Imported Food (Northern Ireland) Regulations 1984
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 1984/1917 |
| Year | 1984 |
1984 No. 1917
FOOD
FOOD HYGIENE
The Imported Food (Northern Ireland) Regulations 19847thDecember 1984
10thDecember 1984
1stJanuary 1985
ARRANGEMENT OF REGULATIONS
PART I
PRELIMINARY
1. Citation and commencement.
2. Interpretation.
3. Presumption as to food commonly used for human consumption.
4. Enforcement authorities.
PART II
ALL IMPORTED FOOD
5. Prohibition on importation of unfit food.
6. Examination of imported food.
7. Special examination.
8. Consent of officer of Customs and Excise.
9. Powers of officer of Customs and Excise.
PART III
MEAT AND MEAT PRODUCTS
10. Interpretation and application of Part III.
11. Requirements as to health marks etc for imported meat.
12. Requirements as to health certificates.
13. Lost, damaged or defective health marks and certificates.
14. Disposal of meat imported contrary to the regulations.
15. Powers of a justice of the peace.
16. Prohibition on the importation of meat required to be exported.
PART IV
GENERAL
17. Record to be kept of food destroyed.
18. Offences and penalties.
19. Court may include a justice who has examined the food.
20. Disputes as to compensation.
21. Protection for officers.
22. Application of various provisions of the Act.
23. Revocations.
SCHEDULES
Schedule 1. Articles of food to which Part III does not apply
Schedule 2. Meat products which are exempt from the requirements of regulation
12
Schedule 3. Requirements as to health marks for imported meat
Schedule 4. Requirements as to wrapping, packaging and transport of imported
meat
Schedule 5. Meat or poultry meat in respect of which specific recognition is
required
Schedule 6. Health certificate for fresh meat for consignment to a member state
of the EEC.
Schedule 7. Public health certificate for fresh meat.
Schedule 8. Health certificate for meat products intended for consignment to a
member state of the EEC.
Schedule 9. Health certificate for meat products intended for consignment to
the United Kingdom.
Schedule 10. Health certificate for fresh poultry meat intended for consignment
to a member state of the EEC.
Schedule 11. Label to be affixed to large packages of poultry meat intended for
a certain destination.
Schedule 12. Revocations.
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, the Secretary of State for Social Services and the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, acting jointly, being designated (a) Ministers for the purposes of section 2(2) of the European Communities Act 1972(b) in relation to the common agricultural policy of the European Economic Community, in exercise of the powers conferred upon them by the said section 2(2), and by sections 13 and 118 of the Food Act 1984(c), as applied to Northern Ireland by section 135 of that Act, and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, after consultation with such organisations as appear to them to be representative of interests substantially affected by the regulations, hereby make the following regulations:—
PART I
PRELIMINARY
Citation and commencement
1. These regulations may be cited as the Imported Food (Northern Ireland) Regulations 1984 and shall come into operation on 1st January 1985.
Interpretation
2.—(1) In these regulations—
"the Act" means the Food and Drugs Act (Northern Ireland) 1958(d);
(a) S.I. 1972/1811.
(b) 1972 c.68.
(c) 1984 c.30.
(d) 1958 c.27 (N.I.).
"authorised officer" means an authorised officer of an enforcing authority, and for the purposes of these regulations has the meaning otherwise assigned to it by section 30 of the Act;
"competent authority" means an authority having power under the laws in force in any country to examine food and to certify as to its fitness for human consumption;
"the Department" means the Department of Health and Social Services for Northern Ireland;
"district" means the district of a district council, and includes the waters of any customs port abutting on any part of the district;
"district council" means a district council within the meaning of the Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972(a);
"enforcing authority" means the authority responsible for the enforcement and execution of these regulations under regulation 4;
"food" includes drink, chewing gum and other products of a like nature and use, and articles and substances used as ingredients in the preparation of food or drink or of such products, but does not include—
(a) water, live animals or birds,
(b) articles and substances used only as drugs, or
(c) milk, which has the meaning given to it in the Importation of Milk Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1983 (b);
"fresh meat" means the flesh or other edible parts of a mammal or bird, which has not been subjected to any treatment or process other than chilling, freezing, vacuum packing or packing in a controlled atmosphere and includes minced, chopped or mechanically recovered meat, and meat treated by the addition of seasonings;
"hovercraft" has the meaning assigned to it by section 4(1) of the Hovercraft Act 1968(c);
"importer", in relation to imported food, includes any person who, whether as owner, consignor, consignee, agent or broker, is in possession of the food or in any way entitled to the custody or control of it;
"master", in relation to a ship, aircraft or hovercraft, includes the officer or any other person for the time being in charge or command of the ship, aircraft or hovercraft;
"officer of Customs and Excise" includes any person acting under the authority of the Commissioners of Customs and Excise.
(2) Subject to the provisions of paragraph 4 of the Second Schedule to the Act the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 (d) shall apply to the interpretation of these regulations as it applies to a Measure of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Presumption as to food commonly used for human consumption
3. For the purposes of these regulations, any food commonly used for human consumption shall, if imported for sale or for use in the preparation of food for sale, be presumed, until the contrary is proved, to have been imported for sale, or, as the case may be, for use in the preparation of food for sale, for human consumption.
(a) 1972 c.9 (N.I.).
(b) S.R. (N.I.) 1983 No. 338.
(c) 1968 c.59.
(d) 1954 c.33 (N.I.).
Enforcement authorities
4.—(1) Subject to the provisions of this regulation and to such of the provisions of these regulations as prescribe functions to be exercised by officers of Customs and Excise, the authority responsible for the enforcement of these regulations shall be,—
(a) in relation to imported food which is in, or unloaded in, a district, and—
(i) which is liable to immediate customs examination, the district council for that district,
(ii) where the customs examination is deferred until the food reaches a place of destination in Northern Ireland, the district council in whose district the place of destination lies;
(b) in relation to imported food which is unloaded in England, Wales or Scotland, the district council in whose district the food is deposited for customs examination.
(2) Where imported food is unloaded in a district, and—
(a) customs examination of the food has been completed; and
(b) an authorised officer of the district council for that district nevertheless considers it expedient (having regard to the nature of the container in which the food is imported) that—
(i) any examination of the food for the purposes of these regulations should be deferred until the food reaches a specified place of destination elsewhere in Northern Ireland, or
(ii) any examination of the food should take place under England and Wales or Scotland regulations when the food reaches a specified place of destination in England, Wales or Scotland; and
(c) the importer gives to the district council in whose district the port, airport or other place of entry is situated an undertaking in writing that the container has been sealed and will not be opened until it reaches the place of destination specified in the undertaking,
the authorised officer shall, by the most expeditious means available, notify the receiving authority that the food (so described as to enable it to be identified) has not, by reason of the matters referred to in sub-paragraph (b), been examined under these regulations at the port, airport or other place of entry and send them a copy of the undertaking referred to in sub-paragraph (c); and where the receiving authority are a district council within the meaning of these regulations that district council shall thereupon become responsible for the execution and enforcement of these regulations in relation to that food.
(3) Where under any provision corresponding to paragraph (2) contained in England and Wales or Scotland regulations a district council receive notification that imported food which has not been examined under those regulations has been or is being sent to a place of destination in their district, they shall thereupon become responsible for the execution and enforcement of these regulations in relation to that food.
(4) Where imported food is in, or unloaded in, a district and customs examination is deferred until the food reaches a place of destination elsewhere in the United Kingdom, the district council shall so inform the receiving authority.
(5) In this regulation—
"England and Wales or Scotland regulations" means regulations with respect to imported food in force in England and Wales or Scotland, as the case may be;
"receiving authority" means an authority within the United Kingdom in whose district is situated the place of destination of any imported food, being an authority with enforcement functions under these regulations or the England and Wales or Scotland regulations, namely—
(a) where that place is in England or Wales, a local authority within the meaning of the Food Act 1984;
(b) where that place is in Scotland, a local authority within the meaning of the Food and Drugs (Scotland) Act 1956(a);
(c) where that place is in Northern Ireland, a district council...
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