The Official Controls (Extension of Transitional Periods) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2022

The GB Retained: Regulation (EU) 2017/625 on official controls and other official activities performed to ensure the application of food and feed law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection products applies to the competent authorities who are required to check compliance by operators with agri-food* chain legislation from Great Britain (GB).

*Agri-food includes the agricultural, horticultural, and food and drink processing industries.

This Regulation has been made to provide a harmonised approach for official controls and other official activities undertaken by competent authorities.

Application in Great Britain

Following the UK’s departure from the European Union (EU), the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018  incorporated all directly acting EU Regulations into UK law. Those Regulations have been subsequently amended to revise various definitions, terminology, authorities, etc. to GB rather than EU references, and to provide for regulation and enforcement by GB rather than EU bodies. This entry describes the retained version of Regulation (EU) 2017/625 on official controls and other official activities performed to ensure the application of food and feed law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection products, which applies in England, Scotland and Wales (GB) from IP completion day (31st December 2020).

Application in Northern Ireland

Although Northern Ireland has left the EU, under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol the EU version of Regulation (EU) 2017/625 continues to apply in Northern Ireland.

Appropriate authorities are the Secretary of State and the Welsh and Scottish Ministers.

Official controls are the controls carried out on animals and relevant goods entering GB and include checks such as documentary checks, identity checks and physical checks.

Official controls to be carried out by competent authorities are covered in the areas of:

• food and food safety;
• deliberate release into the environment of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) for the purpose of food and feed production;
• feed and feed safety;
• animal health requirements;
• prevention and minimisation of risks to human and animal health arising from animal by-products and derived products;
• welfare requirements for animals;
• protective measures against pests of plants;
• requirements for the placing on the market and use of plant protection products and the sustainable use of pesticides, with the exception of pesticides application equipment;
• organic production and labelling of organic products; and
• use and labelling of protected designations of origin, protected geographical indications and traditional specialities guaranteed.

The main environmental relevance of this Regulation is the official controls to be carried out on protective measures against pests of plants, the use of plant protection products, and the sustainable use of pesticides.

This entry summarises the main general requirements of the Regulation. It is supplementary to Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 on protective measures against pests of plants which implements controls on the movement of certain plants, plant pests and other material into, from, and within the EU to help protect the environment from the spread of harmful pests and diseases.

Duties