2006/266/EC: Commission Decision of  3 April 2006  concerning certain protection measures in relation to highly pathogenic avian influenza in Israel and repealing Decision 2006/227/EC  (notified under document number C(2006) 1245)   (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2006-04-03
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Israel, animal disease, game meat, health certificate, import restriction, meat product, poultry, poultrymeat

L 96/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

5.4.2006

COMMISSION

COMMISSION DECISION

of 3 April 2006

concerning certain protection measures in relation to highly pathogenic avian influenza in Israel
and repealing Decision 2006/227/EC

(notified under document number C(2006) 1245)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2006/266/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Council Directive 91/496/EEC of 15 July 1991
laying down the principles governing the organisation of
veterinary checks on animals entering the Community from
89/662/EEC,
third
90/425/EEC and 90/675/EEC (1), and in particular Article 18
(1), (6) and (7) thereof,

amending Directives

countries

and

Having regard to Council Directive 97/78/EC of 18 December
1997 laying down the principles governing the organisation of
veterinary checks on products entering the Community from
third countries (2), and in particular Article 22(1), (5) and (6)
thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

Avian influenza is an infectious viral disease in poultry
and other birds, causing mortality and disturbances
which can quickly take epizootic proportions liable to
present a serious threat
to animal and public health
the profitability of poultry
and to sharply reduce
farming. There is a risk that the disease agent might be
introduced into Member States via international trade in
live poultry and certain other birds and products thereof.

(1) OJ L 268, 24.9.1991, p. 56. Directive as last amended by the 2003

Act of Accession.

(2) OJ L 24, 31.1.1998, p. 9. Directive as last amended by Regulation
(EC) No 882/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council
(OJ L 165, 30.4.2004, p. 1, as corrected by OJ L 191, 28.5.2004,
p. 1).

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

Israel has notified the Commission of outbreaks in
poultry of highly pathogenic avian influenza caused by
influenza A virus of subtype H5N1.

certain interim protection measures

Commission Decision 2006/227/EC of 17 March 2006
concerning
in
relation to a suspicion of highly pathogenic avian
influenza in Israel (3) was adopted following that notifi-
cation by Israel.

In view of the animal health risk of the introduction of
the disease into the Community,
is appropriate to
suspend imports of live poultry, ratites and farmed and
wild feathered game and hatching eggs of those species
from Israel.

it

As Member States are authorised to import game
trophies and eggs for human consumption,
imports
into the Community of these products should also be
suspended because of the animal health risk involved.

It is also appropriate to suspend the importation into the
Community from Israel of fresh meat of poultry, ratites
and farmed and wild feathered game and the importation
of minced meat, mechanically separated meat, meat
preparations
consisting of or
those species, as well as certain
containing meat of
other products of birds.

and meat products

(7)

It is appropriate to provide for measures that may be
applied regarding parts of Israel depending on the epide-
miological situation.

(3) OJ L 81, 18.3.2006, p. 43.

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Official Journal of the European Union

L 96/11

(8)

(9)

Certain products derived from poultry, ratites and farmed
and wild feathered game slaughtered or hunted before 15
February 2006 should continue to be authorised, taking
into account the incubation period of the disease.

(b) the following products coming from the parts of Israel listed

in part B of the Annex:

Commission Decision 2005/432/EC of 3 June 2005
laying down the animal and public health conditions
and model certificates for imports of meat products for
human consumption from third countries and repealing
Decisions 97/41/EC, 97/221/EC and 97/222/EC (1) lays
down the list of third countries from which Member
States may authorise the importation of certain meat
products and establishes treatment regimes considered
effective in inactivating the respective pathogens.
In
order to prevent
the risk of disease transmission via
such products, appropriate treatment must be applied
depending on the health status of the country of origin
and the species the product is obtained from. It appears
therefore appropriate, that imports of meat products of
poultry, ratites and farmed and wild feathered game
originating in Israel and treated to a temperature of at
least 70 °C throughout the product should continue to be
authorised.

(i)

fresh meat of poultry, ratites and farmed and wild
feathered game;

(ii) minced meat, mechanically separated meat, meat
consisting of or
and meat products

preparations
containing meat referred to in (i);

(iii) raw pet food and unprocessed feed material containing
ratites and farmed and wild

any parts of poultry,
feathered game;

(iv) eggs for human consumption from poultry, ratites and
farmed and wild feathered game, and unpasteurised egg
products produced from those eggs;

(10)

The conditions for the imports of feathers are laid down
in Commission Decision 2006/7/EC of 9 January 2006
concerning certain protection measures in relation to the
imports of feathers from certain third countries (2). It is
therefore unnecessary to provide for a specific ban on
imports of untreated feathers from Israel.

(v) non-treated game trophies from any birds;

(vi) unprocessed manure and manure products from any

birds.

(11)

In the interests of clarity of Community legislation it is
appropriate to repeal Decision 2006/227/EC and replace
it by the present Decision.

(12)

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

Member States shall suspend imports of:

(a)

live poultry, ratites and farmed and wild feathered game,
and hatching eggs of those species coming from the parts
of Israel listed in part A of the Annex;

Article 2

1.
By way of derogation from Article 1(b), Member States
shall authorise the importation of the products referred to in
point
that Article, which have been
obtained from birds slaughtered or hunted before 15 February
2006.

(ii) and (iii) of

(b)(i),

In the

veterinary

documents
2.
accompanying consignments of
the products referred to in
Article 1(b) (i), (ii) and (iii), the following words as appropriate
to the species shall be included:

certificates/commercial

‘Fresh meat/minced meat/mechanically separated meat of
poultry, ratites, farmed or wild feathered game (*) or meat
preparations/meat products consisting of, or containing
meat of poultry, ratites, farmed or wild feathered game (*)
or raw pet food and unprocessed feed material containing
any parts of poultry,
farmed or wild feathered
game (*) obtained from birds slaughtered or hunted before
15 February 2006 and in accordance with Article 2(1) of
Commission Decision 2006/266/EC.

ratites,

(1) OJ L 151, 14.6.2005, p. 3.
(2) OJ L 5, 10.1.2006, p. 17. Decision as amended by Decision

2006/183/EC (OJ L 65, 7.3.2006, p. 49).

___________
(*) Delete as appropriate.’

L 96/12

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Official Journal of the European Union

5.4.2006

By way of derogation from Article 1(b)(ii), Member States
3.
shall authorise the importation of meat products consisting of
or containing meat of poultry, ratites, farmed or wild feathered
game provided that the meat of those species has undergone at
least one of the specific treatments referred to under points B, C
or D in part 4 of Annex II to Decision 2005/432/EC.

Article 3

Member States shall immediately take the necessary measures to
comply with this Decision and publish those measures. They
shall immediately inform the Commission thereof.

The

specific

4.
applied in accordance with
paragraph 3 of this Article shall be certified by adding the
following wording:

treatment

(a)

to point 9.1, column B of the animal health attestation in
the veterinary certificate, drawn up in accordance with the
model set out in Annex III to Decision 2005/432/EC:

Article 4

Decision 2006/227/EC is repealed.

Article 5

This Decision shall apply until 31 July 2006.

‘Meat products treated in accordance with Commission
Decision 2006/266/EC.’;

Article 6

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

(b) to point 8.2 to the veterinary certificate, drawn up in
in Annex IV to

set out

accordance with the model
Decision 2005/432/EC:

‘Meat products treated in accordance with Commission
Decision 2006/266/EC.’

Done at Brussels, 3 April 2006.

For the Commission

Markos KYPRIANOU
Member of the Commission

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Official Journal of the European Union

L 96/13

Parts of Israel referred to in Article 1(a) and (b):

ANNEX

PART A

ISO country code

Name of Country

Description of parts of Israel

IL

Israel

— Whole of the territory of Israel

PART B

ISO country code

Name of Country

Description of parts of Israel

IL

Israel

— Whole of the territory of Israel