The regulation sets out common rules for European Union (EU) official controls to ensure that agri-food chain legislation to protect human health, animal health and welfare, and plant health, is correctly applied and enforced.
The regulation introduces a more harmonised and coherent system of official controls and enforcement measures along the agri-food chain, and strengthens the principle of risk-based controls.
KEY POINTS
Agri-food chain
The regulation includes rules on official controls performed on all food and feed businesses, from primary producers to retailers and caterers, including plant and animal breeders, growers and traders.
Scope
The regulation covers official controls carried out by national enforcement authorities to verify compliance with agri-food chain rules on:
food and food safety, integrity and wholesomeness throughout production, processing and distribution;
the use of genetically modified organisms for food and feed production;
feed and feed safety throughout production, processing, distribution and use;
animal health and welfare;
organic production and labelling.
The regulation also covers imports of certain animals and goods from:
outside the EU which must be checked at EU border control posts;
goods sold via the internet.
The regulation also covers official controls to check compliance of imported animals and products of animal origin with certain rules on the use of veterinary medicines.
Risk-based system
Sets out a risk-based control system so that national enforcement authorities carry out official controls where they are most needed.
In general, to ensure their effectiveness, these controls will be unannounced.
Animal welfare
Official controls apply to animal welfare rules, including during transport, slaughter and farming.
The European Commission can adopt legislation to adjust official control rules to meet the specific needs of animal welfare.
There will be EU reference centres for animal welfare which:
assist EU Member States with their official controls by:
carrying out scientific and technical studies,
conducting training courses,
sharing research findings and information on technical innovations;
provide scientific and technical expertise on methods to assess and improve the welfare of animals.
Cooperation between Member States
Clarifies and strengthens rules on the cooperation and administrative assistance between Member States.
Member States must ensure information is exchanged between national authorities and other enforcement authorities, public prosecutors and judicial authorities on possible cases of non-compliance.
An integrated management system for official controls will integrate all existing (and future) computer systems managed by the Commission.
Transparency
National authorities must publish annual reports.
Financing
Rules for calculating fees for official controls will ensure that Member States properly finance their control system and that the fees do not exceed the cost of performing official controls.
FROM WHEN DOES THE REGULATION APPLY?
It has applied since for most of the articles in the regulation such as those relating to its scope, definitions, rules for competent authorities, financing of official controls and enforcement actions of the competent authorities.
Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 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) 2016/429 and (EU) 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, , pp. 1–142).
Successive amendments to Regulation (EU) 2017/625 have been incorporated into the original document. This consolidated version is of documentary value only.
RELATED DOCUMENTS
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/405 of laying down the lists of third countries or regions thereof authorised for the entry into the Union of certain animals and goods intended for human consumption in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 114, , pp. 118–150).
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/466 of on temporary measures to contain risks to human, animal and plant health and animal welfare during certain serious disruptions of Member States’ control systems due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) (OJ L 98, , pp. 30–33).
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1014 of to lay down detailed rules on minimum requirements for border control posts, including inspection centres, and for the format, categories and abbreviations to use for listing border control posts and control points (OJ L 165, , pp. 10–22).
Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/1012 of supplementing Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council by derogating from the rules on the designation of control points and from the minimum requirements for border control posts (OJ L 165, , pp. 4–7).
Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/1081 of establishing rules on specific training requirements for staff for performing certain physical checks at border control posts (OJ L 171, , pp. 1–4).
Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/624 of concerning specific rules for the performance of official controls on the production of meat and for production and relaying areas of live bivalve molluscs in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 131, , pp. 1–17).
Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/631 of supplementing Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing European Union reference laboratories for pests of plants (OJ L 105, , pp. 1–2).
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/329 of designating a European Union Reference Centre for Animal Welfare (OJ L 63, , pp. 13–14).
Regulation (EU) 2016/429 of the European Parliament and of the Council of on transmissible animal diseases and amending and repealing certain acts in the area of animal health (‘Animal Health Law’) (OJ L 84, , pp. 1–208).
Regulation (EU) No 652/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of laying down provisions for the management of expenditure relating to the food chain, animal health and animal welfare, and relating to plant health and plant reproductive material, amending Council Directives 98/56/EC, 2000/29/EC and 2008/90/EC, Regulations (EC) No 178/2002, (EC) No 882/2004 and (EC) No 396/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Directive 2009/128/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Decisions 66/399/EEC, 76/894/EEC and 2009/470/EC (OJ L 189, , pp. 1–32).
Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs (OJ L 343, , pp. 1–29).
Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market and repealing Council Directives 79/117/EEC and 91/414/EEC (OJ L 309, , pp. 1–50).
Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of laying down health rules as regards animal by-products and derived products not intended for human consumption and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 (Animal by-products Regulation) (OJ L 300, , pp. 1–33).
Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council of on maximum residue levels of pesticides in or on food and feed of plant and animal origin and amending Council Directive 91/414/EEC (OJ L 70, , pp. 1–16).
Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 of on the protection of animals during transport and related operations and amending Directives 64/432/EEC and 93/119/EC and Regulation (EC) No 1255/97 (OJ L 3, , pp. 1–44).