2005/598/EC: Commission Decision of 2 August 2005 prohibiting the placing on the market of products derived from bovine animals born or reared within the United Kingdom before 1 August 1996 for any purpose and exempting such animals from certain control and eradication measures laid down in Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 (notified under document number C(2005) 2916)   (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2005-08-02
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: United Kingdom, animal product, bovine spongiform encephalopathy, cattle, health legislation, health risk, marketing restriction, veterinary legislation

L 204/22

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

5.8.2005

COMMISSION DECISION

of 2 August 2005

prohibiting the placing on the market of products derived from bovine animals born or reared
within the United Kingdom before 1 August 1996 for any purpose and exempting such animals
from certain control and eradication measures laid down in Regulation (EC) No 999/2001

(notified under document number C(2005) 2916)

(Only the English text is authentic)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2005/598/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

(4)

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 laying down
rules for the prevention, control and eradication of certain
transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (1), and in particular
the fifth subparagraph of Article 12(1), Articles 13(3) and 16(7)
and Article 23 thereof,

Whereas:

The placing on the market of the hides should meet the
requirements of Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 3 October
2002 laying down health rules concerning animal by-
products not intended for human consumption (2), and
of Commission Regulation (EC) No 878/2004 of 29
April 2004 laying down transitional measures
in
accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 for
certain animal by-products classified as Category 1 and
2 materials and intended for technical purposes (3). Since
no restrictions apply on milk and milk-based products
under Regulation (EC) No 999/2001, milk and milk-
based products should also be excluded from the prohi-
bition for the placing on the market.

(1)

(2)

(3)

The opinion of the Scientific Panel on biological hazards
of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) of 21
April 2004 on the scientific justification for proposing
amendments to the United Kingdom Date Based Export
Scheme (DBES) and to the Over Thirty Months (OTM)
rule, concludes that cattle born or reared in the United
Kingdom before 1 August 1996 should be kept out of
the food and feed chains, because of the higher bovine
spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)
in this
group. For cattle born after
the opinion
concludes that the BSE risk to consumers is in a range
comparable with that in other Member States. From 1
August 1996 all mammalian meat and bone meal was
banned from feed to all farmed animals in the United
Kingdom.

that date,

incidence

In those circumstances it is appropriate to prohibit the
placing on the market of all products, consisting of, or
incorporating materials derived from bovine animals
born or reared within the United Kingdom before 1
August 1996 and to ensure that
these materials are
destroyed in order to avoid any risk of transmission of
transmissible
to
humans or animals.

spongiform encephalopathy

(TSE)

Following scientific advice recommending that hides do
not pose a risk, no conditions should be imposed in
relation to their trade. Therefore it should be possible
to use hides of those animals for leather production.

(1) OJ L 147, 31.5.2001, p. 1. Regulation as

last amended by
Commission Regulation (EC) No 260/2005 (OJ L 46, 17.2.2005,
p. 31).

(5)

(6)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1326/2001 of 29 June
2001 laying down transitional measures to permit the
changeover to the Regulation of the European Parliament
and of the Council (EC) No 999/2001 laying down rules
for the prevention, control and eradication of certain
transmissible spongiform encephalopathies, and amen-
to that Regulation (4) has
ding Annexes VII and XI
suspended the implementation of certain provisions in
Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 as a transitional mea-
the measures related to the
sure, and in particular
placing on the market of products,
laid down in its
Article 16. Under the circumstances, the marketing ban
on products derived from animals born or reared in the
United Kingdom before 1 August 1996 should therefore
be adopted as a transitional measure, pending the
adoption and entry into force of a decision determining
the BSE status of the United Kingdom.

Articles 12 and 13 of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 lay
down rules concerning measures to be applied following
suspicion and confirmation of a TSE. Article 13 specifies
that Member States, which have implemented a substitute
scheme offering a level of protection equivalent to the
movement restriction and cohort killing and destruction
measures provided for in those articles, may, by way of
derogation, apply those equivalent measures provided
that they have been approved in accordance with a comi-
tology procedure.

(2) OJ L 273, 10.10.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by
Commission Regulation (EC) No 416/2005 (OJ L 66, 12.3.2005,
p. 10).

(3) OJ L 162, 30.4.2004, p. 62.
(4) OJ L 177, 30.6.2001, p. 60. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1234/2003 (OJ L 173, 11.7.2003, p. 6).

(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

(11)

5.8.2005

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 204/23

On 24 May 2001 the United Kingdom applied for recog-
nition of the measures it applies as being equivalent to
the movement restrictions and cohort culling required by
Article 12 and 13 of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001.

On the death of any bovine animal born or reared within
2.
the United Kingdom before 1 August 1996, all its body parts
shall be disposed of
in accordance with Regulation (EC)
No 1774/2002.

On 11 January 2002 the Scientific Steering Committee
(SSC) adopted an opinion on the additional safeguard
provided by different culling schemes under the current
conditions in the United Kingdom and Germany. The
in place in the
SSC recognised that
United Kingdom, namely
the
operation of the destruction scheme for over 30 month
(OTM scheme) cattle and a specified risk material ban,
provided they are implemented effectively, provide a level
of safety that cannot be significantly improved by the
killing and destruction of animals at risk as required in
Article 13(1)(c) of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001.

the measures
total
a

feed ban,

those animals at

Since no products, other than milk and milk based
products as well as hides prepared for use for leather
production only, derived from bovine animals born or
reared within the United Kingdom before 1 August 1996
may be placed on the market, a scheme providing for the
destruction of
their
productive life in accordance with Regulation (EC) No
1774/2002 should be considered as offering equivalent
safeguards to the measures laid down in Articles 12 and
13 of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 on the basis of the
SSC opinion of 11 January 2002. For animals at risk
born after 31 July 1996 all the eradication measures
laid down in Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 should
continue to apply.

end of

the

It is therefore appropriate, in parallel with the marketing
ban, to exempt the United Kingdom from most of the
control and eradication requirements
laid down in
Articles 12 and 13 of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 in
relation to animals born or
reared in the United
Kingdom before 1 August 1996.

The measures provided for
accordance with
Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

in this Decision are in
Standing
the

opinion

the

of

3.
Notwithstanding paragraphs 1 and 2, the hides of the
animals referred to therein may be used for leather production,
in compliance with Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 and with
Article 4(1) and Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 878/2004.

Article 2

1. When a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) is
suspected or has been officially confirmed in a bovine animal
born or reared within the United Kingdom before 1 August
1996, the United Kingdom shall be exempted from the imple-
mentation of the requirements:

(a)

in Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 to place the
remaining bovine animals from that holding other than
those born in the 12 months following 1 August 1996
under official movement restriction until the results of a
clinical and epidemiological examination are known;

(b) in Article 13 of Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 and Annex
to
to that Regulation concerning confirmed cases,
VII
identify and destroy animals other than the confirmed case.

However, the following animals shall be identified, killed
(EC)
accordance with
destroyed

Regulation

in

2.
and
No 999/2001:

(a) where the disease is confirmed in a female animal, all its
progeny born within two years prior to, or after, clinical
onset of the disease;

(b) where the disease is confirmed in an animal born in the
12 months preceding 1 August 1996, cohort animals born
after 31 July 1996.

Article 3

This Decision is addressed to the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland.

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Done at Brussels, 2 August 2005.

1.
No products consisting of or incorporating materials,
other than milk, derived from bovine animals born or reared
within the United Kingdom before 1 August 1996 shall be
placed on the market.

For the Commission

Markos KYPRIANOU
Member of the Commission