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Food Safety Legislation
Stuart A. Slorach
Chair, OIE Animal Production Food Safety Working Group
Regional Seminar for OIE National Focal Points on
Animal Production Food Safety, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 14-16 January 2014
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Background
Veterinary legislation = laws, regulations and all associated
legal instruments that pertain to the veterinary domain.
OIE interest in veterinary legislation is not new, but it has
increased as result of evaluations of Veterinary Services
carried out under the PVS Pathway.
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Background
OIE Support programme for Veterinary Legislation developed
Training of PVS assessors, country visits, capacity building
1st OIE Global Conference on Veterinary Legislation 2010
Veterinary Legislation missions
New Chapter 3.4. Veterinary legislation added to the
Terrestrial Animal Health Code in 2012 and amended in 2013.
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Capacity building for
Veterinary Services
« Treatment »
Capacity Building,
Specific Activities,
Projects and Programs
Veterinary
Legislation
« Diagnosis »
« Prescription »
PVS
Evaluation
PVS
Gap Analysis
including
Veterinary Services’
Strategic Priorities
The OIE collaborates with governments,
donors and other stakeholders
Public / Private
Partnerships
Veterinary
Education
PVS Pathway
Follow-Up
Missions
Laboratories
http://www.oie.int/en/support-to-oie-members/pvs-pathway/
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Contents of Code Chapter 3.4.
Introduction & objective, definitions, general principles
Drafting of veterinary legislation
Competent Authorities
Veterinarians and veterinary para-professionals
Laboratories in the veterinary domain
Health provisions relating to animal production
Animal diseases, animal welfare
Veterinary medicines and biologicals
Human food production chain
Import & export procedures & veterinary certification
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Introduction
Good governance is a recognised global public good and is of
critical importance to OIE Members.
Veterinary legislation should provide, at a minimum, a basis
for Competent Authorities to meet their obligations as defined
in the Terrestrial Code and the relevant Codex Alimentarius
Commission recommendations.
Under the SPS Agreement, World Trade Organization (WTO)
Members are obliged to notify WTO of changes in their
sanitary measures and provide relevant information.
Legislation is a key element in achieving
good governance
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Objective
The objective of this chapter is to provide advice and
assistance to OIE Members when formulating or modernising
veterinary legislation so as to comply with OIE standards,
thus ensuring good governance of the entire veterinary
domain
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Some definitions
Legal instrument = the legally binding rule that is issued by a
body with the required legal authority.
Hierarchy of legislation = the ranking of the legal instruments
as prescribed under the fundamental law of a country.
 Each legal instrument must comply with higher order legal instruments.
Primary legislation = the legal instruments issued by the
legislative body of a Member.
Secondary legislation = the legal instruments issued by the
executive body of a Member under the authority of primary
legislation.
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Hierarchy of normative acts
Constitution
Constitution
Conventions
OIE, Codex
Laws
Regulations
Domain below regulations
Food Law
Decrees
Guidelines, etc
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General principles (1)
Transparency
Respect for the
hierarchy of legislation
Veterinary legislation should
scrupulously respect the hierarchy
between primary legislation and
secondary legislation.
Veterinary legislation should be
inventoried and be readily accessible
and intelligible for use, updating and
modification, as appropriate.
Legal basis
Competent Authorities should have available the
primary legislation & secondary legislation
necessary to carry out their activities at all
administrative and geographic levels. Veterinary
legislation should be consistent with national
and international law, as appropriate, including
civil, penal and administrative laws.
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General principles (2)
Consultation
The drafting of new and revised
legislation relevant to the veterinary
domain should be a consultative process
involving Competent Authorities and
legal experts to ensure that the resulting
legislation is scientifically, technically
and legally sound.
To facilitate implementation of the veterinary
legislation, Competent Authorities should
establish relationships with stakeholders,
including taking steps to ensure that they
participate in the development of significant
legislation and required follow-up.
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General principles (3)
Quality of legislation and
legal certainty
It should be technically relevant,
acceptable to society, able to be
effectively implemented and
sustainable in technical, financial and
administrative terms.
A high quality of legislation is
essential for achieving legal certainty.
Veterinary legislation should be clear,
coherent, stable and transparent and protect
citizens against adverse side effects of legal
instruments.
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Competent authorities (1)
Competent Authorities should be legally mandated,
capacitated and organised to ensure that all necessary actions
are taken quickly and coherently to address animal health,
public health and animal welfare emergencies effectively.
Veterinary legislation should provide for a chain of command
that is as effective as possible (i.e. short, with all
responsibilities clearly defined). For this purpose, the
responsibilities and powers of Competent Authorities, from the
central level to those responsible for the implementation of
legislation in the field, should be clearly defined.
Where more than one Competent Authority is
involved, such as in relation to environmental, food
safety or other public health matters, a reliable system
of coordination and cooperation should be in place.
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Competent authorities (2)
Competent Authorities should appoint technically qualified
officials to take any actions needed for implementation or
verification of compliance with the veterinary legislation
 respecting the principles of independence and impartiality.
Necessary powers of the Competent Authority, including
access to premises and documents, taking samples, seizure of
animals and foods of animal origin, suspension of activities or
temporary, partial or complete closure of inspected
establishments and withdrawal of approvals.
Delegation of powers by the Competent Authority: delegation
of specific tasks related to official activities.
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Standards for food safety
The OIE animal production food
safety
standards
are
complementary to the Codex
standards – which are the food
safety references under the SPS
Agreement.
As the food production chain is
a continuum ‘from farm to fork’,
WTO Members should take full
account
of
OIE
recommendations on animal
production food safety in setting
measures for safe foods of
animal origin.
SPS Agreement
Animal health
& zoonoses: OIE
Food safety:
Codex
Plant health:
IPPC
International standard setting organisations
– the ‘Three Sisters’
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Human food production chain (1)
Veterinary legislation should provide a basis for actions to
safeguard the human food production chain through controls at all
critical steps, consistent with national food safety standards.
- Role of the Vet. Services in food safety described in Ch.6.1.
1. General provisions: Veterinary legislation should provide a
basis for actions to address the following elements:
- controls over all stages of the production, processing and
distribution of food of animal origin;
- recording all significant animal and public health events that
occur during primary production;
- giving operators of food production premises the primary
responsibility for compliance with food safety requirements,
including traceability established by the Competent Authority;
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Human food production chain (2)
- inspection for compliance with food standards, where this is
relevant to health or safety;
- inspection of premises;
- prohibition of the marketing of products not fit for human
consumption; and
- provisions for recall from the marketplace of all products
likely to be hazardous for human or animal health.
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Human food production chain (3)
2. Products of animal origin intended for human
consumption
Veterinary legislation should provide a basis for actions to
address the following elements:
- arrangements for inspection and audit;
- the conduct of inspection and audit;
- health standards; and
- the application of health identification marks that are visible
to the intermediary or final user.
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Human food production chain (4)
- The Competent Authority should have the necessary powers and
means to rapidly withdraw any products deemed to be
hazardous from the food chain or to prescribe uses or
treatments that ensure the safety of such products for human or
animal health.
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Human food production chain (5)
3. Operators responsible for premises and establishments
pertaining to the food chain
Veterinary legislation should provide a basis for actions to
address the following elements as appropriate:
- registration of premises and establishments by the Competent
Authority;
- the use of risk-based management procedures; and
- prior authorisation of operations that are likely to constitute a
significant risk to human or animal health.
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Codex & OIE standards: meat hygiene
Code of Hygienic Practice for Meat was adopted by the
Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) in July 2005 and is
the primary international standard for meat hygiene.
Chapter 6.2 of the OIE Terrestrial Animal Health Code
(Control of biological hazards of animal health and public
health importance through ante- and post-mortem meat
inspection) refers to the Codex Code and describes the role of
the Veterinary Services in meat inspection.
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Codex & OIE standards: poultry
In 2011 the CAC adopted Guidelines for the control of
Campylobacter and Salmonella in chicken meat
The OIE Terrestrial Animal Health Code includes:
- Ch.6.4. Biosecurity procedures in poultry production.
- Ch.6.5. Prevention, detection and control of Salmonella in
poultry
Codex guidelines & the OIE chapters contain cross references.
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Codex & OIE standards: animal feeding
Codex Code of Practice on Good Animal Feeding.
OIE has adopted Ch.6.3 of the Terrestrial Animal Health
Code: “Control of hazards of animal health and public
health importance in animal feed” and Ch. 6.1 of the
Aquatic Animal Health Code: “Control of hazards in aquatic
animal feeds”. Both chapters refer to Codex Code of Practice.
In July 2013 the CAC adopted “Guidelines on the
Application of Risk Assessment for Feed”.
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Codex standards: some other examples
More than 500 Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for
veterinary drugs in foods
Guidelines for risk analysis of foodborne antimicrobial
resistance. (see also OIE Terrestrial Code chapters 6.6 - 6.10)
Maximum limits for chemical contaminants in foods
General principles of food hygiene
Code of Hygienic Practice for milk and milk products
Code of Hygienic Practice for fish and fishery products
Standards for individual food commodities, e.g. corned beef,
various cheeses, honey, fermented milks
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Further information
Further information about OIE and Codex food safety standards,
recommendations, etc can be obtained from:
OIE website (www.oie.int)
Codex website (www.codexalimentarius.org) or via your
national Codex Contact Point (contact details on the Codex
website).
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