New attestation for producers needed to allow export of pork to continue to the EU

As things stand, from 1 January the EU will treat the UK as a third (non-member) country. This means UK exports to the EU will be subject to the same documentary certification and other requirements as goods from the rest of the world.

A new clause has been added to the EHC stating that pigs have, from birth, been kept separate from wild cloven-hoofed animals and there are good management and biosecurity practices.

To enable the OV to sign such a statement, the following steps need to be taken:

Your own private vet will now be asked to issue you with a statement (where appropriate) that your pigs have been farmed separately from wild cloven hoofed animals with appropriate housing/fencing. You, as a producer, will need to do two things:

• Update your production information held in Pig Hub by indicating you have a quarterly vet statement which confirms the above (this information will feed into eAML2 and your licence)
• Confirm on the eAML2 online form that the pigs you are shipping have also been farmed separately from wild cloven hoofed animals from birth – by doing this you are also confirming that the pigs have been farmed separately on suppliers farms if they weren’t born on your unit. However, if your entire supply chain is Red Tractor assured, you will be able to automatically answer ‘yes’ to this question

If you submit your movements on a CSV file via the eAML gateway (sent to movements@eaml2.org.uk), you will need to ensure:

• All your holdings are updated with the confirmation that you have the new Quarterly Veterinarian Certification on Pig Hub
• You use the new CSV template which can be down loaded from eAML system

The record for your pigs will be passed through the eAML2 system as part of the Food Chain Information (FCI) to attest that pigs have been kept separate from wild ungulates throughout their life. This is needed so that the OV at the abattoir can sign the EHC and so the pork can be exported.  

The EHC will be re-issued approximately every three months, but will remain with you. You will need to keep this in case the processor is audited at some point by the EU.

Meetings with the UK Chief Veterinary Officer and her EU counterparts are ongoing, and the need for such a requirement may, in time, be removed.

We will continue to communicate any updates as soon as they are available, but if you have any questions, check out our FAQ.