Removal of part of Botswana’s territory from the authorised list to export fresh meat to the EU
Published by AGRINFO on
EU reviews the areas of the Botswanan territory from which fresh meat can be exported due to a regional outbreak of foot and mouth disease
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1619 of 19 September 2022 amending Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 as regards the entry for Botswana in the list of third countries authorised for the entry into the Union of consignments of fresh meat of certain ungulates
Update
The EU is withdrawing permission to export fresh meat to the EU from the Northeastern region of Botswana, where an outbreak of foot and mouth disease has occurred from 27 August 2022.
Impacted Products
fresh beef, sheep meat, game meat
What is changing?
The EU is taking a protective measure to prevent the risk of foot and mouth disease being introduced into the EU from the infected region of Botswana. It removes disease control zone 6b (Northeastern region) from the list of Botswanan regions allowed to export fresh meat (beef, sheep and game meat) to the EU.
To do this, the territory covered by zone BW-5 of the Regulation has been divided:
- zone BW-5 now contains only disease control zone 6a
- a new zone has been created – BW-6, containing disease control zone 6b.
This is in line with the regionalisation principle which allows the EU to limit an import ban to infected areas, avoiding a ban on imports from a whole country. Regionalisation can be granted only under the condition that protective measures have been taken around the location of the infection to prevent its spread.
Botswana can continue exporting fresh beef, sheep and game meat from disease control zone 6a/BW-5.
Exports from disease control zone 6b/BW-6 are banned from 27 August 2022.
Why?
On 30 August 2022, Botswana notified the European Commission of an outbreak of foot and mouth disease, confirmed by laboratory analysis (RT-PCR) on 27 August.
Timeline
Date of publication: 20 September 2022
Date of entry into force: 21 September 2022
Zone 6b/BW-6 is closed to exports from 27 August 2022 onwards
Recommended Actions
Botswanan authorities and operators are recommended to continue strict monitoring of the spread of foot and mouth disease, and to do their utmost to eradicate the outbreak.
Background
The EU Animal Health Law (Regulation (EU) 2016/429) establishes principles and rules for the prevention and control of certain diseases in animals kept by humans (including farm animals, fish and aquaculture), wild animals, and animal products.
Foot and mouth disease is a notifiable disease and measures must be taken to prevent its spread.
Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/692 supplements Regulation (EU) 2016/429 as regards the animal health requirements for the exports to the EU. Third countries (or part of their territories) wishing to export animal products to the EU must comply with the EU animal health requirements.
These third countries (or part of their territories) must be listed in Implementing Regulation 2021/404.
The list is regularly adapted in the event of an outbreak of a notifiable disease or, on the contrary, in case of the improvement of the animal health situation.
Resources
Sources