Eggs and poultry
Legislation in the eggs and poultry sector
Processing
The Food Safety Act provides the framework for all food legislation to secure the safety of all food products. Live poultry are a food source, but eggs and poultry immediately post slaughter are defined as food.
The key point of the Food Safety Act is that it requires a company to demonstrate "all due diligence" and that "all reasonable precautions" had been taken to prevent food safety incidents. The interpretation of reasonable is determined in each individual case. Prosecutions are monitored to see case law being set. It is worthy of note that larger companies may be expected to have taken more steps to prevent incidents than smaller ones.
There is a large amount of legislation that has been implemented under the Food Safety Act. In relation to processing, of poultry and eggs, the following is relevant.
Exempt and non exempt premises are defined, and the roles of the Official Veterinary Surgeon are given. Requirements for eviscerated and uneviscerated poultry are also given.
Implementing authority and source of further information: Food Standards Agency.
These regulations prescribe minimum harmonised standards to facilitate trade and to ensure EU consumers are provided with good quality fresh and frozen poultrymeat produced to a common standard. The Regulations cover grading by quality, condition of presentation, labelling, extraneous water content, and Special Marketing Term criteria which must be met before certain claims about types of farming can be made (e.g. free range, barn, etc).
The Egg Marketing Standards Regulations 1995 SI No 1544
On hen eggs the Regulation covers grading by quality and weight, packing, storage and transport, labelling and marking of eggs and packs and Special Marketing Term (SMT) criteria which must be met before certain claims about types of farming can be made (e.g. free range, barn).
The regulations also cover eggs for hatching (including domestic fowl, turkeys, ducks, geese and guinea fowl) and chicks, which include utility chicks (table type chicks, laying chicks and dual purpose chicks), parent and grandparent stock. Other provisions include registration of hatcheries, transportation and documentation, the marking of eggs for hatching and collection and dissemination of statistics.
The Egg Products Regulations 1993 SI No 1520
These Regulations detail the requirements for the preparation of egg products. It describes which eggs may be used, how they should be stored, cleaned and the conditions for pasteurisation. The Regulations also describe how samples must be tested to ensure that the process has been correctly carried out and the microbiological tests that shall be performed. In addition, there are details of how egg products shall be packaged, marked, stored and transported.
Requirements for premises carrying out egg processing are described (general and hygiene).
Implementing Authority and Source of Further Information: Local Authority Environmental Health Department
The Ungraded Eggs (Hygiene) Regulations 1990 SI No 1323
These Regulations apply to the sale of ungraded eggs by the producer either from the farmgate, in a local market or by selling door to door. Eggs with cracks visible to the naked eye shall not be sold.
Implementing Authority and Source of Further Information: Local Authority Environmental Health Department.
Page last modified: 23 March 2006