WRITTEN QUESTION P-2853/00

by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(5 September 2000)

Subject: BSE in Germany

In July the Scientific Steering Committee designated Germany a risk country in regard to BSE. Germany classifies itself as BSE-free. So far there has been no scientific evidence to support this claim.

1. Is the Commission aware that there is no scientific evidence that Germany is free of BSE?

(a) What action will the Commission take against Germany's obviously false declaration?

(b) What action does the Commission have in mind, particularly in view of the findings of the Scientific Committee, to correct this false and misleading claim?

2. Is the Commission aware that with the exception of the Land of North Rhine-Westphalia, virtually no BSE checks are carried out in Germany?

3. Is the Commission aware that some Länder, for example, Bavaria, have deliberately been applying the test on a selective basis?

4. Does the Commission agree that the deliberate failure to apply the test, in order not to publicise any instances of BSE, is an infringement of the precautionary principle and it is unacceptable that consumers are at considerable risk as a result?

5. What action will the Commission take against the lack of checks and the deliberate endangering of consumers?

6. Does the Commission intend to support the introduction of BSE tests in German slaughterhouses, despite the high-handed behaviour of bureaucrats? If not, why not?

7. What guarantees are there that BSE-infected meat is not available in butchers' shops and cafés and restaurants?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(10 October 2000)

The Commission is not aware of any evidence supporting the allegations of false declarations and deliberate endangering of consumers by the German authorities. The epidemiological situation in Germany, with respect to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), must be viewed in the light of the opinion of the scientific steering committee (SSC) of 6 July 2000. Following an analysis of the available information on the key risk factors, the SSC came to the conclusion that the presence of BSE could not be excluded in any Member State. It also concluded that in Germany, Italy and Spain the presence of BSE in the national cattle herds is likely, even if hitherto no domestic cases had been identified.

This opinion and the supporting country reports expanding in detail on the reasons behind the evaluation have since been published on internet. It must be understood that this opinion of the SSC, being independent scientific advice, is not a formal legal act. Accordingly it is not opportune to consider action against countries having a different perception of their geographic BSE risk.

The Commission, for its part, adopted as a precautionary measure Decision 2000/418/EC regulating the use of material presenting risks as regards transmissible spongiform encephalopathies and amending Decision 94/474/EC(1). It did so in view of BSE cases continuing to occur in the Community, even in Member States that have not identified native cases in the past, and the repeated statements of the SSC recommending the exclusion of specified risk materials (SRMs) from food and feed chains. This decision applies also to Germany and will require, from 1 October 2000, a range of specified risk materials.

Community legislation on surveillance for the presence of BSE, has been in place since the summer of 1998. In addition, the obligation to test a considerable random number of dead-on-farm and emergency slaughtered cattle was adopted by the Commission on 5 June 2000 by Decision 2000/374/EC amending Decision 98/272/EC on epidemio-surveillance for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies(2). An important objective of this Decision is to screen a statistically significant number of cattle that are most likely to harbour detectable levels of BSE. This will allow for a better assessment of the epidemiological situation in the Member States. This obligation enters into force from 1 January 2001 and applies also to Germany. The results, which will be closely followed by the Commission, will provide valuable information on the extent of BSE in the Member States. The German authorities have now informed the Commission that they intend to carry out a much higher number of tests than required under the Commission decision.

On a more general level, the Food and veterinary office (FVO) of the Commission carries out regular missions assessing the application of BSE controls on-the-spot in all Member States. The evidence produced in the course of these missions formed an integral part of the scientific SSC evaluation mentioned above. In the framework of a round of missions assessing the BSE epidemio-surveillance system in all Member States the FVO will conduct a mission in September 2000 visiting several German Länder. A report on this inspection will be made available to the Parliament and published on the internet.

The Commission does agree that selective non-application of BSE tests in order not to detect BSE-cases, to which the Honourable Member refers, would indeed raise serious concern, should it happen. It would hide a serious consumer health risk and be a breach of Community legislation. However, the Commission has no information indicating that this unacceptable behaviour has taken place in Germany.

(1) OJ L 158, 29.7.2000, p. 76.

(2) OJ L 135, 8.6.2000, p. 27.