16.1.2016   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 11/3

(1)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 798/2008 (2) lays down veterinary certification requirements for imports into and transit, including storage during transit, through the Union of poultry and poultry products (‘the commodities’). It provides that the commodities may only be imported into and transit through the Union from the third countries, territories, zones or compartments listed in columns 1 and 3 of the table in Part 1 of Annex I thereto.

(2)

Regulation (EC) No 798/2008 also lays down the conditions for a third country, territory, zone or compartment to be considered as free from highly pathogenic avian influenza (‘HPAI’).

(3)

Mexico is listed in Part 1 of Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 798/2008 as a third country from which imports into and transit through the Union of specified pathogen-free eggs (‘SPF-eggs’) and egg products are authorised.

(4)

Following HPAI outbreaks of the subtype H7N3 on the Mexican territory in January 2013, imports into or transit through the Union of egg products were prohibited by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 437/2013 (3).

(5)

The latest HPAI outbreak of that disease was confirmed at the beginning of March 2015.

(6)

On 8 May 2015, Mexico has submitted information on its HPAI situation. Mexico applied a stamping out policy and has carried surveillance for avian influenza. It did not detect any further virus circulation.

(7)

That information has been evaluated by the Commission. On the basis of that evaluation and the guarantees provided by Mexico, the Commission services concluded that the imports into or transit through the Union of egg products should again be authorised from the whole territory of Mexico.

(8)

The entry for Mexico in Part 1 of Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 798/2008 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(9)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,