(1)

The entry into application on 1 January 2006 of Regulations (EC) No 852/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4), (EC) No 853/2004, (EC) No 854/2004 and (EC) No 882/2004 will entail considerable changes to the rules and procedures to be followed by food operators and the competent authorities of the Member States. The application of some of these measures with immediate effect from 1 January 2006 would present practical difficulties in some cases. A period should therefore be envisaged in order to permit a smooth transition to the full implementation of the new rules and procedures.

(2)

It is appropriate that the duration of the transitional period be fixed taking into account a first review of the new regulatory framework on hygiene scheduled within the first four years.

(3)

Provision should therefore be made for a transitional period during which certain requirements laid down in those Regulations can be progressively implemented. With a view to a harmonised approach, that transitional period should in principle last four years but could, where justified, be shorter. Provision should also be made for the possibility or reviewing any of those arrangements in the light of experience gained.

(4)

As a standard transitional arrangement, it should continue to be possible to place on the market products produced before the application of the new rules. The arrangement should apply for the whole of the transitional period, unless the shelf-life of the product is shorter.

(5)

Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 excludes from its scope the direct supply by the producer of small quantities of meat from poultry and lagomorphs to the final consumer or to local retail establishment supplying directly the final consumer as fresh meat. Council Directive 71/118/EEC of 15 February 1971 (5) on health problems affecting the production and placing on the market of fresh poultrymeat and Council Directive 91/495/EEC of 27 November 1991 (6) concerning public health and animal health problems affecting the production and placing on the market of rabbit meat and farmed game meat also allowed the Member States to derogate from the general requirements for such a purpose without limiting it to fresh meat. That possibility should be maintained during the transitional period.

(6)

The work of approving establishments, in particular those that did not have to be approved under the previously applicable rules but were allowed to market their production on their national market only, places a heavy burden on the competent authorities. Provision should therefore be made for a transitional arrangement to allow such establishments to continue marketing on their national markets until they are actually approved.

(7)

The transitional arrangement covering the use of wrapping and packaging materials and marking equipment in point 6 of Section I of Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 needs to be reviewed in order to tighten up the previous rules on the use of marking equipment while giving due consideration to the expectations of food business operators concerning the tolerance regarding the use of marking material purchased prior to the implementation of the new framework. The relevant provisions of that Regulation should therefore be deleted and a new arrangement adopted under this Regulation. Given the risk of abuse of such a transitional arrangement, its duration should be limited and care taken to ensure that old marking equipment not complying with the new rules is withdrawn as soon as possible and not later than the end of the transitional period. Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 and Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 854/2004 should be amended accordingly.

(8)

The health import requirements for food of animal origin will not be completely harmonised for certain types of products and the import conditions applicable to such products during the transitional period should be made clear.

(9)

The provision of food chain information is a new requirement on food business operators. A transitional period should be introduced for the full implementation of food chain information requirements. In particular, a smooth flow of information from the farm to the slaughterhouse should be facilitated by a transitional arrangement relaxing the requirement to supply the information 24 hours in advance of the animals' arrival at the slaughterhouse.

(10)

Section III of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 requires the official veterinarian or approved veterinarian to sign the certificate accompanying the farmed non domestic ungulates from the farm to the slaughterhouse. Directive 91/495/EEC requires the signature of the veterinary service. That provision should be maintained during the transitional period.

(11)

The certificate required by Regulation (EC) No 854/2004 in Chapter X Part B of Annex I is more detailed than the certificate previously prescribed. The model certificate set out in Annex III to Directive 91/495/EEC should be accepted during the transitional period.

(12)

Section V of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 requires the raw material for minced meat to meet certain criteria and lays down labelling requirements. Composition criteria of minced meat regarding in particular the content of fat and the connective tissue: meat protein ratio should be assessed. Pending the outcome of this assessment, it is appropriate to maintain current criteria established by Council Directive 94/65/EC of 14 December 1994 (7) laying down the requirements for the production and placing on the market of minced meat and meat preparations.

(13)

Notwithstanding the general principle laid down in Article 3(2) of Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 whereby food business operators are not to use, where hygiene so requires, any substance other than potable water, provisions allowing the use of clean water for the handling of fish are set out in Chapter VII of Annex II to Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 and Part II of Chapter I and Chapters III and IV of Section VIII of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004, in particular for handling fish on board vessels. Since the use of clean water does not represent a risk for public health as long as it meets the definition laid down in Regulation (EC) No 852/2004, and with a view to allowing land-based establishments handling fishery products to adapt progressively, the scope of the relevant provisions in Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 should be extended to such establishments during the transitional period.

(14)

Part III(1)(a) of Chapter II of Section IX of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 provides that food business operators manufacturing dairy products must ensure that raw cows' milk meets a limit criterion before processing. Compliance with that limit is particularly important for food safety where the milk has to be heat-treated and has not been processed within a pre-defined time. By way of a transitional measure, verification of compliance with this criterion immediately before processing should be limited to such circumstances.

(15)

Section X of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 lays down specific hygiene rules for eggs and egg products. According to Chapter I(2), eggs should be stored and transported at a constant temperature that is best suited to ensuring optimal conservation of their hygiene properties. As before 1 January 2006 Member States were authorised to apply controlled temperature standards within their territory to egg storage facilities and to transport from one facility to another, it should be made clear that those standards may continue to apply on a transitional basis if still authorised by the competent authority. This will give operators time to adapt their activities and procedures to new temperature standards that may be required by the competent authority.

(16)

Under Part II(1) of Chapter II of Section X of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 853/2004, cracked eggs may be used for the manufacture of egg products under certain conditions. As a transitional arrangement, provision should be made to extend this possibility to other establishments producing liquid egg, where they comply with the same conditions.

(17)

Regulation (EC) No 854/2004 requires the slaughterhouse staff authorised by the competent authority to carry out tasks of official auxiliaries to be trained and qualified in the same way as the official auxiliaries. During the transitional period, it is appropriate to allow the competent authority time for planning and organising additional training and qualification of slaughterhouse staff assisting with official controls, and to limit consequently the requirement to ensuring that slaughterhouse staff is trained for the specific tasks they are allowed to carry out.

(18)

Article 12 of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 requires laboratories carrying out analysis of samples taken during official controls to be accredited. Laboratories, which were not required under previous Community legislation to be accredited, might require some additional time to obtain full accreditation, since accreditation is an intricate and laborious process. It is appropriate to give to such laboratories additional time to enable them to arrange for accreditation.

(19)

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