Commission Decision 2007/777/EC2 lays down animal and public health rules for imports into the Union and the transit and storage in the Union of consignments of meat products and treated stomachs, bladders and intestines (‘the commodities’).

Part 1 of Annex II to Decision 2007/777/EC describes the areas of third countries for which the introduction into the Union of the commodities is restricted for animal health reasons and for which regionalisation is applied. Part 2 of that Annex sets out a list of third countries or parts thereof from which the introduction into the Union of the commodities is authorised, provided that the commodities have undergone the relevant treatment, as set out in Part 4 of that Annex.

The United States is listed in Part 2 of Annex II to Decision 2007/777/EC as a third country from which imports into and transit through the Union of consignments of commodities obtained from poultry, farmed feathered game and wild game birds are authorised from certain parts of its territory depending on the presence of HPAI outbreaks. That regionalisation was recognised by Decision 2007/777/EC, as amended by Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/2523 and Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/3494, following outbreaks of HPAI in the States of California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Decision 2007/777/EC provides that those commodities, from the affected areas of these States, may be authorised for introduction into the Union after being subjected to treatment ‘D’ as set out in Part 4 of Annex II to Decision 2007/777/EC (‘treatment D’).

The United States confirmed further outbreaks of HPAI of subtype H5 in poultry flocks in the States of California, Oregon, Minnesota and Washington during February and March 2015. The veterinary authorities of the United States immediately suspended issuing veterinary certificates for consignments of the concerned commodities intended for introduction to the Union from those States, which have been placed under veterinary restrictions in relation to these new outbreaks. The United States has also implemented a stamping-out policy in order to control HPAI and limit its spread.

An Agreement between the Union and the United States5 provides for a swift mutual recognition of regionalisation measures in the event of outbreaks of disease in the Union or in the United States (‘the Agreement’).

Based on the further presence of HPAI in the States of California, Oregon, Minnesota and Washington, commodities obtained from poultry, farmed feathered game and wild game birds from those parts of the abovementioned States that the veterinary authorities of the United States of America have placed under restrictions should undergo at least ‘treatment D’ in order to prevent the introduction of the HPAI virus into the Union.

In relation to these HPAI outbreaks regionalisation of the territory of the United States was also recognised by Commission Regulation (EC) No 798/20086, as amended by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/2437 and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/3428 for imports of certain poultry commodities falling within the scope of that Regulation.

For reasons of consistency, the description of the territories in Part 1 of Annex II to Decision 2007/777/EC should refer to the regionalisation as described in column 3 of the table in Part 1 of Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 798/2008 and be applicable for the time period defined in that Annex by the opening and closing dates in columns 6A and 6B.

Part 1 of Annex II to Decision 2007/777/EC should therefore be amended.

Decision 2007/777/EC should therefore be amended accordingly.

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