2007/136/EC: Commission Decision of 23 February 2007 laying down transitional measures for the system for the identification and registration of ovine and caprine animals in Bulgaria, as provided for in Council Regulation (EC) No 21/2004 (notified under document number C(2007) 533) (Text with EEA relevance )
Date: 2007-02-23
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Bulgaria, goat, sheep, traceability, transitional period (EU), veterinary legislation

24.2.2007

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 57/23

COMMISSION DECISION

of 23 February 2007

laying down transitional measures for the system for the identification and registration of ovine
and caprine animals in Bulgaria, as provided for in Council Regulation (EC) No 21/2004

(notified under document number C(2007) 533)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2007/136/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

of Regulation (EC) No 21/2004, it is appropriate to lay
down transitional measures for the identification of ovine
and caprine animals in Bulgaria.

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to the Treaty of Accession of Bulgaria and
Romania, and in particular Article 4(3) thereof,

(4)

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

in this Decision are in
Standing
the

opinion

the

of

Having regard to the Act of Accession of Bulgaria and Romania,
and in particular Article 42 thereof,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(EC) No

1782/2003

Council Regulation (EC) No 21/2004 of 17 December
2003 establishing a system for the identification and
registration of ovine and caprine animals and amending
and Directives
Regulation
92/102/EEC and 64/432/EEC (1),
lays down rules for
the establishment of systems for the identification and
registration of ovine and caprine animals. It provides that
all those animals born in Bulgaria after 1 January 2007
are to be identified by means of an eartag and a second
means of identification bearing the same individual code
as on the eartag within a period of not more than six
months and in any case before they leave the holding of
birth.

Bulgaria acceded to the Community on 1 January 2007.
By letter dated 17 November 2006, Bulgaria requested
transitional measures for a period of one year for the
identification of ovine and caprine animals
in that
country, during which time the animals should only be
identified by means of a single eartag, except for animals
entering into intra-Community trade or intended for
export to third countries. Such animals should be iden-
tified in accordance with Community rules, except that
the means of identification, provided for in Regulation
(EC) No 21/2004, may be applied in a holding, other
than the holding of birth referred to in Article 4(1) of
that Regulation.

Article 1

Subject matter

This Decision shall apply to any animal of
the ovine and
caprine species kept on holdings situated in Bulgaria (the
animals).

Article 2

Identification of animals in Bulgaria

All animals on a holding shall be identified before they leave the
holding of their birth or within a period of nine months from
the date of their birth, whichever is the earlier, by at least one
single eartag bearing an individual code for each animal
in
accordance with national rules.

Article 3

Identification of animals intended for intra-Community
trade or export to third countries

All animals intended for intra-Community trade or export to
third countries shall be identified in accordance with Regulation
(EC) No 21/2004, where applicable in addition to the eartag
applied in accordance with Article 2 of this Decision.

(3)

In order to facilitate the transition from the existing
regime in Bulgaria to that resulting from the application

By way of derogation from Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC)
No 21/2004, the means of identification referred to in that
provision may be applied in the holding of origin, as defined
in Article 2(b)(8) of Directive 91/68/EEC (2).

(1) OJ L 5, 9.1.2004, p. 8. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC)

No 1791/2006 (OJ L 363, 20.12.2006, p. 1).

(2) OJ L 46, 19.2.1991, p. 19.

L 57/24

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

24.2.2007

Article 4

Movement document requirement

Article 6

Addressee

The movement document referred to in Article 3(1)(c) of Regu-
lation (EC) No 21/2004 shall contain the individual codes for
each animal as provided for in Articles 2 and 3 of this Decision.

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Article 5

Applicability

This Decision shall apply from the date of entry into force of
the Act of Accession and until 31 December 2007.

Done at Brussels, 23 February 2007.

For the Commission

Markos KYPRIANOU
Member of the Commission