. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SPS/N/EEC/193
3 March 2003
(03-1227)
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Original:  English
NOTIFICATION
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
If applicable, name of local government involved:
2. Agency responsible:   Commission of the European Communities. Health & Consumer
Protection Directorate-General  Directorate E – Food Safety: Plant Health, Animal Health
and Welfare, International questions
3. Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified in national schedules
deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers should be provided in addition, where
applicable):  Meat of bovine animals, fresh or chilled (0201), Meat of bovine animals,
frozen (0202), Meat of sheep or goats, fresh, chilled or frozen (0204), Edible offal of
bovine animals fresh, chilled or frozen (0206), Meat of bovine animals and edible meat
offal, salted, in brine, dried or smoked; edible flours and meals of meat or meat offal (0210
20), Guts, bladders and stomachs of animals (other than fish), whole and pieces thereof,
fresh, chilled frozen, salted, in brine, dried or smoked (0504), Raw material for themanufacture of animal feedingstuffs (C N 0210.90). Bones and horn-cores, unworked,
defatted, simply prepared (but not cut to shape), treated with acid or degelatinised; powder
and waste of these products (0506), Fats of bovine animals, sheep or goats, other than those
of heading 1503 (1502), Sausages and similar products, of meat, meat offal or blood; food
preparations based on these products (1601), Ot her prepared or preserved meat, meat offal
or blood (1602), Flours, meals and pellets, of meat or meat offal, of fish or of crustaceans,
molluscs or other aquatic invertebrates, unfit for human consumption; greaves (2301),
Gelatine (including gelatin in rectangular (including square) sheets, whether or not surface-
worked or coloured) and gelatine derivatives; isinglass; other glues of animal origin,
excluding casein glues of heading 3501 (3503).
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent relevant or practicable: EC
member States and third countries exporting the products concerned to the European
Communities.
5. Title, language and number of pages of the notified document:   Draft Proposal for a
Commission Regulation amending Annexes III, X and XI to Regulation (EC) no 999/2001
of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards monitoring programmes, rapid
tests and specified risk material.  (Doc.SANCO/3920/2002 – Available in English –
23 pages)
6. Description of content:  The proposal amends inter alia  the list of specified risk material,
which is extended to include tonsils of bovine animals of all ages and the ileum of sheep
and goats of all ages. Special provisions are laid down for the harvesting of bovine tongue.
The Commission expects comments on: Annex XI ( list of specified risk material).G/SPS/N/EEC/193
Page 2
In its opinion on TSE infectivity distribution in ruminant tissues, adopted on 7-8 November
2002, the Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) recommended that tonsils of bovine animals
of any age should be regarded as posing a risk of bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE).  The ileum is added to the list of specified risk material based on the precautionary
principle.
Further Background:  In notification G/SPS /N/EEC/133 Rev.1 Add.1 (27 March 2002) the
EC informed of another proposal ending in Commission Regulation 1494/2002 of 21
August 2002 amending Annexes III, VII and XI to Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 of the
European Parliament and the Council as regards monitoring of bovine spongiform
encephalopathy, eradication of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy, removal of
specified risk materials and rules for importation of live animals and products of animal
origin  (OJ L225, 22/08/2002 pp:03 – 10).
7. Objective and rationale:  [  X ] food safety, [   ] animal health, [   ] plant protection,
[  ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or di sease,  [   ]  protect territory from other
damage from pests
8. International standard, gu ideline or recommendation:
[   ] Codex Alimentarius Commission, [   ] Office International des Epizooties,
[   ] International Plant Prot ection Convention, [ X ] None
If an international standard , guideline or recommendation exists, give the appropriate
reference and briefly identify deviations:
9. Relevant documents and language(s) in which these are available:  European
Commission Document SANCO/ 3920/2002  (Available in all EC languages. When a dopted
it will be published at the Official Journal available at:  http://europa.eu.int/eur-
lex/en/oj/index.html
10. Proposed date of adoption:   16 April 2003
11. Proposed date of entry into force:   1 May 2003
12. Final date for comments:  Sixty (60) days after the date of notification
Agency or authority designated to handle co mments:  [ X ] EC notification authority,
[   ] National enquiry point, or address, fax number and E-mail address (if available) ofother body:
13. Texts available from:  [   ] National notification authority,  [ X ]  EC enquiry point,  or
address, fax number and E-mail address (if available) of other body: