To be approved to export to the EU, a Third Country must satisfy the European Commission that its regime offers equivalent guarantees to those applicable in the EU, particularly in terms of legislation, hygiene conditions, animal health status, veterinary medicines controls, zoonoses controls and other food law. In addition, an approved residue monitoring programme must be in place. Furthermore, the meat must be sourced from establishments that are approved and must bear an EU approved health mark. In Third Countries where hormones or other substances banned in the EU are used, split production systems must be in place.
The Food and Veterinary office (FVO) of the EU carries out inspections in Third Countries to verify the situation on the ground. Where the FVO considers that public health requirements are not being met by an approved establishment in a Third Country, the establishment may be removed from the EU approved list.
Meat may only be imported into the European Community through an EU approved border inspection post (BIP). BIPs across the EU carry out sampling on imported products for residues of banned substances including steroids and hormones, as well as permitted medicines such as antibiotics and anthelmintics.
The EU Commission publishes an annual consolidated report of the results from the national residue control plans of all Member States which can be found at: http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/chemicalsafety/residues/monitoring_en.htm.
