The act establishes new rules for checking plants, plant products, and other objects entering the European Union through border control posts. It modifies the frequency rates for identity and physical checks of various agricultural products, focusing on specific categories like cut flowers, fruits, vegetables, and used machinery from different countries. The regulation aims to ensure proper phytosanitary control while optimizing the inspection process based on risk assessment.
The structure of the act consists of two main articles and an annex. Article 1 amends the previous Regulation 2022/2389 by modifying Article 4(4) regarding exceptions to frequency rates and replacing Annex I with new frequency rates. Article 2 sets the entry into force date (March 1, 2025). The annex provides detailed tables with specific frequency rates for different products and their countries of origin.
Key provisions:
1. New frequency rates are established for various products, with some rates decreased (e.g., cut flowers from Ecuador, fruits from European countries) and others increased (e.g., Citrus from Morocco and USA).
2. Plants intended for planting are excluded from reduced frequency rates.
3. The regulation introduces a risk-based statistical method considering factors like pest mobility, previous non-compliance cases, and overall phytosanitary risks.
4. Specific attention is given to different product categories with varying inspection rates:
– Cut flowers: rates from 1% to 50%
– Fruits: rates from 1% to 75%
– Vegetables: rates from 1% to 15%
– Used machinery: 5% for all third countries
: The regulation includes specific provisions for products from Ukraine, treating it as a European third country with specific frequency rates for certain fruits.
