- Latest available (Revised)
- Point in Time (28/11/2015)
- Original (As made)
Version Superseded: 01/12/2023
Point in time view as at 28/11/2015.
There are currently no known outstanding effects for the The Food Safety (Sampling and Qualifications) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2013.
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. At the current time any known changes or effects made by subsequent legislation have been applied to the text of the legislation you are viewing by the editorial team. Please see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ for details regarding the timescales for which new effects are identified and recorded on this site.
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Food Safety (Sampling and Qualifications) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2013 and come into operation on 6th April 2013.
2.—(1) In these Regulations —
“owner” means —
in the case of goods in transit, the consignor (or, if the consignor does not have an address in Northern Ireland, the consignee);
in the case of goods from a vending machine —
if the machine is marked with the name and address of its owner, and the address is in Northern Ireland, that person; and
in any other case, the occupier of the premises on which the machine stands or to which it is affixed;
in any other case, the person appearing to the authorised officer to be the owner of the sample when the officer procured it;
“qualified” means qualified for the purposes of the Order;
“the Order” means the Food Safety (Northern Ireland) Order 1991.
(2) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 M1 applies to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Assembly.
Marginal Citations
3. The provisions of these Regulations specified in column 3 of Schedule 1 do not apply to any sample taken under the provisions of the Regulations listed in the corresponding entry in the first column of that Schedule.
4. A person is qualified to be a food analyst or a public analyst if that person possesses a Mastership in Chemical Analysis awarded by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
5.—(1) A person is qualified to be a food examiner if that person —
(a)before the coming into operation of these Regulations, was qualified to be a food examiner under regulation 4 of the Food Safety (Sampling and Qualifications) Regulations 1991 M2; or
(b)on or after that date,
(i)possesses a qualification listed in Part 1 of Schedule 2; and
(ii)has carried out examination of food over a period or periods amounting in aggregate to at least 3 years in one or more of the laboratories listed in Part 2 of that Schedule.
(2) In calculating the qualification period in paragraph (1)(b)(ii), no account is to be taken of any period spent as an undergraduate in a laboratory specified in paragraphs 4 to 6 of Part 2 of Schedule 2.
Marginal Citations
M2S.R. 1991 No. 198
6.—(1) A director, owner or employee of a food business or partner in a food business must not act as a public analyst or food examiner for the area in which such business is situated.
(2) A person mentioned in paragraph (1) must not analyse or examine any sample which that person knows to have been taken from the business.
7.—(1) An authorised officer who has procured a sample under Article 29 of the Order and who considers that it should be analysed must, subject to paragraph (4), cause the sample to be divided into three parts.
(2) If the sample consists of sealed containers and opening them would, in the opinion of the authorised officer, impede a proper analysis, the authorised officer must divide the sample into parts by putting the containers into three lots, and each lot must be treated as being a part.
(3) The authorised officer must —
(a)if necessary place each part in a suitable container and seal each container;
(b)mark or label each part or container;
(c)as soon as reasonably practicable give one part to the owner and give the owner notice that the sample will be analysed;
(d)submit one part for analysis; and
(e)retain one part for future submission under regulation 8.
(4) If the authorised officer is of the opinion that division of the parts is not reasonably practicable or is likely to impede a proper analysis the officer must, as soon as is reasonably practicable, give notice to the owner that the undivided sample will be analysed and must submit it for analysis.
8.—(1) Where part of a sample has been retained under regulation 7(3)(e) and —
(a)proceedings are intended to be or have been commenced against a person for an offence in connection with that sample; and
(b)the prosecution intends to adduce as evidence the result of the analysis mentioned above,
paragraphs (2) to (6) apply.
(2) An authorised officer —
(a)may of the officer's own volition;
(b)must if requested by the prosecutor (if a person other than the authorised officer);
(c)must if the court so orders; or
(d)must, subject to paragraph (6), if requested by the person accused,
send the retained part of the sample to the Government chemist for analysis.
(3) The Government Chemist must analyse, or direct a food analyst to analyse, the part sent under paragraph (2) and send to the authorised officer a Government Chemist's certificate of analysis.
(4) Any certificate sent by the Government Chemist must be signed by or on behalf of the Government Chemist, but the analysis may be carried out by a person under the direction of the person who signs the certificate.
(5) On receipt of the certificate the authorised officer must, as soon as is reasonably practicable, supply a copy of it to the prosecutor (if a person other than the authorised officer) and to the person accused.
(6) Where a request is made under paragraph (2)(d) the authorised officer may give notice in writing to the person accused requesting payment of a fee specified in the notice to defray some or all of the Government Chemist's charges for performing the functions under paragraph (3) and in the absence of agreement by the person accused to pay the fee specified in the notice the authorised officer may refuse to comply with the request.
9. An authorised officer who has procured a sample under Article 29 of the Order and who considers that it should be examined must —
(a)if necessary place the sample in a suitable container and seal the container;
(b)mark or label the sample or container; and
(c)as soon as reasonably practicable,
(i)submit the sample for examination; and
(ii)give notice to the owner that it is to be examined.
10.—(1) Where a sample procured under Article 29 of the Order has been analysed or examined, the owner is entitled on request to be supplied with a copy of the certificate of analysis or examination by the enforcement authority.
(2) The certificate given by a food analyst or examiner under Article 30(6) of the Order must, subject to such adaptations as circumstances may reasonably require, be in the form of the example set out in Schedule 3.
11. In the following provisions, for “the Food Safety (Sampling and Qualifications) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1991” substitute “ the Food Safety (Sampling and Qualifications) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2013 ”
(a)regulation 13(10) and (11) (analysis etc. of samples) of the Food Hygiene Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 M3;
(b)regulation 36(10) and (11) (analysis etc. of samples) of the Official Feed and Food Controls Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009 M4.
Marginal Citations
M3S.R. 2006 No. 3 There are amendments to this rule but none is relevant
M4S.R. 2009 No. 427
12. The Food Safety (Sampling and Qualifications) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1991 are revoked.
Sealed with the official seal of the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety on 13th March 2013.
L.S.
Andrew McCormick
A senior officer of the
Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Point in Time: This becomes available after navigating to view revised legislation as it stood at a certain point in time via Advanced Features > Show Timeline of Changes or via a point in time advanced search.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Explanatory Memorandum sets out a brief statement of the purpose of a Statutory Rule and provides information about its policy objective and policy implications. They aim to make the Statutory Rule accessible to readers who are not legally qualified and accompany any Northern Ireland Statutory Rule or Draft Northern Ireland Statutory Rule laid before the UK Parliament during the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: