The Feeding Stuffs (Amendment) Regulations 2003

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

1.  These Regulations amend the Feeding Stuffs Regulations 2000 (S.I. 2000/2481, as already amended) which extend largely to England only, the Feeding Stuffs (Enforcement) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/2325, as already amended) which extend to the whole of the United Kingdom and the Feeding Stuffs (Establishments and Intermediaries) Regulations 1999 (S.I. 1999/1872, as already amended) which also extend to the whole of the United Kingdom.E+W

2.  Regulations 2 to 6, 13 and 15 of these Regulations extend to England only. Regulations 7 to 12 and 14 extend to the whole of the United Kingdom.E+W

3.  These Regulations implement—E+W

(a)the second sub-paragraph of Article 8.2 of Council Directive 95/53/EC fixing the principles governing the organisation of official inspections in the field of animal nutrition (OJ No. L265, 8.11.95, p.17); and

(b)Directive 2001/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 95/53/EC fixing the principles governing the organisation of official inspections in the field of animal nutrition and Directives 70/524/EC, 96/25/EC and 1999/29/EC on animal nutrition (OJ No. L234, 1.9.2001, p.55).

4.  These Regulations also provide for the enforcement of the following Community Regulations—E+W

(a)Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1252/2002 concerning the provisional authorisation of a new additive in feedingstuffs (OJ No. L183, 12.7.2002, p.10);

(b)Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1876/2002 concerning the provisional authorisation of a new use of an additive in feedingstuffs (OJ No. L284, 22.10.2002, p.7); and

(c)Commission Regulation (EC) No. 2188/2002 concerning the provisional authorisation of new uses of additives in feedingstuffs (OJ No. L333, 10.12.2002, p.5).

5.  These Regulations—E+W

(a)amend the Feeding Stuffs Regulations 2000 by—

(i)inserting into regulation 2 a definition of the term “the Enforcement Directive” (regulation 3),

(ii)making consequential amendments to regulations 7(1) and 25(1) (regulation 4),

(iii)imposing on those responsible for establishments producing products for animal nutrition an obligation to notify the Food Standards Agency and the relevant local authority, and supply them with specified information, if they have evidence that feed materials which they have imported or put into circulation contain certain undesirable substances at levels above the maximum ones prescribed (regulation 5), and

(iv)adding three new Commission Regulations to the list of Commission Regulations under which authorisation for the marketing of feed additives has been granted, which is contained in Part IX of the Table to Schedule 3, and making a consequential amendment to the footnote to Part VII of that Table (regulation 6 and the Schedule); and

(b)amend the Feeding Stuffs (Enforcement) Regulations 1999 by—

(i)updating the definition of the term “Directive 95/53” in regulation 2 by inserting into it a reference to Directive 2001/46/EC (regulation 8(a)),

(ii)inserting into that regulation a definition of the term “put into circulation” (regulation 8(b)),

(iii)providing for the enforcement by the competent authority of new regulations 6A and 6B as inserted by regulation 12 of these Regulations (regulation 9),

(iv)providing that it is the function of the competent authority to determine in which of the ways specified in the indents of Article 8.2 of Directive 95/53/EC a person who has imported from a third country a consignment of products for animal nutrition which does not comply with specified EC controls on animal feed is to deal with the consignment and specifying how that function is to be performed (regulation 10),

(v)specifying how the competent authority is to perform its function of determining in which of the ways specified in the indents of Directive 13.1 of Directive 95/53/EC a person who has brought in from the European Community a consignment of products for animal nutrition which does not comply with specified EC controls on animal feed is to deal with the consignment (regulation 11(a)),

(vi)substituting for the existing regulation 6(6) a provision which requires the competent authority to provide the Food Standards Agency with specified information (regulation 11(b)),

(vii)inserting a new provision, regulation 6A, which imposes on those responsible for establishments producing products for animal nutrition an obligation to notify the Food Standards Agency and the competent authority, and supply them with specified information, if they have evidence that products for animal nutrition which they have imported or put into circulation do not comply with specified EC controls prescribed in relation to such products (regulation 12),

(viii)inserting a further new provision, regulation 6B, which requires a competent authority having information that a consignment of products for animal nutrition presents a serious risk to human or animal health or the environment to prohibit its use and control its movement pending further investigation and the authority determining how the consignment should be dealt with (regulation 12),

(ix)making consequential amendments to specified provisions (regulation 13), and

(x)permitting inspectors who have taken samples of materials in the prescribed manner to disclose information obtained in the course of so doing in order to prevent a serious risk to human or animal health on the environment from arising (regulation 14); and

(c)make consequential amendments to the Feeding Stuffs (Establishments and Intermediaries) Regulations 1999 (regulation 15).

6.  A regulatory impact assessment has been prepared for these Regulations and has been placed in the library of each House of Parliament, together with a transposition note setting out how the second sub-paragraph of Article 8.2 of Directive 95/53/EC and the main elements of Directive 2001/46/EC are transposed into domestic law by these Regulations. Copies may be obtained from the Animal Feed Unit of the Food Standards Agency, Aviation House, 125 Kingsway, London WC2B 6NH.E+W