US FDA - EU SEAFOOD PROCESSOR
EXPORT CERTIFICATION LISTS

ATTENTION ALL SHIPPERS

In the past the EU has accepted and used the FDA EU Seafood Processor Export Certification List for acceptance of U.S. seafood shipments. However, due to a change in EU legislation, the EU began maintaining their own Official List of approved establishments. This has resulted in two separate (and different) lists:

• US FDA-EU Export Certificate List  (April 2009)
• Official EU list (available in PDF*)

The EU's first implementation of new procedures requiring their formal "acceptance" of establishments on the FDA list has resulted in a substantial time lag between FDA's acceptance and recognition of an establishment into the program/FDA listing, and appearance of the establishment on the Official EU list. In response to this situation, the EU has informed FDA that they will provide member countries with the most up to date FDA list, but it will be up to each individual member state to decide if they will accept a shipment from an establishment not on the Official EU list. In these cases U.S. shippers will ship at their own risk.

FDA has continued and will continue to provide the EU with quarterly updates. However, even after resolution of the above situation, EU procedures indicate that there will be at least a 30 working day lag time between FDA's submission of updates and publication of the EU's Official list. In all cases shippers should check the Official EU list to verify an establishment is on that list prior to making a shipment. If a firm does not appear on the EU's Official list but does appear on the FDA's list, shipments may be made but will risk rejection, as noted above.

For additional information contact:

• FDA's Office of Food Safety, Division of Seafood Safety, Tel: (301) 436-2300
• National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Brussels, Belgium. Tel: 32 2 508 2842

*Free PDF Readers are available from the Adobe web site.