Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/259 of 10 February 2025 amending Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 as regards the entry for Japan in the lists of third countries or territories or zones thereof authorised for the entry into the Union of consignments of fresh meat of ungulates

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2016/429 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2016 on transmissible animal diseases and amending and repealing certain acts in the area of animal health (‘Animal Health Law’) ¹, and in particular Articles 230(1) and 232(1) thereof.

Whereas:

• (1) Regulation (EU) 2016/429 provides that consignments of animals, germinal products and products of animal origin must come from a third country or territory, or zone or compartment thereof, listed in accordance with Article 230(1) of that Regulation in order to enter the Union.

• (2) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/692 ² lays down the animal health requirements that consignments of certain species and categories of animals, germinal products and products of animal origin, from third countries or territories, or zones thereof, or compartments thereof in the case of aquaculture animals, must comply with in order to enter the Union.

• (3) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 ³ lays down the lists of third countries, or territories, or zones thereof, from which the entry into the Union of the species and categories of animals, germinal products and products of animal origin falling within the scope of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/692 is permitted. Those lists and certain general rules concerning those lists are set out in Annexes II to XXII, and Annex I, to that Implementing Regulation, respectively.

• (4) Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 sets out the list of third countries, territories or zones thereof authorised for the entry into the Union of consignments of fresh meat of ungulates, including bovine animals. In accordance with Article 2, point (43), of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/692, offal is included in the definition of fresh meat. International standards, such as the Terrestrial Animal Health Code ⁴ of the World Organisation for Animal Health does not consider offal as a safe commodity in case of an infection with lumpy skin disease virus (LSD). Moreover, Annex VII to Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687 ⁵ provides risk-mitigating treatments for products of animal origin from the restricted zone and as regards meat, in case of an outbreak of LSD, for the removal of offal.

• (5) Japan has notified the Commission of confirmed outbreaks of LSD in bovine animals in its territory. Consequently, the specific condition ‘No offal’ should be inserted in the entry for Japan in column 5 of the table in Part 1 of Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 to suspend the entry into the Union of offal from bovine animals originating from that third country. Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 should therefore be amended accordingly.

• (6) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Annex XIII to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 is amended in accordance with the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 2

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 10 February 2025.

For the Commission

The President

Ursula VON DER LEYEN

ANNEX

In Annex XIII, Part 1, to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/404 the entry for Japan is replaced by the following:

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/259/oj

ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)