2008/364/EC: Commission Decision of 28 April 2008 authorising methods for grading pig carcasses in Lithuania (notified under document number C(2008) 1595)
Date: 2008-04-28
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Lithuania, agricultural product nomenclature, carcase, measuring equipment, pigmeat

L 125/32

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Official Journal of the European Union

9.5.2008

COMMISSION

COMMISSION DECISION

of 28 April 2008

authorising methods for grading pig carcasses in Lithuania

(notified under document number C(2008) 1595)

(only the Lithuanian text is authentic)

(2008/364/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3220/84 of
13 November 1984 determining the Community scale for
grading pig carcasses (1), and in particular Article 5(2) thereof,

(4)

(5)

No modification of the apparata or grading methods may
be authorised except by means of a new Commission
Decision adopted in the light of experience gained. For
this reason, the present authorisation may be revoked.

The measures provided for
accordance with the opinion of
Committee for Pigmeat,

in this Decision are in
the Management

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

Under Article 2(3) of Regulation (EEC) No 3220/84, the
grading of pig carcasses is to be determined by esti-
mating the lean-meat content by means of statistically
proven assessment methods based on the physical
measurement of one or more anatomical parts of the
pig carcass. The authorisation of grading methods is
subject to compliance with a maximum tolerance for
statistical error in assessment. This tolerance is defined
in Article 3(2) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No
2967/85 of 24 October 1985 laying down detailed
rules for the application of the Community scale for
grading pig carcasses (2).

The Lithuanian Government has asked the Commission
to authorise four methods for grading pig carcasses and
has presented the results of its dissection trials in the
second part of the protocol provided for in Article 3(3)
of Regulation (EEC) No 2967/85.

Examination of
the
conditions for authorising those grading methods are
fulfilled.

revealed that

request has

this

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

The use of the following methods is hereby authorised for
grading pig carcasses pursuant
to Regulation (EEC) No
3220/84 in Lithuania:

1. the Fat-O-Meat’er

(FOM) apparatus and the assessment
methods related thereto, details of which are given in Part
1 of the Annex,

2. the Hennessy Grading Probe (HGP 7) apparatus and the
assessment methods related thereto, details of which are
given in Part 2 of the Annex,

3. the IM-03 apparatus and the assessment methods related
thereto, details of which are given in Part 3 of the Annex,

(ruler
4. the Two point method (ZP) measuring by ruler
method) apparatus and the assessment methods
related
thereto, details of which are given in Part 4 of the Annex.

(1) OJ L 301, 20.11.1984, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 3513/93 (OJ L 320, 22.12.1993, p. 5).

(2) OJ L 285, 25.10.1985, p. 39. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1197/2006 (OJ L 217, 8.8.2006, p. 6).

The manual method (ZP) may be applied only in slaughter-
houses which do not exceed a weekly slaughtering of 200 pigs.

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Modifications of the apparata or the assessment methods shall not be authorised.

Article 2

This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Lithuania.

Article 3

Done at Brussels, 28 April 2008.

For the Commission

Mariann FISCHER BOEL
Member of the Commission

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Official Journal of the European Union

9.5.2008

ANNEX

METHODS FOR GRADING PIG CARCASSES IN LITHUANIA

Part 1
FAT-O-MEAT’ER (FOM)

1. Grading of pig carcasses is carried out by means of the apparatus known as ‘Fat-O-Meat’er (FOM)’.

2. The apparatus shall be equipped with a probe of 6 millimetres diameter containing a photodiode of the Siemens SFH
950/960 type and having an operating distance of between 3 and 103 millimetres. The results of the measurements
are converted into estimated lean meat content by means of a computer.

3. The lean meat content of the carcass shall be calculated according to the following formula:

= 59,98500 – 0,20051 × F1 – 0,62340 × F2 + 0,21878 × M2

where:

= the estimated percentage of lean meat in the carcass,

F1 = fat depth (including rind) in millimetres, measured between the 3rd and 4th vertebrae, 8 cm beside the slaughter

line,

F2 = fat depth (including rind) in millimetres, measured between the 3rd and 4th last rib, 6 cm beside the slaughter

line,

M2 = lean meat depth in millimetres, measured between the 3rd and 4th last rib, 6 cm beside the slaughter line.

This formula shall be valid for carcasses weighing between 50 and 110 kilograms.

Part 2

HENNESSY GRADING PROBE (HGP7)

1. Grading of pig carcasses is carried out by means of the apparatus called ‘Hennessy grading probe (HGP 7)’.

2. The apparatus shall be equipped with a probe of 5,95 mm diameter (and have abutting 6,3 mm of blade on either side
of the probe at its head) containing a photodiode (Siemens LED of the type LYU 260-EO and photodetector of the
type 58 MR) and having an operating distance of between 0 and 120 mm. The results of the measurements shall be
transformed in terms of estimated lean meat content by means of the HGP 7 itself as well as a computer linked to it.

3. The lean meat content of the carcasse shall be calculated according to the following formula:

= 62,56600 – 0,85013 × F2 + 0,16150 × M2

where:

= the estimated percentage of lean meat in the carcass,

F2 = fat depth (including rind) in millimetres, measured between the 3rd and 4th last rib, 6 cm beside the slaughter

line,

M2 = lean meat depth in millimetres, measured between the 3rd and 4th last rib, 6 cm beside the slaughter line.

This formula shall be valid for carcasses weighing between 50 and 110 kilograms.

Part 3

IM-03

1. Grading of pig carcasses shall be carried out by means of the apparatus termed ‘IM-03’.

2. The apparatus shall be equipped with a needle-optical probe (single line scanner SLS01) of 7 millimetres diameter. The
probe contains the line of contact image sensors (CIS) and green light-emitting diodes. The operating distance is
between 0 and 132 millimetres.

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3. The lean meat content of the carcass shall be calculated according to the following formula:

= 62,01600 – 0,78101 × F2 + 0,17202 × M2 - 0,03763 × W

where:

= the estimated percentage of lean meat in the carcass,

F2 = fat depth (including rind) in millimetres, measured between the 3rd and 4th last rib, 6 cm beside the slaughter

line,

M2 = lean meat depth in millimetres, measured between the 3rd and 4th last rib, 6 cm beside the slaughter line,

W = warm carcass weight in kilograms.

This formula shall be valid for carcasses weighing between 50 and 110 kilograms.

Part 4

MANUAL METHOD (ZP)
1. Grading of pig carcasses shall be carried out by use of the ‘manual method (ZP) or two point method’ measuring by

ruler.

2. This method may be implemented using a ruler, with the grading determined on the basis of the prediction equation.
It is based on the manual measurement on the midline of the split carcass of the thickness of the fat and of the
thickness of the muscle.

3. The lean meat content of carcasses shall be calculated according to the following formula:

= 54,57800 – 0,47534 × F + 0,27035 × M – 0,09201 × W

where:

= the estimated percentage of lean meat in the carcass,

F

= fat depth (including rind) in millimetres, measured at the slaughter line of the carcass at the thinnest location

above the musculus gluteus medius,

M = thickness of the loin muscle in millimetres, measured on the slaughter line of the carcass as the shortest
connection of the front (cranial) end of the musculus gluteus medius to the upper (dorsal) edge of the
spinal canal,

W = warm carcass weight in kilograms.

This formula shall be valid for carcasses weighing between 50 and 110 kg.