REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL On the overall operation of official controls performed in Member States (2014-2016) to ensure the verification of compliance with food and feed law, animal health and welfare rules
Date: 2018-09-14
Institutions: Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, European Commission
Subjects: animal feedingstuffs, animal welfare, food inspection, food safety, marketing standard, organic farming, plant health control, veterinary inspection

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 14.9.2018 COM(2018) 627 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL On the overall operation of official controls performed in Member States (2014-2016) to ensure the verification of compliance with food and feed law, animal health and welfare rules {SWD(2018) 402 final}  
 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 

1.  EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ......................................................................................... 2 

2. 

INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 3 

3.  LEGAL FRAMEWORK ............................................................................................. 4 

4.  REVIEW OF MEMBER STATES' ANNUAL REPORTS ........................................ 4 

4.1. RECEIPT AND REVIEW OF MEMBER STATES' ANNUAL REPORTS .................... 4 

4.2 ORGANISATION AND PERFORMANCE OF OFFICIAL CONTROLS ...................... 5 

4.3 IDENTIFIED NON-COMPLIANCE ............................................................................. 6 

4.4 ENFORCEMENT: ACTION TAKEN IN CASE OF NON-COMPLIANCE ................... 6 

4.5 NATIONAL AUDIT SYSTEMS ...................................................................................... 6 

4.6 RESOURCES ................................................................................................................. 7 

5.  COMMISSION SERVICES' CONTROL ACTIVITIES IN MEMBER STATES ..... 7 

6.  COMMISSION FOLLOW-UP AND ENFORCEMENT ........................................... 9 

7.  CONCLUSIONS ....................................................................................................... 10 

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1.  EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

This report describes the overall outcome of control activities of national authorities1 and 
of the Commission which aim to ensure a high level of health protection and trust in the 
areas of food safety, animal and plant health, animal welfare, organic farming and quality 
schemes. These areas are of critical importance in the daily lives of European Union (EU) 
citizens  and  key  to  enabling  the  smooth  operation  of  trade  in  food,  animals  and  plants, 
both within the EU itself and with non-EU countries. The report covers the years 2014 to 
2016 and concludes that Member States national authorities demonstrated in their annual 
reports on official controls that they continue to fulfil their important role under the food 
and  feed  law.  Initiatives  aimed  at  improving  effectiveness  of  official  controls  and 
enforcement,  ranging  from  service  reorganisation  to  improved  use  of  IT  tools,  are 
particularly  encouraging  and  are  proving  essential  in  meeting  the  challenge  of  finding 
efficiencies in public spending. 

Nonetheless, the Commission also takes note of the clear signals from Member States that 
staff resources for controls are increasingly limited and that a potential further reduction 
risks negatively affecting the levels and/ quality of controls and the capacity to respond to 
emergencies. This is likely to be an important issue in the future development of official 
controls which the Commission will carefully consider when developing legislation in the 
context  of  its  Better  Regulation  initiative  and  which  Member  States  will  likely  aim  to 
address with inter alia new IT systems, re-organisation and optimised procedures. 

On  the  basis  of  an  analysis  of  Commission  controls,  which  are  exemplified  in  the  staff 
working document2accompanying this report, it can be established that, overall, Member 
States have the requisite control systems in place which ensure generally acceptable levels 
of compliance. The Commission controls however, continue to identify also deficiencies 
in  official  controls  and  highlight  that  there  is  still  room  for  improvement,  and  that 
complacency  should  be  avoided.  In  this  context  the  Commission  welcomes  the  huge 
efforts  made  by  Member  States  to,  for  example,  further  strengthen  their  risk-based  and 
targeted controls and to support those with effective IT systems.  

The  Commission’s  systematic  follow-up  of  its  control  findings,  complemented  where 
appropriate with other enforcement tools including the judicious use of the infringement 
procedure,  continues  to  prove  an  effective  means  of  addressing  failures  in  compliance 
with  EU  requirements  and  is  important  in  conjunction  with  the  Commission´s 
strengthened  drive  for  a  deeper  and  fairer  internal  market  and  better  law-making,  both 
high  political  priorities  for  the  current  Commission3.  The  Commission  also  supports 
Member  States  and  non-EU  countries  in  their  implementation  of  EU  rules  through  a 
variety  of  means,  such  as  the  provision  of  technical  assistance  and  training  through  the 
Better Training for Safer Food (BTSF) tool and actively promoting such compliance.  

1   Article 44(4) and (6) of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 requires the Commission to submit to the European 
Parliament and Council, and make available to the public, an annual report on the overall operation of 
controls in Member States 

2  Commission  staff  working  document  accompanying  the  document:  Report  from  the  Commission  to  the 
European Parliament and to the Council on the overall operation of official controls performed in Member 
States  (2014-2016)  to  ensure  the  verification  of  compliance  with  food  and  feed  law,  animal  health  and 
welfare rules.  

3 

Political guidelines for the next European Commission of 15 July 2014 and mission letters of 1 November 
2014 from the president to the Vice-Presidents and Commissioners. 

2 

 
 
                                                 
Commission  controls  and  their  follow-up  activities  provide  the  Member  States,  the 
Commission  and  stakeholders  with  a  clear  picture  of  the  level  of  implementation  of  the 
feed  and  food  law  as  well  as  the  animal  health  and  welfare  rules.  In  addition,  they 
contribute  significantly  to  the  legislative  review  process  aimed  at  ensuring  that  Union 
legislation  is  “fit  for  purpose”.  With  Regulation  (EU)  2017/625  becoming  applicable  in 
December  20194,  the  adoption  of  the  implementing  and  delegated  acts  foreseen  by  this 
Regulation will provide opportunities to use the knowledge gained from the Commission 
control  and  follow-up  activities  to  reinforce  and  support  official  controls  in  the  coming 
years. The aim is that through the new rules businesses and authorities will benefit from 
reduced  administrative  burdens,  more  efficient  processes  and  strengthened  controls. 
Consumers will benefit from more transparency on how controls are carried out to ensure 
food safety and high standards for plant health, animal health and welfare, and to prevent 
fraud.  

2.  INTRODUCTION 

There  is  a  comprehensive  EU  legal  framework  aimed  at  ensuring  high  levels  of  health 
protection and trust in the areas of food safety, animal and plant health, animal welfare, 
organic farming and quality schemes. These areas impact heavily on the daily lives of EU 
citizens  who  rightly  expect  high  standards.  High  standards  are  also  essential  to  enable 
smooth operation of trade in food, animals and plants, both within the EU itself and with 
non-EU  countries.  Effective  implementation  of  official  controls5  which  underpin  these 
standards is essential to maintain the credibility of this framework. 

The  Commission  plays  an  important  role  in  the  overall  control  framework  at  EU  level, 
which is set out in Regulation (EC) No 882/20046 and includes ensuring a high level of 
transparency. Article 44(4) and (6) of that Regulation requires the Commission to submit 
to  the  European  Parliament  and  Council,  and  make  available  to  the  public,  an  annual 
report on the overall operation of controls in Member States in light of:  

the annual reports submitted by the national authorities on their control activities; 
the outcome of Commission controls carried out in the Member States; and  

 
 
  any other relevant information. 

This report covers the period from 2014 to 2016.  

4  Regulation (EU) No 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2017 on official 
controls  and  other  official  activities  performed  to  ensure  the  application  of  food  and  feed  law,  rules  on 
animal  health  and  welfare,  plant  health  and  plant  protection  products,  amending  Regulations  (EC)  No 
999/2001,  (EC)  No  396/2005,  (EC)  No  1069/2009,  (EC)  No  1107/2009,  (EU)  No  1151/2012,  (EU)  No 
652/2014,  (EU)  No  2016/429  and  (EU)  No  2016/2031  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council, 
Council  Regulations  (EC)  No  1/2005  and  (EC)  No  1099/2009  and  Council  Directives  98/58/EC, 
1999/74/EC,  2007/43/EC,  2008/119/EC  and  2008/120/EC,  and  repealing  Regulations  (EC)  No  854/2004 
and  (EC)  No  882/2004  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council,  Council  Directives  89/608/EEC, 
89/662/EEC,  90/425/EEC,  91/496/EEC,  96/23/EC,  96/93/EC  and  97/78/EC  and  Council  Decision 
92/438/EEC (Official Controls Regulation), OJ L 95, 7.4.2017, p. 1–142. 

5 

'official  control'  means  any  form  of  control  that  the  competent  authority  or  the  Union  performs  for  the 
verification of compliance with feed and food law, animal health and animal welfare rules. 

6  Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on official 
controls  performed  to  ensure  the  verification  of  compliance  with  feed  and  food  law,  animal  health  and 
animal welfare rules – OJ L 165, 30.04.2004, p.1. 

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3.  LEGAL FRAMEWORK 

Regulation  (EC)  No  178/20027,  the  "general  food  law"  attributes  primary  responsibility 
for  ensuring  that  food  is  safe  to  the  food/feed  businesses  all  along  the  food/feed  chain. 
Regulation  (EC)  No  834/20078  contains  requirements  for  organic  production  and  the 
labelling of organic products. Regulation (EU) No 1151/20129 contains requirements for 
quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs.  

Member States are required to verify that business operators fulfil the requirements of EU 
law on food and feed safety, animal and plant health, animal welfare, organic production 
and  quality  schemes.  They  are  required  to  operate  systems  of  official  controls  for  this 
purpose. Regulation (EC) No 882/2004, in turn, lays down requirements for these control 
systems, and for the performance of official controls.  

Member States are required to draw up Multi-Annual National Control Plans (MANCP) 
and annual reports on the performance of such controls. They must submit their MANCP 
and annual reports to the Commission10. 

Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 also sets out rules on controls by the Commission to verify 
that Member States comply with the obligations laid down in the relevant EU legislation. 

4.  REVIEW OF MEMBER STATES' ANNUAL REPORTS 

4.1. RECEIPT AND REVIEW OF MEMBER STATES' ANNUAL REPORTS 

During  the  period  from  2014  to  2016  only  a  few  Member  States  submitted  their  annual 
report  to  the  Commission  services  within  the  deadline  prescribed  in  Article  44(3)  of 
Regulation  (EC)  No  882/2004  ("within  6  months  of  the  end  of  the  year  to  which  the 
reports  relate").  This  failure  to  comply  with  the  prescribed  deadline  reflects,  inter  alia, 
difficulties that Member States experience in collating at central level all data necessary 
for the annual report. To illustrate: as of 10 July 2017, the 2016 annual report had been 
submitted by three Member States(out of 28), the 2015 annual report by 25 Member States 
and the 2014 annual report by all 28 Member States. Member States annual reports also 
vary significantly in the presentation of data and in the nature of the data presented. 

These  two  facts  pose  a  significant  challenge  for  the  Commission  services  charged  with 
producing the report required by Article 44(4) of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 to review 
all annual reports received for the period in question with a view to identifying significant 
trends  in  the  performance  of  official  controls  and  non-compliances  identified  by  those 
controls. The current work on the development of the implementing act provided for by 
Article 113(2) of Regulation (EU) No 2017/625 is expected to help address this problem 
in the future by introducing standard models for the submission of Member States annual 

7  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 the European Food Safety Authority 
and laying down procedures in matters of food safety - OJ L 31, 01.2.2002, p.1. 

8  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  834/2007  on  organic  production  and  labelling  of  organic  products  and 

repealing Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91 - OJ L 189, 20.07.2007, p.1. 

9  Regulation  (EU)  No  1151/2012  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  21  November  2012  on 

quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs - OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p.1. 

10  Art. 41 to 44 of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004  

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reports.  These  will  also  allow  Member  States  to  more  easily  and  quickly  collate  annual 
report information at central level and to submit those to the Commission services. 

4.2 ORGANISATION AND PERFORMANCE OF OFFICIAL CONTROLS 

The  Member  States  reports  presented  evidence  that  overall,  the  established  trend  in  the 
Member States towards increasingly risk-based controls continues. This ensures that best 
use is made of resources by focusing on areas which present the greatest risks. However, 
and  as  confirmed  by  audits  by  the  Commission  services,  risk  based  controls  are  not 
applied in all areas where such controls are warranted.   

There is  a  particular  difficulty  when  interpreting  or  comparing  data  on non-compliances 
detected during official controls carried out under Regulation (EC) No 882/2004. Article 3 
of this Regulation requires that controls be carried out at a frequency that takes risk into 
account.  As  a  result,  an  apparently  high  rate  of  detection  of  non-compliance  does  not 
necessarily indicate a generally poor level of compliance but may actually indicate good 
risk-based  targeting  of  controls.  Determining  whether  a  high  rate  of  non-compliance 
detected reflects effective, well-targeted official controls or a poor level of compliance, is 
not  possible  solely  through  examination  of  annual  reports.  Such  determinations  must  be 
made  through  on-the-spot  assessments,  such  as  those  carried  out  during  audits  by  the 
Commission services (see chapter 5). 

One further effect of increasingly risk-based controls is that data on non-compliance are 
not directly comparable from one year to the next as more targeted controls may well lead 
to finding (relatively) more cases of non-compliance. A number of Member States annual 
reports highlight this point.   

A clear benefit of more targeted controls is that more resources are potentially available 
for follow-up and enforcement, and a number of reports provided evidence of progress in 
this area. Thus Member States can firstly focus more on systematic follow-up of official 
controls  and  enforcement  posed  problems  and  secondly  on  control  and  enforcement 
activity on operators with poor compliance records, which improves the overall safety of 
products,  and  contributes  to  creating  a  level  playing  field  for  all  operators,  thus  also 
benefiting the functioning of the Internal Market.   

Some  reports  provide  information  on  other  activities  undertaken  to  make  controls  and 
enforcement  more  effective  and  efficient  overall.  These  activities  include  reorganisation 
and  consolidation  of  control  services,  improved  co-operation  between  services  and 
coordination of controls, and re-attribution of controls. Particular mention should be made 
of the enhanced use of IT systems, supporting the collection, dissemination and analysis 
of  control  and  enforcement  data.  This,  in  turn,  assists  better  coordination  and 
targeting/planning  of  controls.  The  squeeze  on  resources  and  public  spending  in  all 
Member States is driving these efforts to improve efficiencies.   

Finally,  most  reports  mention  improvements  realised  in  the  performance  of  controls 
through  review  of  procedures,  the  organisation  of  training,  and  increased  availability  of 
relevant  documentation  (including  on-line).  Reports  also  identified  the  outcome  of 
national  audits  (see  under  National  audit  systems,  Chapter  4.4)  as  a  relevant  source  for 
improvements  and  efficiencies.  The  Commission  services  carried  out  audits  in  Member 
States  to  obtain  information  on  measures  in  place  to  verify  the  effectiveness  of  their 
controls,  as  required  by  Regulation  (EC)  No  882/2004.  This  has  been  important  in 

5 

 
 
 
highlighting the need to focus more on the quality rather than the number of controls as a 
measure of overall effectiveness.   

4.3 IDENTIFIED NON-COMPLIANCE 

The  main  areas  of  non-compliance  identified  by  Member  States  include:  operational, 
structural or equipment-based hygiene requirements; Hazard Analysis and Critical Control 
Points  (HACCP);  labelling  of  food  and  feed;  additives  in  food  and  feed;  poor  or  absent 
record keeping and microbiological contamination. While the identification of underlying 
causes  for  these  problems  is  limited,  some  point  to  high  staff  turnover  in  food  feed 
business  operators,  often  linked  to  low  wages  and  which  affects  the  continuous  use  of 
good  hygiene  practices,  lack  of  training  at  food  business  operators,  and/or  lack  of 
knowledge of the requirements. The latter gives some cause for concern considering that, 
within  the  food/feed  law  framework,  operators  are  primarily  responsible  for  the  proper 
application of the rules. 

Given the contribution that HACCP makes to ensure the production of safe food, and in 
order to a) obtain a good overall picture of the situation, and b) identify opportunities for 
improvements, the Commission services undertook a series of audits on HACCP in 2014. 
The results of this  series have  been  brought together  in  an overview report  published in 
June 201511. This has in turn led to initiatives on training, information exchange on good 
practice  and  a  review  of  current  HACCP  requirements,  as  well  as  guidance  on  these 
requirements. Similarly, and as regards hygiene, the Commission services started a review 
of operational hygiene and official controls in slaughterhouses, in close co-operation with 
the Member States, to see how slaughter hygiene can be better ensured. This work aims at 
identifying  common  problems,  dissemination  of  good  practice,  and  includes  training 
elements.   

4.4 ENFORCEMENT: ACTION TAKEN IN CASE OF NON-COMPLIANCE 

Member  States  are  required  to  indicate  in  their  reports  what  enforcement  actions  have 
been taken. While data on enforcement was provided, irrespective of the quality or detail 
of the information, it is very difficult to make meaningful comparisons between Member 
States reports. Nonetheless, the reports do suggest an overall greater emphasis on follow-
up  and  enforcement.  Some  Member  States  reported  the  introduction  of  administrative 
fines (as opposed to enforcement through the national courts), or the increase of such fines 
to  act  as  a  better  deterrent.  Interesting  examples  of  alternative  and  reportedly  effective 
means to improve compliance are the withdrawal of fines if the offender follows training, 
more  official  inspections  and  higher  charges  for  offenders,  and  the  provision  of training 
followed by inspections to measure effectiveness.   

4.5 NATIONAL AUDIT SYSTEMS 

Audits by Member States of their official control systems, as required by Regulation (EC) 
No 882/2004, are important in the overall management of these controls as they provide 
assurance that controls are carried out as required, with information on their effectiveness 
and, as appropriate, with suggestions for improvements. All Member States confirm that 
audits  are  in  place,  but  a  number  of  Member  States  reported  that  resource  constraints 

11  Report reference DG Health and Food safety (SANTE) 2015-7752: HACCP. 

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limited the implementation of planned audit programmes. There is considerable variation 
between  Member  States,  but  this  is  plausible  given  that  they  all  operate  their  own  audit 
cycles  and  tend  to  focus  on  differing  priority  areas.  For  their  part,  the  Commission 
services  continue  to  organise  regular  meetings  of  Member  States  national  audit  experts 
(the National Audit Systems Network - NAS Network), to share and discuss experiences, 
common problems, and identify good/best practice in addressing the audit requirement. In 
addition, the Commission services have implemented a series of audits of NAS, in order 
to obtain a comprehensive picture of their operation (see Chapter 5 for further details). 

4.6 RESOURCES 

Given  the  pressures  on  public  expenditure,  the  Commission  services  took  a  particular 
interest  in  what  the  Member  States  reports  said  about  available  control  resources,  even 
though Member States are currently not yet required to report specifically on this aspect. 
Nonetheless,  a  host  of  reports  addressed  the  issue.  Some  stated  unequivocally  that  their 
staffing  falls short  of what is required to  ensure all controls as  required. Others indicate 
that - either in specific areas, or at certain control levels – a limit had been reached where 
further reductions risk the levels and/or quality of controls and the capacity to respond to 
emergencies.  Maximising  efficiency  is  also  identified  as  a  clear  objective  of  the  control 
strategy in a number of Member States. Resource shortage did not only concern staffing, 
but also equipment in some Member States (e.g. for laboratories, or means of transport for 
control staff, affecting performance of controls).  

5.  COMMISSION SERVICES' CONTROL ACTIVITIES IN MEMBER STATES 

Within  the  framework  for  EU  controls,  Commission  services  undertake  audits  to  verify 
compliance with feed and food law, animal health and welfare, and the requirements for 
official  controls.  Audit  reports  contain  recommendations 
identified 
shortcomings. The reports, Member States action plans to address the recommendations, 
and  country  profiles  documenting  progress  with  the  delivery  of  these  plans  are 
published12, providing stakeholders and citizens with a factual and transparent account of 
how Member States deliver on correct implementation of EU law.  

to  address 

Commission control activities in Member States, which are in more detail exemplified in 
the  staff  working  document13  accompanying  this  report,  focused  on  key  priorities  of  the 
Commission, like for example on the official control systems for Plant Protection Products 
(PPPs), animal welfare and antimicrobial resistance but also on many other areas crucial 
for food safety, animal or plant health.  

Several Commission audit series in Member States covered controls on the marketing and 
use,  the  authorisation  and  sustainable  use  of  PPPs14,15,16.  They  identified  weaknesses  on 

12  https://ec.europa.eu/food/audits_analysis_en 
13  Commission  staff  working  document  accompanying  the  document:  Report  from  the  Commission  to  the 
European Parliament and to the Council on the overall operation of official controls performed in Member 
States  (2014-2016)  to  ensure  the  verification  of  compliance  with  food  and  feed  law,  animal  health  and 
welfare rules.  

14  Report reference DG (SANTE) 2016-6004: Plant Protection Products - Marketing and Use 
15   Report reference: DG (SANTE) 2016-6250: Plant Protection Products - Authorisation  

16  Report reference DG (SANTE) 2014-7567: Pesticides. 

7 

 
 
 
                                                 
 
the authorisation and marketing of PPPs in several areas, but also found increasingly well-
developed  official  controls  systems  on  users.  Progress  has  been  made  in  the 
implementation  of  the  Directive  on  Sustainable  Use  of  Pesticides17  with  the  set-up  of 
training and certification systems for professionals and the testing of sprayers. However, 
Integrated  Pest  Management  –  a  cornerstone  of  the  Directive  -  remains  underused.  This 
needs to be addressed by Member States in their revised National Action Plans, which will 
be audited by the Commission.  All  the above  activities aim to  improve current  Member 
State control systems and to provide assurances to consumers on increasingly responsible 
and sustainable use of PPPs.  

In the area of animal welfare the Commission started a three year project to facilitate and 
ensure better animal welfare during transport. This included the creation of guides to good 
practice  for  five  main  animal  species  (cattle,  horses,  pigs,  poultry  and  sheep)  and  the 
assessment of their use to better comply with EU welfare rules. Visits to Member States 
with  good  practice  on  checks  on  livestock  vehicles  in  conjunction  with  Commission 
facilitated exchange between Member States national contact points, helped to further the 
protection of animals during transport. Similarly useful was a desk-study and audit series 
on the protection of animals at the time of killing, which allowed to share best practices 
and to organise special training events.  

In the context of the European Commission's 2011 Action Plan against the rising threats 
from  antimicrobial  resistance  (AMR),  the  Commission  carried  out  audits  on  the 
implementation of the mandatory monitoring and reporting of AMR in animals and food, 
as well as information gathering activities on the policies to encourage the prudent use of 
antibiotics  in  animals.  Improvement  opportunities  and  good  practices  identified  during 
these  activities  were  also  used  when  developing  the  comprehensive  "EU  One  Health 
Action Plan against Antimicrobial Resistance"18. 

Two other Commission activities are worth highlighting. 

Firstly,  “overview  reports”  are  now  produced  for  most  audit  series.  Their  purpose  is  to 
provide a comprehensive picture of controls carried out by Member States in a given area, 
and to identify issues which are relevant to all Member States. Moreover, they highlight 
difficulties  encountered  with  the  implementation  of  the  relevant  legislation  as  well  as 
good practices identified. Secondly, greater use is being made of desk analysis and fact-
finding missions to complement the audit work, to provide the Commission with  a clear 
insight  into  the  functioning  of  EU  law  and  of  any  problems  that  may  arise  in  its 
application. Overview reports of these activities are also produced and published.  

These  two  activities  are  specifically  designed  to  support  the  Commission’s  policy  of 
legislative  review  aimed  at  ensuring  that  EU  legislation  is  up-to-date,  practicable  and 
enforceable at reasonable cost, in tune with developments on the ground, and thus "fit-for-
purpose". As such, controls undertaken by the Commission services contribute directly to 

17  Directive 2009/128/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of  21 October 2009 establishing a 
framework  for  a  Community  action  to  achieve  the  sustainable  use  of  pesticides  –  OJ  L  309,  24.11.2009, 
p.71-86 

18  https://ec.europa.eu/health/amr/antimicrobial-resistance_en  

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the  Better  Regulation  Agenda19.  The  overview  reports  also  include  an  indication  of 
planned  actions  in  response  to  the  reports'  findings.  To  disseminate  information  on 
conclusions,  good  practice  or  lessons  learned  outlined  in  these  reports,  they  are  also 
shared in the context of the BTSF programme20. 

6.  COMMISSION FOLLOW-UP AND ENFORCEMENT 

Taking  effective,  on-going  action  to  ensure  that  EU  law  is  correctly  implemented  and 
applied throughout the Union remains a Commission priority in the areas covered by this 
report. The previous report21 described how the Commission systematically follows up its 
audit findings and related recommendations. These processes continued to be effective in 
dealing with the vast majority of identified shortcomings. At the end of December 2016 
Member  States  took  corrective  action,  or  provided  satisfactory  commitments  to  address 
them within acceptable timelines: 

 

 

for  97%  of  recommendations  resulting  from  audits  in  the  reporting  cycle  2012-
2014; and 
for  94%  of  recommendations  resulting  from  audits  in  the  reporting  cycle  2013-
2015.  

The  Commission's  enforcement  policy  involves  monitoring  how  EU  law  is  applied  and 
implemented, solving problems with Member States to remedy any possible breaches of 
the law, and taking infringement action under Article 258 of the Treaty on the Functioning 
of  the  European  Union22,  when  appropriate.  The  initiation  of  such  proceedings  against 
Member  States  who  failed  to  ensure  implementation  of  the  requirements  concerning  the 
welfare of laying hens and the ban on unenriched cages in 2012, led to several Member 
States taking accelerated corrective action, averting the need for court action to proceed in 
most cases. This illustrates that a judicious use of the infringement procedure in areas of 
overriding  importance  where  the  legislation  sets  out  clear  legal  requirements,  can  prove 
very  effective  in  achieving  the  required  corrective  actions.  The  Commission  adopted  a 
similar approach in respect of the on-farm welfare of pigs and the group housing of sows.  

Notwithstanding  these  efforts,  applying  and  enforcing  EU  law  remains  a  challenge  and 
calls  for  a  stronger  focus  on  enforcement  in  order  to  serve  the  general  interest. 
Enforcement supports and complements the delivery of policy priorities. The work done 
to  ensure  the  effective  enforcement  of  existing  EU  law  needs  to  be  recognised  by  all 
involved in the enforcement of EU law, as being key in ensuring that the work devoted to 
developing new legislation delivers its objective.  

19  https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-making-process/planning-and-proposing-law/better-regulation-why-and-

how_en 

20  BTSF is a Commission training initiative, directed at officials working in competent authorities in Member 
States and non-EU countries, covering food and feed law, animal health and welfare and plant health rules: 
https://ec.europa.eu/food/safety/btsf_en  

21  Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the overall operation of official 
controls in the Member States on food safety, animal health and animal welfare, and plant health http://eur-
lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:52013DC0681  

22  Consolidated version of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A12012E%2FTXT 

9 

 
 
 
                                                 
The partnership between the Commission and the Member States, who play a crucial role 
in  implementation,  needs  to  be  strengthened  to  deliver  the  benefits  of  EU  law  to  the 
public.  Enforcement  must  be  dealt  with  promptly.  The  Commission  and  the  Member 
States need to continue their efforts in enforcing EU law and pursuing breaches of the law.   

The  Commission  will  encourage  and  help  Member  States  to  improve  their  capacity  to 
enforce EU law and provide remedies in order to ensure that the end-users of EU law — 
whether private individuals or businesses — can fully enjoy their rights. Networks and the 
exchange of best practice are key aspects of this effort.  

Independent administrative authorities or inspectorates required by EU legislation play an 
essential  role  in  implementation  and  enforcement.  The  Commission  will  therefore  pay 
particular  attention  to  their  being  sufficiently  and  adequately  equipped  to  perform  their 
tasks.  

Finally in line with the principles of its "Better Regulation" agenda, the Commission will 
focus on the better application and implementation of EU laws which ultimately will also 
support better enforcement, benefitting citizens and businesses alike. 

7.  CONCLUSIONS 

Member State national authorities demonstrated in their annual reports on official controls 
that  they  continue  to  fulfil  their  important  role  under  the  food  and  feed  law.  Initiatives 
aimed  at  improving  effectiveness  of  official  controls  and  enforcement,  ranging  from 
service  reorganisation  to  improved  use  of  IT  tools,  are  particularly  encouraging  and  are 
proving essential in meeting the challenge of finding efficiencies in public spending. 

Nonetheless, the Commission also takes note of the clear signals from Member States that 
staff resources for controls are increasingly limited and that a potential further reduction 
risks negatively affecting the levels and/ quality of controls and the capacity to respond to 
emergencies. This is likely to be an increasingly important issue in the future development 
of  official  controls,  which  the  Commission  will  carefully  consider  when  developing 
legislation in the context of its Better Regulation initiative and which Member States will 
likely  aim  to  address  with  inter  alia  new  IT  systems,  re-organisation  and  optimised 
procedures. 

On  the  basis  of  an  analysis  of  Commission  controls,  which  are  exemplified  in  the  staff 
working  document  accompanying  this  report,  it  can  be  established  that  overall  Member 
States have the requisite control systems in place which ensure generally acceptable levels 
of  compliance.  The  Commission  controls  however,  continue  to  identify  deficiencies  in 
official  controls  and  highlight  that  there  is  still  room  for  improvement,  and  that 
complacency  should  be  avoided.  In  this  context  the  Commission  welcomes  the  huge 
efforts  made  by  Member  States  to,  for  example,  further  strengthen  their  risk-based  and 
targeted controls and to support those with effective IT systems.  

The  Commission’s  systematic  follow-up  of  its  control  findings,  complemented  where 
appropriate with other enforcement tools including the judicious use of the infringement 
procedure,  continues  to  prove  an  effective  means  of  addressing  failures  in  compliance 
with  EU  requirements  and  is  important  in  conjunction  with  the  Commission´s 

10 

 
 
 
strengthened  drive  for  a  deeper  and  fairer  internal  market  and  better  law-making,  both 
high  political  priorities  for  the  current  Commission.  The  Commission  also  supports 
Member  States  and  non-EU  countries  in  their  implementation  of  EU  rules  through  a 
variety  of  means,  such  as  the  provision  of  technical  assistance  and  training  through  the 
Better Training for Safer Food (BTSF) tool and actively promoting such compliance.   

Commission  controls  and  their  follow-up  activities  provide  the  Member  States,  the 
Commission  and  stakeholders  with  a  clear  picture  of  the  level  of  implementation  of  the 
feed  and  food  law  as  well  as  the  animal  health  and  welfare  rules.  In  addition,  they 
contribute  significantly  to  the  legislative  review  process  aimed  at  ensuring  that  Union 
legislation is “fit for purpose”. With the coming into force of the provisions of Regulation 
(EU) 2017/625  in  December 2019,  the adoption of the implementing  and delegated acts 
foreseen by this Regulation will provide opportunities to use the knowledge gained from 
the Commission control and follow-up activities to reinforce and support official controls 
in the coming years. The aim is that through the new rules businesses and authorities will 
benefit  from  reduced  administrative  burdens,  more  efficient  processes  and  strengthened 
controls. Consumers will benefit from more transparency on how controls are carried out 
to ensure food safety and high standards for plant health, animal health and welfare and to 
prevent fraud. 

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