including holdings and markets, where animals from different holdings of origin are grouped to form consignments and which must be approved for intra-Community trade and be under veterinary supervision.

4.2. It is natural for the upgraded provisions contained in the amendment on facilities to require the creation in the existing assembly centres of infrastructure and organisational arrangements which take some time to complete, both in importing and in exporting countries.

4.3. Transposing the Directive into Member States' national law and ensuring the availability of the necessary veterinarians, databases and administrative infrastructure presuppose lengthy preparation, going beyond the deadline laid down for compliance with the Directive (31 December 2002).

4.4. For the above reasons the EESC proposes to the Commission to consider an appropriate transitional period for the transpositions of the Directive into national legislation of Member States and adaptation to the new system laid down for sheep and goats. This transitional period should take due account of the fact that Commission Decision 2001/327/EC is in force since 24 April 2001 and in its current version since March 2002. It should also take into account that trade from one holding to another holding or slaughterhouse is not impaired by lack of approved assembly centres.

4.5. The above adaptation measures are regarded by the EESC as being of exceptional importance, as in its view the top priority is the condition of uniform application of the new system in all the Member States, whether they are traditionally importing or exporting countries, so as to avoid creating technical barriers to intra-Community trade in this sector.

4.6. It is obvious that this would mean having the same level of infrastructure and services in all the countries of the EU, and equivalent arrangements for transporting animals either at the transit points or at specific centres of origin and destination.

4.7. The EESC also points out that although monitoring at such a level of detail the movement of animals at holding level before their marketing may be useful, it is difficult to apply, and there are risks of irregularities.

Brussels, 11 December 2002.

The President

of the European Economic and Social Committee

Roger Briesch