Official Controls at: Border Inspection Ports and the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed

The EU border control is a key factor to ensure that food products entering to the European Union are safe and meet the specific import conditions laid down in the Community legislation. The imported live animals and products of animal origin present the highest level of risks as they can transmit serious human and animal diseases. Therefore it is necessary to subject them to specific controls at their point of entry, so called veterinary Border Inspection Ports (BIPs). The EU has two alert systems in place to enable the rapid and effective exchange of information. The Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) allows urgent notifications to be sent round-the-clock when food or feed presenting a serious risk is detected. RASFF informs the third country in question, in order to prevent a recurrence of the problem. A similar alert system, EUROPHYT, enables the exchange of information when plants and plant material are intercepted for failure to meet EU plant health requirements.