Brussels, 18/12/2015 (Agence Europe) - In addition to the compromise on plant health (see EUROPE 11456), the European Parliament and the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council came to agreement on Wednesday 16 December on the rules on the trade in breeding animals and genetic material.
The text aims to make it easier to import and export breeding animals and genetic material. Companies breeding bovine, ovine, caprine, porcine and equine species will have to meet specific criteria to obtain recognition from national authorities. The new regulation harmonises registration and classification rules for purebred breeding animals and toughens breeding-related controls, particularly for imported animals and their germinal products to ensure their compliance with EU standards.
MEPs were careful to ensure that the special rules for the horse sector as breeding animals of the equine species are also used for competition. Parliament negotiators also insisted on designing special rules for endangered breeds in order to preserve genetic diversity in Europe.
The new regulation harmonises rules on the registration and classification of purebred breeding animals in herd-books, flock-books, studbooks and, in the case of hybrid breeding pigs in registers.
With the exception of the text on seeds, which was rejected, all other parts of the Commission's package on plant and animal health have now been finalised or are in the process of finalisation (animal health, official checks and financing). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)