Commission Regulation (EC) No 401/2006Show full title

A. GENERAL PROVISIONS U.K.

Official controls shall be performed in accordance with the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004. The following general provisions shall apply without prejudice to the provisions in Regulation (EC) No 882/2004.

A.1. Purpose and scope U.K.

Samples intended for official control of the levels of mycotoxins content in foodstuffs shall be taken according to the methods set out in this Annex. Aggregate samples thus obtained shall be considered as representative of the lots. Compliance with maximum limits laid down in Regulation (EC) No 466/2001 shall be established on the basis of the levels determined in the laboratory samples.

A.2. Definitions U.K.

For the purpose of this Annex, the following definitions shall apply:

A.2.1.

‘lot’ means an identifiable quantity of a food commodity delivered at one time and determined by the official to have common characteristics, such as origin, variety, type of packing, packer, consignor or markings;

A.2.2.

‘sublot’ means a designated part of a large lot in order to apply the sampling method on that designated part; each sublot must be physically separate and identifiable;

A.2.3.

‘incremental sample’ means a quantity of material taken from a single place in the lot or sublot;

A.2.4.

‘aggregate sample’ means the combined total of all the incremental samples taken from the lot or sublot;

A.2.5.

‘laboratory sample’ means a sample intended for the laboratory.

A.3. General provisions U.K.

A.3.1. Personnel U.K.

Sampling shall be performed by an authorised person as designated by the Member State.

A.3.2. Material to be sampled U.K.

Each lot which is to be examined shall be sampled separately. In accordance with the specific sampling provisions for the different mycotoxins, large lots shall be subdivided into sublots to be sampled separately.

A.3.3. Precautions to be taken U.K.

In the course of sampling and preparation of the samples, precautions shall be taken to avoid any changes, which would affect:

• the mycotoxin content, adversely affect the analytical determination or make the aggregate samples unrepresentative;

• the food safety of the lots to be sampled.

Also, all measures necessary to ensure the safety of the persons taking the samples shall be taken.

A.3.4. Incremental samples U.K.

As far as possible incremental samples shall be taken at various places distributed throughout the lot or sublot. Departure from such procedure shall be recorded in the record provided for under part A.3.8. of this Annex I.

A.3.5. Preparation of the aggregate sample U.K.

The aggregate sample shall be made up by combining the incremental samples.

A.3.6. Replicate samples U.K.

The replicate samples for enforcement, trade (defence) and reference (referee) purposes shall be taken from the homogenised aggregate sample, unless such procedure conflicts with Member States’ rules as regards the rights of the food business operator.

A.3.7. Packaging and transmission of samples U.K.

Each sample shall be placed in a clean, inert container offering adequate protection from contamination and against damage in transit. All necessary precautions shall be taken to avoid any change in composition of the sample, which might arise during transportation or storage.

A.3.8. Sealing and labelling of samples U.K.

Each sample taken for official use shall be sealed at the place of sampling and identified following the rules of the Member State.

A record shall be kept of each sampling, permitting each lot to be identified unambiguously and giving the date and place of sampling together with any additional information likely to be of assistance to the analyst.

A.4. Different types of lots U.K.

Food commodities may be traded in bulk, containers, or individual packings, such as sacks, bags, retail packings. The method of sampling may be applied to all the different forms in which the commodities are put on the market.

Without prejudice to the specific provisions set out in other parts of this Annex, the following formula may be used as a guide for the sampling of lots traded in individual packs, such as sacks, bags, retail packings.

• weight: in kg

• sampling frequency (SF): every n^th sack or bag from which an incremental sample must be taken (decimal figures should be rounded to the nearest whole number).

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A guidance document for competent authorities for the control of compliance with EU legislation on aflatoxins is available at http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/food/chemicalsafety/contaminants/aflatoxin_guidance_en.pdf The guidance document provides additional practical information but the information contained in the guidance document is subordinate to the provisions in this Regulation.