Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Food

Trader Notice MH 07/2008

To: All Meat Establishments approved By Saudi Arabian Technical Delegation

Subject: Certification Procedures for the Export of Chilled and Frozen Boneless Beef to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The certificate applies to chilled and frozen boneless beef. Only those plants which have been visited by a technical delegation from Saudi Arabia and approved by them are eligible to export beef to Saudi Arabia.

The list of approved plants is on the DAFF website.

The Saudi Arabian Authorities and the Irish Authorities have agreed on the export of chilled and frozen boneless beef to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This agreement is based on the visit by a delegation from Saudi Arabia who reviewed the systems in the Veterinary Public Health Inspection Service of the Department, and was satisfied with their delivery on the objectives of animal health, public health and animal welfare. A delegation from the Irish authorities to Saudi Arabia have negotiated and clarified the content of the agreed certificate.

If plant management from an approved plant wish to supply to the Saudi Arabian market, the Veterinary Inspector must be advised in advance and a Standard Operating Procedure must be drawn up in consultation with the Veterinary Inspector. The SOP must contain the criteria necessary for certification of the product for Saudi Arabia.

The following are the Department’s requirements for certification;

Only beef from animals under 30 months old may be exported to Saudi Arabia.

Animals must have passed ante-mortem and post-mortem and be declared fit for human consumption and must not be subjected to a stunning process prior to slaughter with a device injecting compressed air or gas into the cranial cavity or to a pithing process.

Every shipment must be accompanied with a certificate of Halal Slaughtering (according to Islamic Rights/law) from an Islamic centre of an association approved by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

To requisition certificates for Saudi Arabia, please refer to the Standard Operating Procedure under ‘Requisitions’ on the Ezone under Veterinary Public Health section.

Certificate requirement / DAFF provisions to certify requirement
1.Was derived from animals under 30 months of age that were submitted to examination before slaughter, for a period that must not exceed 12 hours, and after slaughter, were under the direct supervision and inspection of the Official Veterinarian and declared fit for human consumption
/ Only beef from animals under 30 month olds may be exported to Saudi Arabia.
Animals must have passed antemortem and post-mortem and been declared fit for human consumption
2.  Was derived from animals that were born and reared in Ireland and from livestock that were officially registered at the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
/ Only animals born and reared in the Republic of Ireland are eligible for export to Saudi Arabia, and they must come from herds registered in CMMS / AIMs.
3.  Was derived from animals belonging to
livestock that had never been subjected to, or contracted an epidemic disease of compulsory notification by OIE classification. / Ireland is free from OIE list A diseases.
Meat from cattle positive or inconclusive for tuberculosis or brucellosis is not eligible for export to Saudi Arabia.
4.  Were prepared, handled, stored and transported according to the food health requirements / The food health requirements refer to the standards required under EU legislation (accepted as satisfactory for the export of beef to Saudi Arabia).
5.  Was produced in a slaughterhouse and cutting plants applying a system of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP). / All DAFF approved establishments are obliged to implement HACCP systems.
6. Was transported from the slaughterhouse to the cutting house and then to the port of export, according to a procedure that does not allow it to pass by or stop at areas where pigs are kept and the means of transport should not be at any time used to carry pigs or its meat or products. / The procedure directs all beef meat to be transported directly to the port/point of export from the approved DAFF establishments without diversion to a place where live pigs are kept.
The procedure for the transport of beef meat must ensure that the beef meat is wrapped and packaged in disposable wrapping and packaging for one use only, and that pigs and pig meat or products must not be present on the container at any time.
7. Was supervised through all stages of production, storage and transport by an official veterinarian and an official technician of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food / VPHIS DAFF systems of supervision and checks comply with this requirement.
8.  Was not stored or handled with products made from regions that don’t comply with the conditions mentioned in paragraph 3. / Ireland is free from OIE list A diseases.
As meat from cattle positive or inconclusive for tuberculosis or brucellosis is not eligible for export to Saudi Arabia, there will be no storage or handling with product made from regions that don’t comply with the conditions mentioned in paragraph 3.

David Waters

Meat Hygiene Section

25th July 2008.