2008/433/EC: Commission Decision of 10 June 2008 imposing special conditions governing the import of sunflower oil originating in or consigned from Ukraine due to contamination risks by mineral oil (notified under document number C(2008) 2709) (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2008-06-10
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Ukraine, foodstuffs legislation, health certificate, health risk, import restriction, mineral oil, originating product, sunflower seed oil

11.6.2008

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 151/55

COMMISSION DECISION

of 10 June 2008

imposing special conditions governing the import of sunflower oil originating in or consigned from
Ukraine due to contamination risks by mineral oil

(notified under document number C(2008) 2709)

(Text with EEA relevance)

(2008/433/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2002 laying down
the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing
and laying down
the European Food Safety Authority
food safety (1), and in particular
procedures in matters of
Article 53(2), second subparagraph, thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

The Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) has
been notified on 23 April 2008 that sunflower oil orig-
inating from Ukraine was found contaminated with high
levels of mineral oil. This contamination by mineral oil
was later confirmed in several consignments of crude
sunflower oil originating from Ukraine imported in
recent months
in the Community. Sunflower oil
containing high levels of mineral oil is unfit for human
consumption and therefore deemed to be unsafe. The
source of contamination is not yet known.

The European Commission has repeatedly urged the
Ukrainian authorities to provide information on the
origin of the contamination and on the measures taken
to prevent it in future. Assurances were also sought from
the Ukrainian authorities as to the establishment of
effective measures aimed at guaranteeing the appropriate
sampling and analysis on the presence of mineral oil in
consignments of sunflower oil
leaving Ukraine with
destination the European Community.

Investigations aimed at identifying the source of contam-
ination are ongoing in Ukraine. The Ukrainian authorities
also committed to the establishment of an appropriate
control system that will ensure that all consignments of
sunflower oil to be exported to the European Union are
certified as not containing levels of mineral oil making
for human consumption.
the

sunflower oil unfit

(1) OJ L 31, 1.2.2002, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission

Regulation (EC) No 202/2008 (OJ L 60, 5.3.2008, p. 17).

(4)

(5)

However, the details of this control system have still to
be provided to the Commission. The Commission should
assess the control and certification system in order to
verify the accuracy and the reliability to guarantee that
the sunflower oil exported to the Community does not
contain levels of mineral oil, making the sunflower oil
unfit for human consumption. It has to be ensured that
no exports of sunflower oil to the Community will take
place until such control and certification system is put in
place and assessed and accepted by the Commission. The
assessment of the control and certification system will be
performed on the basis of detailed information provided
by the Ukrainian authorities.

(JECFA)

indicating the different

After a request from the European Commission for an
assessment of the risks related to the contamination of
sunflower oil with mineral oil, the European Food Safety
Authority (EFSA) published a statement on the contam-
ination of sunflower oil with mineral oil exported from
Ukraine. The statement refers to assessments performed
by the joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food
Additives
level of
the type of mineral oil. EFSA
toxicity depending of
concluded that
the
contaminated sunflower oil from Ukraine indicated that
the mineral oil present was of high viscosity. Based upon
exposure estimates, EFSA concluded that the exposure of
sunflower oil contaminated with high viscosity mineral
oil, although being undesirable for human consumption,
would not be of public health concern in this case. Given
that the source of contamination has not yet been iden-
tified with certainty, there is the presumption of risk
attached to the presence of unacceptable high levels of
mineral oil in sunflower oil.

the available analytical data for

should control

Given the level of risk, even once the control and certi-
fication system will be accepted by the Commission,
the consignments of
Member States
sunflower oil in order to verify that such consignments
contain a level of mineral oil conform to what it is
declared in the
system of double
certificate. This
control
is necessary and justified in order to provide
additional guarantees for the accuracy and reliability of
the control and certification system put in place by the
Ukrainian authorities. The costs incurred for carrying out
to be borne by the operators
these
should
import. Member States
responsible
inform the Commission of unfavourable results through
the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed. Favourable
results shall be reported to the Commission on a three-
monthly basis. This obligation of
information is
necessary for the measures to be reassessed.

controls are
the
for

L 151/56

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

11.6.2008

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

(11)

(12)

to

adopt

possibility

Article 53 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 provides for
the
appropriate Community
emergency measures for food and feed imported from
a third country in order
to protect human health,
the environment, where the risk
animal health or
cannot
of
by means
be
measures taken by the Member States individually.

satisfactorily

contained

Pending the assessment and acceptance of the control
in place by the
and certification system to be put
Ukrainian authorities, no imports of sunflower oil orig-
inating in or consigned from Ukraine should take place
due to the risk of contamination with mineral oil.

Member States have been informed of the contamination
incident and have taken the appropriate measures to
withdraw the contaminated sunflower oil and food
products containing contaminated sunflower oil already
placed on the market, as recommended by the European
Commission via the RASFF.

Given the urgency, pending the meeting of the Standing
Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health, and
the
after having informed the authorities of Ukraine,
Commission
on
2008/388/EC
adopted Decision
23 May 2008 imposing special conditions governing
the import of sunflower oil originating in or consigned
from Ukraine due to contamination risks by mineral
oil (1),
in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 53(2),
subparagraph of Regulation (EC)
No 178/2002.

first

Those measures should be confirmed and amended as
regards the costs of
the controls, performed by the
competent authorities of the Member States.

It is therefore appropriate to repeal and replace Decision
2008/388/EC.

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

in this Decision are in
Standing
the

opinion

the

of

The certificate provided for in paragraph 1 shall only be
2.
valid for imports of consignments of sunflower oil
into the
Community if the sampling and analysis of the consignment
and the issuance of the certificate have taken place after the
European Commission has assessed and formally accepted the
control and certification system put in place by the Ukrainian
authorities.

the
3. Member States will be informed of
control and certification system put in place by the Ukrainian
authorities
it by the
formal
Commission through the Standing Committee on the Food
Chain and Animal Health.

acceptance of

the details of

and of

the

4. Member States shall
take the appropriate measures to
sample and analyse each consignment of sunflower oil originat-
ing in or consigned from Ukraine, accompanied by a valid
certificate, presented for import to ensure that the consignments
contain a level of mineral oil conform to what it is declared in
the certificate.

inform the Commission of unfavourable results
They shall
through the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed. Favourable
results shall be reported to the Commission on a three-monthly
basis.

5. Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure
that the sunflower oil originating in or consigned from Ukraine,
not complying with the provisions of this Decision,
is not
placed on the market for feed or food use.

6. Member States shall ensure that the costs incurred in the
implementation of points 4 and 5 are borne by the operators
responsible for the import.

Article 2

Decision 2008/388/EC is repealed.

Article 3

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Article 1

1. Member States shall prohibit the import of sunflower oil,
falling within CN codes 1512 11 91 or 1512 19 90 10, orig-
inating in or consigned from Ukraine (hereafter referred to as
is
sunflower oil), unless the consignment of sunflower oil
accompanied by a valid certificate, certifying the absence of
unacceptable levels of mineral oil and the results of sampling
and analysis for the presence of mineral oil.

Done at Brussels, 10 June 2008.

For the Commission

Androulla VASSILIOU
Member of the Commission

(1) OJ L 136, 24.5.2008, p. 43.