Text consolidated by Valsts valodas centrs (State Language Centre) with amending regulations of: 5 November 2018 [shall come into force from 9 November 2018]. If a whole or part of a paragraph has been amended, the date of the amending regulation appears in square brackets at the end of the paragraph. If a whole paragraph or sub-paragraph has been deleted, the date of the deletion appears in square brackets beside the deleted paragraph or sub-paragraph.

Republic of Latvia Cabinet Regulation No. 1393 Adopted 8 December 2009

Requirements for the Circulation of Meat from Poultry and Lagomorphs in Small Quantities

[5 November 2018]

Issued pursuant to
Section 25, Clauses 1 and 12 of the Veterinary Medicine Law

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I. General Provisions

1. The Regulation prescribes the veterinary requirements for the obtaining, storage, transportation, and distribution (hereinafter - the circulation) of such meat from poultry and lagomorphs (hereinafter - the meat) which is supplied in small quantities directly to a final consumer or a person who is engaged in retail in the Republic of Latvia and supplies fresh meat directly to the final consumer, and also the requirements for the training course on the ante-mortem inspection and a post-mortem veterinary inspection for animals of poultry and lagomorph species (hereinafter - the training course) intended for employees of the establishment.

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2. The Regulation shall apply to farms the amount of directly supplied meat of which does not exceed 10 000 poultry or lagomorphs per year if they have been raised at an animal holding of the very same farm and slaughtered at the premises intended for slaughter belonging to that farm.

3. The farm owner or possessor shall ensure the following:

3.1. fulfilment of the requirements of this Regulation;

3.2. free access for an inspector and authorised veterinarian of the Food and Veterinary Service (hereinafter - the Service) to an animal holding and premises intended for slaughter;

3.3. conditions appropriate for a veterinary inspection;

3.4. that sick or possibly sick poultry or lagomorphs are only slaughtered with the permission of a veterinarian authorised by the Service and in accordance with his or her instructions;

3.5. the records of the live poultry and lagomorphs intended for slaughter, and also the records of the poultry and lagomorph carcasses disposed of;

3.6. collection and disposal of inedible by-products in accordance with the requirements of Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 laying down health rules as regards animal by-products and derived products not intended for human consumption and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 (Animal by-products Regulation).

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4. The information referred to in Sub-paragraph 3.5 of this Regulation shall be kept for one year.

5. Employees involved in all stages of meat circulation shall:

5.1. be trained in accordance with the requirements laid down in the field of food hygiene in respect of the procedures for training persons employed in the food chain;

5.2. observe personal hygiene;

5.3. wear appropriate, clean and, if necessary, protective clothing.

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6. Premises intended for slaughter shall be registered with the Service in accordance with the laws and regulations regarding the procedures for approval and registration of the activities of food establishments.

II. Hygiene Requirements for Premises Intended for Slaughter

7. For obtaining meat, premises intended for slaughter - a separate building or premises next to the holding with a separate exit - shall be established at the farm.

8. The following shall be arranged in the premises intended for slaughter:

8.1. a slaughter room with a separate place for the stunning and bleeding, scalding, plucking, skinning and removal of the internal organs of poultry and lagomorphs (hereinafter - the evisceration);

8.2. a room or place for cooling and storing meat, if necessary, also for dividing carcasses in half, ensuring that the temperature of the meat would not be higher than 4 °C;

8.3. a place or a container for collecting poultry feathers or the skins of the lagomorphs;

8.4. a place for storing the cleaning and disinfection agents;

8.5. a place for storing packing materials;

8.6. a place for storing the clothing of the employees.

9. The premises intended for slaughter shall be equipped with a lockable place or container for storing such cooled meat the further processing of which has been suspended and a separate lockable place or container for by-products (which are not intended for human consumption) or for the storage of such meat which has been determined as not fit for human consumption.

10. In premises where poultry and lagomorphs are slaughtered and processed:

10.1. the floor shall be smooth, waterproof, non-absorbing, washable, can be disinfected, provided with water drainage and rot-proof;

10.2. the walls are easy to wash, disinfect, and have a smooth surface;

10.3. the windows shall be durable, easy to wash, parts of windows that can be opened shall be fitted with removable insect screen;

10.4. the doors shall be smooth, easy to clean and disinfect;

10.5. there is sufficient natural or artificial lighting;

10.6. the ceilings or the inner surface of the roof shall be formed in such a manner as to prevent dirt collecting and the forming of condensation.

11. Surfaces that come into contact with meat:

11.1. shall be smooth, easy to clean and disinfect;

11.2. shall be made from non-rusting, non-toxic material;

11.3. shall not be made of wood.

12. The facilities and instruments used for slaughter and processing shall be kept clean and in working order. They shall be washed and disinfected before work, after work as well as during work, if necessary.

13. Premises intended for slaughter shall be ensured with:

13.1. hot and cold running water that conforms to the mandatory harmlessness and quality requirements for drinking water laid down by laws and regulations;

13.2. an appliance for disinfecting instruments with hot water at 82 °C or another method with an equivalent effect;

13.3. agents for washing and disinfecting hands and appliances for wiping or drying hands.

14. Disinfectants shall be used in accordance with the laws and regulations regarding activities with biocides.

III. Requirements for the Circulation of Meat

15. The owner or possessor of a farm shall coordinate the number of poultry or lagomorphs to be slaughtered and time of slaughter with a territorial unit of the Service.

16. Poultry and lagomorphs shall only be allowed to be slaughtered after an ante-mortem inspection performed by one of the following persons authorised by the Service:

16.1. a veterinarian authorised by the Service;

16.2. a person authorised by the Service who has been trained to perform an ante-mortem inspection and a post-mortem veterinary inspection in accordance with the requirements laid down in Annex I, Section III, Chapter IV, Part B of Regulation (EC) No 854/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 laying down specific rules for the organisation of official controls on products of animal origin intended for human consumption (hereinafter - the trained person);

16.3. a person authorised by the Service who has education in veterinary medicine;

16.4. a person authorised by the Service who has acquired the training course (hereinafter - the trained employee of the establishment).

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16.¹ The amount of the training course is at least 40 academic hours, and the trained person shall acquire it every five years.

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16.² The training course may be delivered by a person who has acquired higher education in veterinary medicine and has coordinated the training course with the Service, taking into account the subjects referred to in Annex to this Regulation.

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17. If the person authorised by the Service who has education in veterinary medicine, the trained person or the trained employee of the establishment determines an uncharacteristic appearance or behaviour of animals during ante-mortem inspection, he or she shall inform the authorised veterinarian of the Service who shall examine the overall health condition of the animals.

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18. Slaughter and evisceration shall be carried out in the following manner:

18.1. only live poultry and lagomorphs shall be brought into the slaughter room;

18.2. poultry and lagomorphs, which are brought into a slaughter room, shall be stunned and bled as soon as possible, observing the requirements for the protection of animals kept for farming purposes and intended for slaughter;

18.3. skinning, scalding or plucking, evisceration and other processing shall be performed as soon as possible and preventing contamination of the meat;

18.4. during evisceration the contents of the digestive tract shall not be allowed to come into contact with the carcass;

18.5. internal organs, except for the kidneys of poultry, shall be removed immediately;

18.6. internal organs shall be removed in such a manner that during the post-mortem veterinary inspection it is possible to specify their belonging to a specific carcass.

19. At no stage of the meat circulation process shall meat to be used in food be allowed to come into contact with the floor and walls.

20. Parts of a carcass, which are not fit for human consumption, shall be separated from the meat to be used for human consumption as soon as possible.

21. The meat the further processing of which has been suspended or which has been determined to be not fit for human consumption, and also by-products which are not intended for human consumption shall not be allowed to come into contact with meat that has been determined as fit for human consumption.

22. A veterinarian authorised by the Service, a person authorised by the Service who has education in veterinary medicine, the trained person or the trained employee of the establishment shall perform a post-mortem veterinary inspection.

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23. If a person authorised by the Service who has education in veterinary medicine, the trained person or the trained employee of the establishment determines pathological changes in a carcass or offal during the post-mortem veterinary inspection, they shall be placed separately and it shall be notified to the veterinarian authorised by the Service who shall perform the post-mortem veterinary inspection of such carcasses and offal.

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24. Meat which has undergone a post-mortem veterinary inspection shall be marked in accordance with the laws and regulations regarding the marking of meat, minced meat, mechanically separated meat, meat preparations, and meat products.

25. After evisceration and a post-mortem veterinary inspection, the slaughtered poultry and lagomorphs shall be cooled, as quickly as possible, to a temperature that is not higher than 4 °C, if necessary, cutting the carcasses into halves.

26. When packaging carcasses or half-carcasses of poultry or lagomorphs, the requirements laid down in the laws and regulations regarding mandatory harmlessness requirements for materials and objects which come into contact with food shall be observed, and the following information shall be indicated on the packaging:

26.1. the name of the product (animal species, carcass or half-carcass);

26.2. the net mass;

26.3. the expiry date;

26.4. the storage conditions (temperature regimen);

26.5. the name of the farm or the given name, surname and address of the owner (possessor).

27. The carcasses or half-carcasses of poultry and lagomorphs shall be stored and transported, ensuring a temperature not exceeding 4 °C.

28. If the owner or possessor of a farm distributes meat acquired in small quantities to a person which is engaged in retail trade, one of the following documents shall be attached to the meat:

28.1. a waybill with a number allocated by the State Revenue Service or another document laid down in the laws and regulations regarding documentary attestation of transactions in which there is additionally indicated the number of carcasses or half-carcasses and the date on which the poultry or lagomorphs were slaughtered;

28.2. the accompanying document drawn up by the farm owner or possesor in two copies. One copy shall be submitted to the place where the meat was supplied, the other shall be kept at the place where the meat was obtained. The accompanying document shall comprise the following information:

28.2.1. the name of the farm or the given name, surname and address of the owner (possessor);

28.2.2. the number of carcasses and half-carcasses;

28.2.3. the date when the poultry or lagomorphs were slaughtered;

28.2.4. the date of supply of the meat;

28.2.5. the name and address of the receiver of the meat (for a natural person - given name and surname).

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29. A sign shall be placed at the point of sale wherein the animal species and the name of the farm where the animals were slaughtered shall be indicated.

IV. Closing Provision

30. Cabinet Regulation No. 286 of 11 April 2006, Mandatory Harmlessness Requirements for the Circulation of Small Quantities of the Meat of Poultry and Lagomorphs (Latvijas Vēstnesis, 2006, No. 62), is repealed.

Acting for the Prime Minister -
Minister for Transport K. Gerhards

Minister for Agriculture J. Dūklavs

 

Annex
Cabinet Regulation No. 1393
8 December 2009

Subjects of the training course Ante-mortem Inspection and Post-mortem Veterinary Inspection for Animals of Poultry and Lagomorph Species

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1. Theoretical part:

1.1. anatomy and physiology of animals (poultry and rabbits);

1.2. basic knowledge of diseases and pathologies;

1.3. animal welfare requirements;

1.4. requirements of laws and regulations and their application;

1.5. ante-mortem and post-mortem inspections;

1.6. action if non-compliance is established;

1.7. good hygiene practice;

1.8. ensuring food traceability;

1.9. circulation of inedible by-products of animal origin.

2. Practical part:

2.1. ante-mortem inspection;

2.2. post-mortem veterinary inspection;

2.3. assessing welfare.

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Translation © 2020 Valsts valodas centrs (State Language Centre)