WRITTEN QUESTION E-0456/01 by Cristiana Muscardini (UEN) and Gianfranco Fini (UEN) to the Commission. Food safety, delays and connivance.
Date: 2001-02-19
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: EU office or agency, animal disease, consumer protection, food safety, health policy, infringement of EU law, public awareness campaign, veterinary inspection

C 350 E/16

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

11.12.2001

Article 4(2) on the basis of the list of pSCI. At present, SCA have not been designated and the list of the
SCI has not been adopted. However, with reference to pSCI, in particular where they include priority
habitats and species, Member States have certain obligations to act in such a way as to ensure that the
aims of the Directive are not jeopardised. Even in the absence of a Community list of protected habitats
and species, Member States are advised at least to abstain from all activities that may cause a proposed site
to deteriorate.

Should the Commission learn that Community law is being breached in the specific case, as the guardian
including possible recourse to
of the EC Treaty it will not hesitate to take all necessary measures,
infringement procedures under Article 226 (ex-Article 169) of the EC Treaty.

(1) Decision No 370 of 11 April 2000.
(2) Decision No 37 of 31 March 2000.
(3) OJ L 206, 22.7.1992.
(4) OJ C 163 E, 6.6.2001.

(2001/C 350 E/017)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0456/01

by Cristiana Muscardini (UEN) and Gianfranco Fini (UEN) to the Commission

(19 February 2001)

Subject: Food safety, delays and connivance

In the wake of the increasing alarm over (cid:145)mad cow(cid:146) disease and the legitimate fears of the public, controls
on foodstuffs have been stepped up, albeit with some delay.

The Italian press, referring to investigations conducted by the Italian anti-adulteration units (NAS), has
declared that a third of all products examined were found to be illegal in one way or another. The food
safety emergency which has been plaguing Europe for a few years has concerned primarily BSE (bovine
spongiform encephalopathy), discovered in Great Britain, dioxin-contaminated chickens bred in Belgium
this has been done in absolute contempt of
and the Netherlands, and antibiotic-reared pigs. All
Community legislation

The current state of affairs is: fresh BSE scandals in France, Germany and Italy; the production, sale and
export of banned animal meal by Great Britain and other Community countries; a delay by the
Commission in deciding which butchered parts should be withdrawn from the market and what sanctions
to impose on those countries which, because of non-existent controls or connivance, allowed the
production and sale of foodstuffs which were harmful to health and caused incurable diseases.

In the light of this, can the Commission:

1.

2.

State the reasons for the delay in setting up the Food Safety Agency which was proposed by the
Commission at the start of its term of office and supported by Parliament.

Launch a new task force to monitor the problem, pending the entry into operation of the Food Safety
Agency; report all cases of fraud and draw up a guide for all EU consumers to be promoted through
initiate
the media and to help consumers purchase foods which do not put their health at risk;
infringement proceedings against those countries,
including Italy, which have failed to fulfil their
obligations by violating the most basic consumer protection rules; propose that Member States
introduce sweeping, root-and-branch controls with specific deadlines for delivering the results. On the
basis of these results measures could be taken, also to prevent any kind of harmful substances relating
to the food sector from being surreptitiously sold in the EU or exported to third countries.

11.12.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 350 E/17

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(6 April 2001)

There has been no delay on the Commission(cid:146)s part with regard to the establishment of the European Food
Authority (EFA). On 12 January 2000, the Commission published its White Paper on food safety in which
it proposed the creation of EFA. The European Council gave its first input in June last year and the
Parliament (Bowis report) gave its opinion on 25 October 2000. Two weeks later, on 8 November 2000,
the Commission presented its formal legislative proposal to the Council and the Parliament. Following the
Nice European Council conclusions, the Commission is making the maximum effort for the EFA to be
operational at the beginning of 2002.

Independent of the establishment of the EFA, the Commission ensures that a high level of consumer health
protection is enshrined in its proposed legislation. A detailed legislative programme was set out in the
White Paper on food safety. The measures are based on the opinion of the Scientific Steering Committee
and of the eight sectorial Committees, and are of course updated to take account of evolving scientific
evidence. The Commission is putting particular emphasis on the need to ensure that the measures are
properly implemented in all Member States. To this end, as regards the bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE) issue, the inspections carried out by the Food and Veterinary Office have recently been stepped up
and particular attention will be given to a correct implementation of the feed ban and the recently adopted
measures on the removal of specified risk materials and on testing.

to the Community budget.

importance to the fight against fraud and any other illegal activity
The Commission attaches great
prejudicial
the
Commission established the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) by its EC, ECSC Decision 1999/352 of
28 April 1999 (1). Reporting of fraud cases is carried out annually by OLAF, and is available for public
consultation at
address: http://europa.eu.int/comm/anti_fraud/documents/rap-
port_en.pdf.

In order to strengthen its means of

thefollowing web-site

fraud prevention,

With a view to ensuring consumer safety, and in the interest of increasing the knowledge and awareness of
the public in this area, the Commission has been financing for three years the food safety campaign, which
is dedicated to consumers(cid:146) information and above all education on food safety.

In cases where a Member State fails to comply with a requirement of Community legislation and is not
prepared to take early action to remedy the situation, the Commission can open infringement proceedings
under Article 226 (ex-Article 169) of the EC Treaty. It has in the past opened such proceedings in many
cases of failure to respect rules for the protection of public and animal health and will continue to do so.

(1) OJ L 136, 31.5.1999.

(2001/C 350 E/018)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-0476/01

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(21 February 2001)

Subject: Freshwater fishing in Ireland: the systematic extermination of pike as a means of increasing trout

stocks

Can the Commission confirm that pike culling (cid:129) i.e. a campaign to ensure the wholesale removal of
1.
pike (Esox lucius) from lakes and rivers (cid:129) takes place in the Western Lakes Region in Ireland with a view
to maintaining and increasing trout stocks in the hope that the number of brown trout (Salmo trutta) will
thereby increase?

2.
Can the Commission confirm that one of the conditions laid down for the granting of financial aid to
fisheries projects by the EU is that a fish-stock survey must be carried out but that, according to the
scientists involved, the fish stocks recorded by the WRFB in the spring of 1996 with the aid of gillnets did
not come up with enough pike to support the theory that there were too many pike in Lough Mask, after
which pike were caught in their spawning grounds and added to the number recorded for the lake?