EU loses patience with UK
over differences in irradiated food regulations
Source of
Article: http://www.foodproductiondaily.com/Quality-Safety/EU-loses-patience-with-UK-over-differences-in-irradiated-food-regulations By Rory Harrington, 26-Jun-2009
European Union officials have issued a
second warning to the UK over its failure to come into line with rules
governing imports of irradiated food from third countries.
The reprimand came from the Commission after it said the current UK
rules on food irradiation
were out of step with European law as laid out in Directive 1999/2/EC. The
regulation sets out that EU countries can only accept food and food
ingredients treated with irradiation from outside the bloc from processing
plants that appear on an approved list drawn up by Brussels. However, the UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) told
FoodProductionDaily.com that it believed it was already complying with
European law and that new regulations, due to come into force at the end of
next month, would resolve the situation entirely. A FSA spokesman stressed
ther were no food safety implications. Legal anomoly The issue appears to have been caused by legal anomaly as the 1990
Food (Control of Irradiation) Regulations allow the UK to
"recognise" food irradiation facilities in third countries (non-EU
countries), even if they are not approved by the European Community. The UK
has said it would not do this because “to do so would be in breach of Article
9 of Directive 1999/2/EC”, said a FSA consultation paper on the new UK law
that was issued earlier this year. The draft paper said food that has been irradiated in a third country
for sale in the UK “must have been irradiated at a facility that has been
approved by the Community” and that “current regulations are being operated
in a way that ensures that the Directive is not breached and no third country
food irradiation facilities have been separately”. Losing patience While the Commission recognized the UK is working to address the
issue, it appears its patience with the national government is wearing thin
after sending an initial letter more than two years ago urging it to solve
the problem. Officials in Brussels have now fired off a further warning shot
in order to ensure swift compliance. “The Commission recognises that the United Kingdom has so far not used
this possibility and is in the process of amending its legislation in the
field of food irradiation,” it said in a statement. “However, since a letter of formal notice was sent already in March
2007 and since there have been considerable delays in the process leading to
the adoption of new regulations in the UK, it was necessary to issue a
reasoned opinion to ensure expedited compliance. The next step would be to take the UK Government to the European Court
of Justice, although such action is considered highly unlikely. |
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