2005/624/EC: Commission Decision of 22 August 2005 concerning a derogation on the marking of pigmeat and its subsequent use for certain holdings in a surveillance zone of African swine fever in Sardinia, Italy (notified under document number C(2005) 3161)
Date: 2005-08-22
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Sardinia, animal plague, derogation from EU law, fresh meat, health legislation, swine, veterinary legislation

24.8.2005

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 219/45

COMMISSION DECISION

of 22 August 2005

concerning a derogation on the marking of pigmeat and its subsequent use for certain holdings in a
surveillance zone of African swine fever in Sardinia, Italy

(notified under document number C(2005) 3161)

(Only the Italian text is authentic)

(2005/624/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Council Directive 2002/60/EC of 27 June
2002 laying down specific provisions
the control of
African swine fever and amending Directive 92/119/EEC as
regards Teschen disease and African swine fever (1), and in
particular Article 11(1)(f) thereof,

for

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

Commission Decision 2005/363/EC of 2 May 2005
concerning animal health protection measures against
African swine fever in Sardinia, Italy (2) was adopted in
response to the presence of African swine fever
in
Sardinia, Italy.

Outbreaks of African swine fever still occur in Sardinia
and Italy takes measures to combat African swine fever
of Directive
in
2002/60/EC.

Sardinia within

framework

the

the

that

Directive 2002/60/EC provides
competent
authority establishes, immediately after the diagnosis of
African swine fever in pigs on a holding has been offi-
cially confirmed, a protection zone with a radius of at
least three kilometres around the outbreak site, which
shall
itself be included in a surveillance zone of a
radius of at least ten kilometres.

Directive 2002/60/EC also provides that pigs may not be
removed from the holding in which they are kept
in a protection and surveillance
(holding of origin)
zone during a period of respectively 40 and 30 days
after the completion of the preliminary cleansing, disin-
fection and, if necessary, disinsectisation of the infected
holdings. After these periods, the competent authorities
may authorise the removal of pigs from the holding of
origin to a slaughterhouse if specific conditions are met.
In particular, fresh meat from these pigs is either to be
processed or marked with a special mark and processed
at later stage.

(1) OJ L 192, 20.7.2002, p. 27. Directive as amended by the 2003 Act

of Accession.

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

Directive 2002/60/EC allows for a derogation from the
said conditions to be granted to Member States at their
request and if appropriate justification is submitted.

An outbreak of African swine fever was confirmed in the
municipality of Anela in Sardinia on 25 May 2005. The
competent authority established immediately a protection
zone with a radius of
three kilometres around the
outbreak site, which is included in a surveillance zone
of a radius of ten kilometres around this site. Another
outbreak was confirmed in the established protection
zone on 10 June 2005 in the municipality of Bultei.

for processed meat,

The Italian authorities have asked the Commission for
derogation from the fresh meat to be marked with the
foreseen special mark and the condition that fresh meat
originating from holdings situated within the established
surveillance zone has to be processed. The request was
justified by demonstrating the serious difficulties to find a
market
the consequences for the
welfare of the pigs in some holdings if they are not
slaughtered in due time and the negligible additional
animal health risk related to such derogation if also
is
specific disease control measures are adopted.
therefore appropriate to provide that, under certain
conditions, pigmeat from holdings situated in the estab-
lished surveillance zone does not have to be processed
foreseen special mark and
and marked with the
to guarantee the
In order
processed at
absence of African swine fever and any risk for spread
of the disease, additional measures as regards the holding
of origin and the movement of these pigs have to be laid
down.

stage.

later

It

The checking and sampling procedures as regards the
removal of pigs
from a holding in an established
surveillance zone to a slaughterhouse in accordance
with the diagnostic manual (3) have to be fully applied.
In case the derogation provided for in Article 11(4) of
Directive 2002/60/EC is used paragraph 6 of Chapter IV
of the Annex of the diagnostic manual applies.

It is also appropriate to provide that pigmeat, pigmeat
products and any other products containing pigmeat of
pigs originating from holdings for which such a dero-
gation is granted,
is marked with the special mark
foreseen by Decision 2005/363/EC in order to ensure

(2) OJ L 118, 5.5.2005, p. 39. Decision as amended by Decision

2005/494/EC (OJ L 182, 13.7.2005, p. 26).

(3) Commission Decision 2003/422/EC of 26 May 2003 approving an
African swine fever diagnostic manual (OJ L 143, 11.6.2003, p. 35).

L 219/46

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

24.8.2005

that such pigmeat, pigmeat products and other products
containing pigmeat are not dispatched from Sardinia and
to ensure the traceability of such pigmeat and products.

(10)

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

in this Decision are in
Standing
the

opinion

the

of

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Subject matter and scope

This Decision lays down a derogation from the condition
relating to processing of
fresh meat originating from pigs
from holdings situated in the surveillance zone which has
been established around the holdings in which the diagnosis
of African swine fever has been officially confirmed in
Sardinia, Italy in the municipalities of Anela on 25 May 2005
and Bultei on 10 June 2005.

Article 4

Requirements as regards the holding of origin

The holding of origin referred to in Article 3 shall fulfil the
following requirements:

(a)

the holding of origin may not be located in a protection
zone established following an outbreak of African swine
fever;

(b) the appropriate bio-security measures to prevent the intro-
duction of African swine fever as well as a self-control
programme to detect African swine fever, both referred to
in the eradication programme approved by Commission
Decision 2005/362/EC (1), have been put in place in the
holding of origin and have been approved by the
the
competent
surveillance zone around an outbreak of African swine
fever in which the holding is located;

establishment of

authority before

the

Article 2

Definitions

(c) African swine fever may not have been diagnosed in the
holding of origin for at least two years before the dispatch
of the pigs from this holding.

For the purpose of this Decision, the definitions laid down in
Article 2 of Directive 2002/60/EC and of Article 2 of Decision
2005/363/EC shall apply.

Article 5

Article 3

Derogation on Article 10(3)(f), fourth indent, of Directive
2002/60/EC

The competent authority may authorise that fresh meat from
pigs which have been directly transported to a slaughterhouse in
accordance with Article 11(1)(f) of Directive 2002/60/EC is not
processed, as foreseen in Article 10(3)(f), fourth indent, if the
following conditions are met:

(a)

the holding of origin fulfils the requirements of Article 4;

(b) the movement of

all

the

fulfils

the pigs

relevant
requirements laid down in Directive 2002/60/EC and in
thereof as regards
particular in Articles 11(1)(f) and (4)
the
the period of
completion of the preliminary cleansing, disinfection and,
if necessary, disinsectisation of the infected holdings, during
which the pigs may not be removed from the holding of
origin;

respectively 30 or 21 days after

Communication to the Commission and the other Member
States

Italy shall communicate to the Commission and the other
Member States, every month from the date of this Decision,
all relevant information on the application of this Decision.

Article 6

Application

This Decision shall apply until 30 September 2005.

Article 7

Addressee

This Decision is addressed to the Italian Republic.

Done at Brussels, 22 August 2005.

(c)

the meat, pigmeat products and any other products
containing pigmeat originating from these pigs are marked
with a special health or identification mark provided for in
Article 4 of Decision 2005/363/EC.

For the Commission

Markos KYPRIANOU
Member of the Commission

(1) Commission Decision 2005/362/EC of 2 May 2005 approving the
plan for the eradication of African swine fever in feral pigs in
Sardinia, Italy (OJ L 118, 5.5.2005, p. 37).