The legal basis of the system is Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety (O.J. No L 31 of 1 February 2002).

The purpose of the rapid alert system for food and feed (RASFF) is to provide the control authorities with an effective tool for exchange of information on measures taken to ensure food safety.

To assist the members of the network, information is classified under two different headings:

• ALERT NOTIFICATIONS

Alert notifications are sent when the food or feed presenting the risk is on the market and when immediate action is required. Alerts are triggered y the Member State that detects the problem and has initiated the relevant measures, such as withdrawal/recall. The notification aims at giving all the members of the network the information to verify whether the concerned product is on their market, so that they also can take the necessary measures.

Consumers can be reassured that products subject to an alert notification have been withdrawn or are in the process of being withdrawn from the market. The Member States have their own mechanisms to carry out such actions, including the provision of detailed information through the media if necessary.

• INFORMATION NOTIFICATIONS

Information notifications concern a food or feed for which a risk has been identified, but for which the other members of the network do not have to take immediate action, because the product has not reached their market. These notifications mostly concern food and feed consignments that have been tested and rejected at the external borders of the EU (and the EEA1).

Consumers can be reassured that products subject to an information notification have not reached the market or that all necessary measures have already been taken.

The Commission publishes a weekly overview of alert and information notifications. As it is necessary to strike the balance between openness and the protection of commercial information, the trade names and the identity of individual companies are not published. This is not detrimental to consumer protection, as a RASFF notification implies that measures have been or are in the process of being taken.

The public must be aware that the Commission is not in a position to release more information other than that published here. However, in exceptional circumstances where the protection of human health requires greater transparency, the Commission takes the appropriate action through its usual communication channels.

The Commission informs the authorities of third countries of notifications concerning products manufactured in, distributed to or dispatched from these countries. However, the fact that a country is mentioned as the origin of a product does not necessarily imply that the identified hazard(s) originated in the country concerned.

The notifications reported in the weekly overviews published on the European Commission's web site are so-called "original notifications", representing a new case reported on a health risk detected in one or more consignments of a food or feed. On these cases, control authorities are exchanging additional information on measures taken and outcome of investigations. This information does not appear in the publicly accessible weekly overviews.

Newly added columns are the "type of control" and "status" columns.

The type of control column indicates what type of control lay at the basis of the notification:

• border control – import rejected: controls at the border posts of the outer EU (and EEA.) borders when the consignment was not accepted for import (“import rejected”);

• border control – screening sample: notification initiated through a sample taken at a border post for analysis but the consignment was meanwhile released to the market (“screening sample”);

• market control: official control on the EU (and EEA) internal market;

• company own-check: notification initiated through a company notifying the outcome of an owncheck to the competent authority;

• consumer complaint: notification initiated through a consumer lodging a complaint with the competent authority; notifications initiated through reported food poisoning outbreaks are classified under this category.

The status column is a combination of two values, "distribution status" and "action taken".

The distribution status indicates knowledge existing at the time of notification about the possible distribution of the product on the market. The concept "market" is to be interpreted in a geographical way: "the internal Community market" i.e. this does not necessarily mean that the product is already on the shelves available to consumers, as often it is not.

The action taken represents the action already taken by the notifying country at the time of notification. If "no action taken" is given for an alert notification, this normally indicates that the product is not on the market of the notifying country (therefore: no action taken by the notifying country) but it may be on the market of other member countries.

Another addition to the table is the insertion between brackets of the outcome of the analysis to the "reason for notifying" column, whenever that information is available. This information allows evaluating the seriousness of the notified finding.

Week 2007/15

TABLE 1: ALERT NOTIFICATIONS

Notifications in blue typeface concern feed, all other notifications concern food.

DATE:	NOTIFIED BY:	REF.:	REASON FOR NOTIFYING:	TYPE OF CONTROL:	STATUS
10/04/2007	the Slovak Republic	2007.0256	henbane seeds (Hyoscyamus niger) (0.42 %) in poppy seeds from the Slovak Republic, raw material from the Czech Republic	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / prohibition to trade - sales ban
10/04/2007	Poland	2007.0257	presence of antibiotics in beef quarters from Poland	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / destination of the product identified
10/04/2007	Germany	2007.0258	fumonisins (6400 μg/kg - ppb) in corn flour from Italy via the Netherlands	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / recall from recipients
10/04/2007	Italy	2007.0259	arsenic (4.3 mg/kg - ppm) in bentonite from Argentina	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / recall from recipients
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.0260	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (205 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars containing minced red chilli paste from the United Kingdom	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / public warning press release -
11/04/2007	Germany	2007.0261	unauthorised colour Sudan 1 (0.02 mg/kg - ppm) in zomi palm oil from Ghana via the Netherlands	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / product detained
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.0262	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (200 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars containing minced green chilli paste from the United Kingdom	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / public warning - press release
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.0263	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (425 mg/kg - ppm) from lids on jars containing minced coriander paste from the United Kingdom	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / public warning - press release
12/04/2007	the Czech Republic	2007.0264	too high content of E 452 - polyphosphates (7460 mg/kg - ppm) in deep frozen fish fillets (Micromesistius poutassou) from China via Denmark	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / prohibition to trade - sales ban
12/04/2007	Italy	2007.0265	Salmonella spp in kebab of chicken and turkey meat from Germany	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / product detained
13/04/2007	France	2007.0266	parasitic infestation with Cysticercus bovis of bovine carcass from France	company's own check	distribution on the market (possible) / product (to be) returned to dispatcher
13/04/2007	the Slovak Republic	2007.0267	henbane seeds (Hyoscyamus niger) (0.24 %) in poppy seeds from the Slovak Republic, raw material from the Czech Republic	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / withdrawal from sale
13/04/2007	Germany	2007.0268	deoxynivalenol (DON) (1467 μg/kg - ppb), zearalenone (79.7 μg/kg - ppb) and fumonisins (2007 μg/kg - ppb) in maize meal from Italy	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / recall from recipients
13/04/2007	Greece	2007.0269	undeclared sulphite (58 mg/kg - ppm) in vinegar from Italy	market control	distribution on the market (possible) / withdrawal from sale

TABLE 2: INFORMATION NOTIFICATIONS

Notifications in blue typeface concern feed, all other notifications concern food.

DATE:	NOTIFIED BY:	REF.:	REASON FOR NOTIFYING:	TYPE OF	STATUS
				CONTROL:
10/04/2007	the Czech Republic	2007.AWQ	aflatoxins (B1 = 27.8; Tot. = 31.8 μg/kg - ppb) in roasted and salted pistachio nuts in shell from Iran and from the Czech Republic, via Germany	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / withdrawal from sale
10/04/2007	Italy	2007.AWR	unauthorised colour Sudan 1 (3.8 mg/kg - ppm) in dried ground chilli pepper from Cameroon	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
10/04/2007	the Czech Republic	2007.AWS	aflatoxins (B1 = 7.5; Tot. = 8.4 μg/kg - ppb) in roasted and salted pistachio nuts from the Czech Republic, raw material from Iran via the Slovak Republic	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / withdrawal from sale
10/04/2007	Italy	2007.AWT	bad state of preservation of semolina manioc from Cameroon	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
10/04/2007	Italy	2007.AWU	Salmonella spp in dog chew from Germany	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / recall from recipients
10/04/2007	Italy	2007.AWV	histamine in fresh tuna slices from Sri Lanka via France	market control	product expired (exceeded use-by date) / product detained
10/04/2007	Italy	2007.AWW	E 210 - benzoic acid (667 mg/l) unauthorised in noni juice from the United States	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
10/04/2007	Italy	2007.AWX	E 210 - benzoic acid (79. mg/kg - ppm) unauthorised in noni juice from the United States	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
10/04/2007	Denmark	2007.AWY	Campylobacter (in 11/12 samples: 300-3900 CFU/g) in fresh whole chicken from France	market control	product expired (exceeded use-by date) / product detained
10/04/2007	the United Kingdom	2007.AWZ	aflatoxins (B1 = 39; Tot. = 44 μg/kg - ppb) in melon seeds from Nigeria	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) destroyed
10/04/2007	the United Kingdom	2007.AXA	aflatoxins (B1 = 17; Tot. = 20 μg/kg - ppb) in melon seeds from Nigeria	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) destroyed
10/04/2007	Latvia	2007.AXB	unauthorised substance sulphathiazole (119 μg/kg - ppb) in natural bee honey from Ukraine	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / recall from recipients
11/04/2007	Germany	2007.AXC	aflatoxins (B1 = 46.3; Tot. = 49.4 / B1 = ND; Tot. = ND / B1 = ND; Tot. = ND μg/kg - ppb) in raw pistachio nuts with shell from Iran	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
11/04/2007	the Netherlands	2007.AXD	aflatoxins (B1 = 5.4; Tot. = 6.0 μg/kg - ppb) in groundnut kernels from Argentina	border control - import rejected	no distribution / destination of the product changed
11/04/2007	Finland	2007.AXE	migration of nickel (34; 37 mg/dm²) from metal wine pourer from India	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.AXF	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (470 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars containing satay sauce from Thailand	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / prohibition to trade - sales ban
11/04/2007	Slovenia	2007.AXG	mercury (2.26 mg/kg - ppm) in swordfish ( Xiphias gladius ) from Vietnam	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
11/04/2007	Spain	2007.AXH	aflatoxins (B1 = 1.44 / B1 = 0.87 / B1 = 5.45 μg/kg - ppb) in blanched peanuts from China	border control - import rejected	no distribution / reinforced checking
11/04/2007	Germany	2007.AXI	aflatoxins (B1 = 174; Tot. = 184 μg/kg - ppb) in dried chilli powder from Pakistan	market control	no stock left / no action taken
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.AXJ	migration of DIDP - diisodecyl phthalate (210 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars of hot soya bean paste from Thailand	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / prohibition to trade - sales ban
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.AXK	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (190 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars containing Thai sauce from Thailand	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / prohibition to trade - sales ban
11/04/2007	the Netherlands	2007.AXL	aflatoxins (B1 = 118.9; Tot. = 135.1 / B1 = 57.3; Tot. = 64.5 μg/kg - ppb) in groundnuts from the United States	border control - import rejected	no distribution / destination of the product changed
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.AXM	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (400 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars containing minced red chilli from Thailand	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / public recall
11/04/2007	Poland	2007.AXN	Salmonella in soybean meal from Argentina	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.AXO	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (340 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars containing minced garlic from Thailand	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / public recall
11/04/2007	Germany	2007.AXP	parasitic infestation with pleroceroids of fresh swordfish fillets from Sri Lanka	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) destroyed
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.AXQ	migration of DINP - di-isononyl phthalate (355 mg/kg - ppm) from lids of jars containing chilli oil from China	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / public recall
11/04/2007	Norway	2007.AXR	migration of DEHP - di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (205 mg/kg - ppm) and of DIDP -diisodecyl phthalate (185 mg/kg - ppm) from lids on jars containing chilli paste with sweet basil leaves from Thailand	market control	no stock left / public warning - press release
12/04/2007	France	2007.AXS	aflatoxins (B1 = 20.1; Tot. = 23.6 μg/kg - ppb) in hazelnut kernels from Turkey	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
12/04/2007	France	2007.AXT	aflatoxins (B1 = 16.6; Tot. = 30.6 μg/kg - ppb) in hazelnut kernels from Turkey	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
13/04/2007	Germany	2007.AXU	unauthorised colour Sudan 4 (24.41 mg/kg - ppm) in palm oil from Ghana	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / product (to be) destroyed
13/04/2007	the United Kingdom	2007.AXV	absence of health certificate(s) for satay sauce from China (Hong Kong)	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
13/04/2007	the United Kingdom	2007.AXW	absence of health certificate(s) for peanut oil from China (Hong Kong)	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
13/04/2007	Greece	2007.AXX	aflatoxins (B1 < 0.18; Tot. < 0.62 / B1 < 0.18; Tot. < 0.62 / B1 = 5.6; Tot. = 39.6 μg/kg - ppb) in peanut kernels (arachis) from China	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
13/04/2007	Greece	2007.AXY	too high content of colour E 100 - Curcumin (3.2 g/kg) in curry powder from India	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
13/04/2007	the United Kingdom	2007.AXZ	unauthorised substance nitrofuran (metabolite) -nitrofurazone (SEM) (9.1 μg/kg - ppb) in frozen raw brown head-on shrimps from Bangladesh	border control - screening sample	information on distribution not (yet) available / product (to be) returned to dispatcher
13/04/2007	Italy	2007.AYA	bad state of preservation (sprouted) and mould infestation of yam from Côte d'Ivoire	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) re-dispatched
13/04/2007	Lithuania	2007.AYB	suffocation risk as a result of the consumption of spray candy from China	border control - import rejected	no distribution / product (to be) destroyed
13/04/2007	the United Kingdom	2007.AYC	unauthorised substance nitrofuran (metabolite) -nitrofurazone (SEM) (7.5 mg/kg - ppm) in frozen freshwater shrimp (Macrobrachium rosenbergii) from Bangladesh	market control	no distribution / withdrawal from sale
13/04/2007	the United Kingdom	2007.AYD	unauthorised substance nitrofuran (metabolite) -furazolidone (AOZ) (1.4 μg/kg - ppb) in frozen raw tilapia fillets from China	market control	distribution restricted to notifying country / recall from recipients

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