(1)

Regulation (EU) 2017/625 lays down rules for official controls and other control activities performed by the competent authorities of the Member States in order to check compliance with Union legislation, among others, in the area of food safety at any stage of production, processing and distribution.

(2)

Article 126(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2017/625 provides that a delegated act may require that only consignments of certain animals and goods from a third country or region thereof which appears on a list drawn up by the Commission for that purpose may enter the Union.

(3)

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 (2) supplements Regulation (EU) 2017/625 by laying down entry requirements to ensure that consignments of food-producing animals and certain goods intended for human consumption from third countries or regions thereof comply with the relevant requirements established in the rules on food safety referred to in Article 1(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2017/625 or with requirements recognised to be at least equivalent thereto. In particular, Article 3 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 identifies the food-producing animals and goods intended for human consumption that are subject to the requirement to come from a third country or region thereof which appears on the list referred to in Article 126(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2017/625.

(4)

Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 (3) lays down the lists of third countries or regions thereof from which the entry into the Union of consignments of certain animals and goods intended for human consumption is permitted in accordance with Article 126(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2017/625.

(5)

Article 6(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 provides that, in addition to the requirements laid down in Regulation (EU) 2017/625, consignments of food-producing animals, products of animal origin and composite products are to enter the Union only from a third country that has in place a control plan for pharmacologically active substances, pesticides and contaminants.

(6)

Article 7 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 provides that, in addition to the conditions laid down in Regulation (EU) 2017/625, consignments of food-producing animals, products of animal origin and composite products may enter the Union only from a third country that complies with the requirements provided for in Article 6(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 and is included in the list of third countries approved for the entry into the Union of the concerned food-producing animals or products of animal origin set out in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405.

(7)

Article 8(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 provides that, by way of derogation from Article 7, consignments of food-producing animals, products of animal origin and composite products may enter the Union from third countries that do not have an approved control plan for pharmacologically active substances, pesticides and contaminants but ensure that the food-producing animals and products of animal origin, including those used in composite products, originate in a Member State or a third country included in the list set out in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405. Article 8(2) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 provides that in addition to the requirements laid down in Article 127(3) of Regulation (EU) 2017/625, the Commission is to decide on the inclusion of a third country in the list referred to in Article 126(2), point (a), of that Regulation only if the competent authority of that third country provides the Commission with evidence and guarantees of compliance with the requirements laid down in Article 8(1). Such evidence and guarantees are to consist of information on the procedures in place in that third country to guarantee the traceability and origin of those food-producing animals and those products of animal origin.

(8)

Belize, Cuba, Honduras, Nigeria, and Tunisia are listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 and marked with an ‘O’ for milk and eggs indicating their intention to export to the Union composite products manufactured using processed milk and/or processed egg products obtained from a Member State or from a third country or region thereof that has in place control plans for pharmacologically active substances, pesticides and contaminants. However, those countries failed to submit to the Commission evidence and guarantees of compliance with Article 8(1) of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/2292 The marking ‘O’ for Belize, Cuba, Honduras, Nigeria, and Tunisia should therefore be deleted from Annex -I.

(9)

Brazil is listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘O’ for eggs. Brazil has submitted a control plan for eggs. That plan provides the required guaranteesand should therefore be approved. Brazil should therefore be listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ for eggs [instead of the ‘O’].

(10)

Brunei and Costa Rica are listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 and marked with an ‘O’ for milk and eggs indicating their intention to export to the Union composite products manufactured using processed milk and/or processed egg products obtained from a Member State or from a third country or region thereof that has in place control plans for pharmacologically active substances, pesticides and contaminants. However, those countries have informed the Commission that they are not interested in further exporting such composite products to the Union. That marking ‘O’ for Brunei and Costa Rica should therefore be deleted from Annex -I.

(11)

Kazakhstan has submitted a control plan for honey. The plan provides the required guarantees and should therefore be approved. Kazakhstan should therefore be listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ for ‘honey’.

(12)

Falkland Islands is currently listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ for aquaculture, indicating the existence of an approved control plan. However, Falkland Islands has informed the Commission that it is not interested in further exporting aquaculture products to the Union. The marking ‘X’ for ‘aquaculture’ should therefore be deleted from that Annex.

(13)

Tanzania is currently listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ and a ‘P’ for ‘aquaculture: only crustaceans’ indicating that Tanzania exports to the Union farmed crustaceans and composite products manufactured with processed products derived from bivalve molluscs originating either in Member States or in third countries or regions thereof listed in Annex VIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405. However, Tanzania has informed the Commission that the 2023 residue control plans were not implemented due to the absence of national production of farmed crustaceans since December 2022. The markings ‘X’ and ‘P’ for ‘aquaculture: only crustaceans’ should therefore be deleted from Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405. In addition, due to the deletion of marking ‘X’ for ‘aquaculture: only crustaceans’, and in accordance with Article 2a(4) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405, the marking ‘O’ for ‘milk’ and ‘eggs’ for Tanzania should also be deleted from Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405.

(14)

New Zealand is currently listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ for ‘equine’. As New Zealand has not submitted this year to the Commission the control plan concerning equine animals, due to the absence of equine production, the marking ‘X’ for ‘equine’ should therefore be deleted from that Annex.

(15)

Singapore is currently listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ and a footnote ‘10’ (only for consignments of fresh meat originating from New Zealand, destined to the Union and being unloaded, with or without storage, in Singapore and being reloaded in an approved establishment during transit through Singapore) for ‘equine’. As New Zealand has not submitted a control plan and has therefore been delisted for ‘equine’, the marking ‘X10’ for ‘equine’ in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 for Singapore should therefore be deleted from that Annex.

(16)

Singapore is currently listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ and a footnote ‘14’ for aquaculture (only finfish). Singapore has submitted a control plan also for crustaceans. That plan provides the required guarantees and should therefore be approved and the footnote ‘14’ restricting the entry to finfish only should be deleted from the marking ‘X’ in that Annex.

(17)

Thailand is listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with a ‘Δ’ for ‘eggs’, indicating its intention to use for the production of products intended for export to the Union only eggs either from Member States or from other third countries approved for imports of eggs into the Union Thailand has submitted a control plan for eggs. That plan provides the required guarantees and should therefore be approved. Thailand should therefore be listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ for ‘eggs’ [instead of a ‘Δ’].

(18)

United Arab Emirates and Pitcairn Islands are listed in Annex -I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with an ‘X’ for ‘honey’. However, United Arab Emirates and Pitcairn Islands have informed the Commission that they are not interested in further exporting honey to the Union. The marking ‘X’ for ‘honey’ for United Arab Emirates and Pitcairn Islands should therefore be deleted from Annex -I.

(19)

Armenia is listed in Annex IX to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 with the remark ‘Only live, heat processed and frozen crayfish from wild catch’. Armenia has informed the Commission that, in addition to continuing exporting wild caught crayfish, it is interested in starting exports of finfish and finfish products to the Union. Armenia’s control plan for pharmacologically active substances, pesticides and contaminants covers finfish and finfish products (caviar and roes). Armenia provided evidence and guarantees that finfish and finfish products comply with the relevant Union requirements or with requirements equivalent thereto, in particular as regards hygiene. The remark ‘Only live, heat processed and frozen crayfish from wild catch’ in the entry for Armenia in Annex IX to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 should therefore be changed to ‘Only live, heat processed and frozen crayfish from wild catch. Aquaculture: finfish and finfish products (caviar and roes)’.

(20)

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(21)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,

(1)

Annex -I is replaced by the text set out in Annex I to this Regulation.

(2)

Annex IX is amended in accordance with Annex II to this Regulation.