The European Sprouted Seeds Association (ESSA) has welcomed this week’s adoption of new EU rules for sprouts by the EU Standing Committee of the Food Chain and Animal Health, which will come into force from March 2013.
Rules for the sprouted seed sector have been drawn up in the wake of last year’s E coli outbreak in Europe, and are described as a ‘further step in the implementation of the lessons learned regarding this incident’.
According to the Standing Committee, the adopted package consists of four pieces of regulation dealing with the approval of all sprouts producing plants after a compliance check with EU hygiene rules: tightening traceability requirements for seeds intended for sprouts and sprout production; testing for the absence of pathogenic E coli as well as certifying compliance with EU rules at import of seeds intended for sprouting and sprouts.
All of these regulations will apply from March 2013, with the exception of the import certificates, which will have a transition period lasting until 1 July 2013.
The adoption of the rules concludes a year of consultations during which EU sprouted seeds growers reached out to both national and European authorities to further improve food safety practices.
“The pro-active involvement of growers across Europe has helped to achieve a feasible and harmonised approach regarding sprout production rules,” said Cynthia Andersson, interim-president of ESSA. “This involvement has ultimately led to the establishment of the European Sprouted Seeds Association, which provides a platform for growers to discuss issues of common concern, beyond just food safety.”
