Effective August 21, 2021, exporters for commercial food and animal commodities destined for the European Union (EU) where certification is required under the new EU Animal Health Law will be required to use updated export certificates accessed through the Trade Control and Expert System New Technology (TRACES NT). Existing export certificates to the EU will be accepted until October 20, 2021 as long as they were signed before August 21, 2021.
The only exception to this is for the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) form Certificate of Free Sale (CFIA/ACIA 5786) which is available for food products manufactured by licensed parties under the Safe Food for Canadians Act (SFCA) and Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR). The Certificate of Free Sale does not replace product or commodity specific certificates that have been negotiated with foreign countries. It also does not replace or supersede additional import requirements that may be established by the importing country.
The European Union defines products containing both processed products of animal origin and plant origin as composite products. Many of these composite products entering the EU will be subject to import verifications and are affected by the AHL.
We would like to bring to your attention a summary table that was made available by the European Commission, highlighting changes to composite products post April 21, 2021. Most specifically, new Model Private Attestations to be issued by food operators exporting shelf-stable composite products not containing meat into the EU, as included in Annex V of Delegated Regulation 2020/2235.
Exporting food and animal products to the European Union
Exporters will be required to create a EU TRACES login account and EU user access profile and send a request to validate the account by contacting CFIA.
Exporters should familiarize themselves with requirements for exporting to the European Union.
Questions or concerns can be directed to your local CFIA office