A
Guide to Application for Health Certificate for Foods of Animal
Origin
Purpose
To provide a general guidance to Hong
Kong exporters who wish to export foods of animal origin
to European Union (EU) member states.
Certification Authority
The Food and Environmental Hygiene
Department (FEHD) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative
Region Government is the competent authority recognised
by the EU to issue health certificates for foods containing
ingredients of animal, poultry or fishery origin.
Points to Note
This is a public service provided
by the FEHD to assist local exporters of foods of
animal origin in meeting the veterinary health requirements
imposed by importing EU member states.
Sending in an application for the
ˇ§Health Certificate for Foods of Animal Originˇ¨ does
not guarantee the issuance of such certificate. The
FEHD needs to inspect the food establishment and the
manufacturing process concerned to ensure all requirements
specified in the relevant Directives of the EU Council
are fulfilled before issuing a health certificate.
Condition of the Certificate: Not
applicable (subject to the requirements of the importing
country)
Relevant Ordinance: Not applicable
Relevant Directives of the EU Council:
Fishery Products - Council Directive 91/493/EEC
Poultry Meat Products - Council Directives 77/99/EEC
& 92/118/EEC
Validity of the Certificate: Not
specified (to be decided by the importing member states).
Application Procedure
1. Application for a health certificate
must be submitted in a prescribed form which is free
of charge from the Veterinary Public Health Section
of the FEHD on the 43rd Floor, Queensway Government
Offices, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong.
2. The applicant or his/her representative
must submit the completed application form to the
Veterinary Public Health Section in person and pay
the prescribed certification fee (currently HK$7,165
per certificate as at September 2003 for each consignment
of food products under one bill of lading or one airway
bill).
3. The following information must
be submitted along with the application:
(a) description of the product,
including the exact description of the animal, poultry
or fishery ingredients contained therein;
(b) a complete breakdown of the packaging and the
weight of the consignment;ˇ@ˇ@
(c) identification marking(s);
(d) country of destination;
(e) country of origin of the animal, poultry or
fishery ingredients contained in the product;
(f) names and addresses of the consignee and consignor;
(g) name and address of the food establishment in
Hong Kong; and
(h) other information such as the expected date
of departure, the name of the freight vessel or
the flight number of the freighter (if applicable).
4. Special requirements, if any, must
be stated in the application form for inclusion in
the Health Certificate subject to their being ethically
acceptable.
5. It is the responsibility of the
applicant to ensure that all the necessary and correct
information is available to the FEHD at the time of
inspection, and is presented in the application form
or attached thereto at the time of application.
6. Inspection of the food establishment
and the manufacturing process will be made within
30 days from the date of the application. A request
to cancel the inspection must be made in writing and
reach the FEHD within these 30 days or the certification
fee will be forfeited.
7. The Health Certificate may not
be issued if the applicant is unable to provide the
full details and/or the documents as may be required
by the FEHD within 30 days after inspection. In addition,
if the FEHD is not satisfied that the specified requirements
have been met, the Health Certificate will not be
issued and the certification fee will be forfeited.
Additional Notes
After the inspection, if the FEHD
is satisfied that the specified requirements have
been met, the Health Certificate will normally be
issued within three working days upon receipt of the
full set of documentation from the applicant.
Applicants should note that it is
not possible for the FEHD to alter the Health Certificate
for food products which have already been delivered
to their destination or which are locked in containers
ready for delivery. If alterations to any of the details
on a health certificate are required, the applicant
must have to apply for the inspection of the product
again through the normal procedure so that the new
facts can be verified by the FEHD. Therefore, the
applicant should, for his own good, check that necessary
details have been correctly included in the Health
Certificate before any product is exported.
The FEHD will not issue a health
certificate in respect of any trade or arrangements
that may, for any reason, be considered undesirable.
In addition to the 3-working-day
processing time, the minimum time required for arranging
and conducting a field inspection of a product is
normally seven working days. Applicants are thus advised
to submit applications well in advance.
Enquiries
For further information or enquires,
please contact the Veterinary Public Health Section
of the FEHD ˇV
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Last
review date: 30-03-2005