11.1.2011   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 6/7

(1)

Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 establishes a Rapid alert system for food and feed (hereinafter — ‘RASFF’), managed by the Commission and involving the Member States, the Commission and the European Food Safety Authority, to provide the control authorities with an effective tool for the notification of risks to human health deriving from food or feed. Article 50 of that Regulation sets out the scope and requirements for the RASFF to operate.

(2)

Article 51 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 requires the Commission to establish implementing measures for Article 50 of that Regulation, in particular as regards the specific conditions and procedures applicable to the transmission of notifications and supplementary information.

(3)

Member States are primarily responsible for the enforcement of the EU legislation. They perform official controls, the rules for which are laid down in 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 (2). The RASFF supports the Member States’ actions by allowing the rapid exchange of information on risks posed by food or feed and on measures taken or to be taken to counter such risks.

(4)

Article 29 of Regulation EC No 183/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 January 2005 laying down requirements for feed hygiene (3) extends the scope of the RASFF to serious risks to animal health and to the environment. Therefore, the term ‘risk’ used in this Regulation is to be understood as a direct or indirect risk to human health in connection with food, food contact material or feed in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 or as a serious risk to human health, animal health or the environment in connection with feed in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 183/2005.

(5)

Rules should be established to allow the RASFF to operate correctly both in relation to cases where a serious risk within the meaning of Article 50(2) of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 is identified and in relation to other cases where, even though a risk of lesser gravity or urgency is identified, an efficient exchange of information is necessary between and among the members of the RASFF network. Notifications are classified into alert, information and border rejection notifications to allow for a more efficient handling by members of the network.

(6)

For the RASFF to operate efficiently, requirements should be formulated for the procedure for transmission of the different types of notifications. Alert notifications should be transmitted and treated with priority. Border rejection notifications are particularly relevant to controls carried out at border inspection posts and designated points of entry along the European Economic Area border. Templates and data dictionaries enhance the legibility and understanding of the notifications. Flagging members of the network for certain notifications draws their attention to particular notifications ensuring thereby that they are handled quickly.

(7)

In accordance with Regulation (EC) No 178/2002, the Commission, the Member States and EFSA have designated contact points, which represent the members of the network in order to benefit from a correct and fast communication. In application of Article 50 of that Regulation and in order to avoid possible mistakes in the transmission of the notifications, only one designated contact point should exist for each member of the network. This contact point should facilitate the rapid transmission to a competent authority inside a member country.

(8)

In order to ensure the correct and efficient functioning of the network between its members, common rules for duties of the contact points should be established. Provisions concerning the coordinating role of the Commission should also be set out, including the verification of the notifications. In this respect, the Commission should also assist members of the network in taking appropriate measures by identifying recurrent hazards and operators reported in the notifications.

(9)

In case that, notwithstanding the checks carried out by the notifying member and by the Commission, a transmitted notification turns out to be erroneous or unfounded, then a procedure providing for either its amendment or its withdrawal from the system should be laid down.

(10)

According to paragraphs 3 and 4 of Article 50 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 the Commission is required to inform third countries of certain RASFF notifications. Therefore, without prejudice to specific provisions in agreements concluded pursuant to Article 50.6 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002, the Commission should ensure direct contact with food safety authorities in third countries in order to send out notifications to these third countries and at the same time ensure the exchange of relevant information with regard to these notifications and any direct or indirect risk to human health deriving from food or feed.

(11)

Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 requires the public authorities to inform the public of risks to human health inter alia. The Commission should provide summary information about the RASFF notifications transmitted and annual reports highlighting the trends in food safety issues notified through RASFF and the evolution of the network itself to inform members, stakeholders and the general public.

(12)

This Regulation has been discussed with the European Food Safety Authority.

(13)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

1.

‘network’ means the rapid alert system for the notification of a direct or indirect risk to human health deriving from food or feed, as established by Article 50 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002;

2.

‘member of the network’ means a Member State, the Commission, the European Food Safety Authority and any applicant country, third country or international organisation having concluded an agreement with the European Union in accordance with Article 50(6) of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002;

3.

‘contact point’ means the designated contact point that represents the member of the network;

4.

‘alert notification’ means a notification of a risk that requires or might require rapid action in another member country;

5.

‘information notification’ means a notification of a risk that does not require rapid action in another member country;

6.

‘border rejection notification’ means a notification of a rejection of a batch, container or cargo of food or feed as referred to in Article 50(3)(c) of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002;

7.

‘original notification’ means an alert notification, an information notification or a border rejection notification;

8.

‘follow-up notification’ means a notification that contains additional information in relation to an original notification;

9.

‘professional operators’ means food business operators and feed business operators as defined in Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 or business operators as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1935/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4).

(a)

set up an effective communication network between their contact points and all relevant competent authorities within their jurisdiction allowing immediate transmission of a notification to the competent authorities for appropriate action, and maintain it in permanent good order;

(b)

define the roles and responsibilities of their contact points and those of the relevant competent authorities within their jurisdiction, as regards the preparation and transmission of notifications sent to the Commission contact point, as well as the assessment and distribution of notifications received from the Commission contact point.

(a)

the member taking the action shall provide relevant information about the returned product by way of a follow-up notification unless that information was already included in full in the original notification;

(b)

the member country to which the products were returned shall inform on the action taken on the returned products, by way of a follow-up notification.

(a)

original notification

(b)

follow-up notification

(a)

verify the completeness and legibility of the notification, including whether the appropriate data from the dictionaries referred to in Article 7(2) were selected;

(b)

verify the correctness of the legal basis given for the cases of non-compliance found; however an incorrect legal basis shall not prevent transmission of the notification if a risk was identified;

(c)

verify that the subject of the notification falls within the scope of the network as laid down in Article 50 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002;

(d)

ensure that the essential information in the notification is provided in a language easily understandable by all members of the network;

(e)

verify compliance with the requirements laid down in this Regulation;

(f)

identify recurrences of the same professional operator and/or hazard and/or country of origin in notifications.

(a)

a summary of all alert, information and border rejection notifications, providing information on the classification and the status of the notification, the products and risks identified, the country of origin, the countries where the products were distributed, the notifying member of the network, the basis for the notification and the measures taken;

(b)

an annual report on the notifications transmitted through the network.