WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2338/96 by Hiltrud BREYER to the Commission. BSE in Great Britain
Date: 1996-08-27
Institutions: BREYER, European Parliament
Subjects: United Kingdom, animal disease, beef, export, health legislation, import, infectious disease, sheepmeat, slaughter of animals, veterinary inspection













EUR-Lex - 91996E2338 - EN






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91996E2338

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 2338/96 by Hiltrud BREYER to the Commission. BSE in Great Britain  


Official Journal C 105 , 03/04/1997 P. 0006 





WRITTEN QUESTION E-2338/96 by Hiltrud Breyer (V) to the Commission (27 August 1996)Subject: BSE in Great Britain1. What inspection measures have been adopted in Great Britain to ensure that no infected material enters production in Great Britain or the other EU states?2. What are the production figures for beef in Great Britain?3. What are the export and import figures for beef for Great Britain?4. What quantities of beef has Great Britain exported during the last ten years and to which countries?5. To what extent have rendering plants in Great Britain been brought into line with EU standards?6. How are sheep infected with scrapie disposed of in the rendering plants?Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission (4 December 1996)1. Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) is a notifiable disease in the United Kingdom. Animals suspected of being affected by BSE are killed under official control and their carcasses are transported under official supervision, accompanied by a certificate, to special incineration plants where they are burnt. The incinerators are under strict official veterinary control.In addition, all parts of bovine animals which are more than 30 months old at the time of slaughter, except hides, are also destroyed under official control.For bovine animals under 30 months old at the time of slaughter, official controls exist to ensure that certain tissues and organs which are considered to be of high risk for the transmission of BSE (specified risk material, or SRM) are removed from carcases at slaughter and from other dead animals. This material is also destroyed in designated plants under official control.The dispatch of potentially infective material from bovine animals to other Member States and third countries was prohibited by Commisison Decision 96/239/EC ((OJ L 78, 28. 3.1996. )).The Commission has carried out inspection in the United Kingdom to check on the effectiveness of these control measures. An inspection made in May 1996 revealed some deficiencies, particularly in view of the complexity of the measures. Subsequent inspections, in July and September, indicated that the situation had improved.2, 3 and 4. The Commission is sending this information directly to the Honourable Member and to the Secretariat general of the Parliament.5. The Commission is collecting the necessary information to enable it to reply to this question and will forward it directly to the Honourable Member and to the Secretariat general of the Parliament.6. Under Directive 90/667/EEC ((OJ L 363, 27.12.1990, as last amended by the Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden. )), carcasses of sheep infected with scrapie are classified as high risk material. For this reason they must either be processed in a high-risk processing plant approved by the Member State in accordance with Article 4(1) of the Directive or be disposed of by burning or burial.