SCHEDULE 1HEALTH CONTROL AND MONITORING OF PRODUCTION CONDITIONS (PROVIDED FOR BY CHAPTER V OF THE ANNEX TO THE COUNCIL DIRECTIVE)

PART IIspecial checks

A.Organoleptic checks

1.  Without prejudice to the derogations provided for by Council Regulation (EEC) No.103/76 of 19th January 1976 as amended((1)) (laying down common marketing standards for certain fresh or chilled fish,) each batch of fishery products must be submitted for inspection by the food authority at the time of landing or before first sale to check whether they are fit for human consumption; this inspection comprises an organoleptic check carried out by sampling.

2.  Fishery products complying, as far as the fre shness criteria are concerned, with the common marketing standards already laid down pursuant to Article 2 of Regulation (EEC) No.3796/81 as amended((2)) are considered to fulfil the organoleptic requirements necessary for compliance with the provisions of these Regulations.

3.  The organoleptic examinations must be repeated after the first sale of fishery products, if it is found that the requirements of these Regulations have not been complied with, or when considered necessary; after the first sale, fishery products must at least comply with the minimum freshness requirements of the aforementioned Regulation.

4.  If the organoleptic examination reveals that the fishery products are not fit for human consumption, measures must be taken to withdraw them from the market and denature in such a way that they cannot be re-used for human consumption.

5.  If the organoleptic examination reveals any doubt as to the freshness of the fishery products, use may be made of chemical checks or microbiological analyses.

B.Parasite checks

1.  Before they are released from production for human consumption, fish and fish products must be subject to a visual inspection on behalf of the food authority, by way of sample for the purpose of detecting any parasites that are visible.

2.  Fish or parts of fish which are obviously infested with parasites must not be placed on the market for human consumption.

C.Chemical checks

1.  When chemical checks are to be carried out by the food authority samples must be taken and subjected to laboratory analysis for the control of the following parameters;

(a)TBV-N (Total Volatile Basic-Nitrogen) and TMA-N (Trimethylamine-Nitrogen);

(b)Histamine;

nine samples must be taken from each batch; these must fulfil the following requirements

• the mean value must not exceed 100 parts per million ( “ppm”);

• two samples may have a value of more than 100 ppm but less than 200 ppm;

• no sample may have a value exceeding 200 ppm.

2.  These limits apply only to fish species of the following families: Scombridae and Clupeidae; however, fish belonging to these families which have undergone enzyme ripening treatment in brine may have higher hystamine levels but not more than twice the above values; examinations must be carried out in accordance with reliable, scientifically recognised methods, such as high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

Contaminants present in the aquatic environment.

3.  The Ministers shall establish a monitoring system to check the levels of such contamination of fishery products and without prejudice to the Community rules concerning water protection and management, and in particular those concerning pollution of the aquatic environment, fishery products must not contain in their edible parts contaminants present in the aquatic environment such as heavy metals and organochlorinated substances at such a level that the calculated dietary intake exceeds the acceptable daily or weekly intake for humans.