The European Commission launched its Task Force on import controls at the Agricultural Council earlier this week to maintain and reinforce the EU's ability to ensure imports meet Union standards, while supporting the jobs and growth of EU producers.

Strict import rules with respect to food and feed hygiene, consumer safety and animal and plant health status aim at assuring that all imports fulfil the same high standards as products from the EU itself. Import controls are crucial in verifying compliance of food and feed products with relevant requirements. EU rules apply to all products sold in the EU, whether produced domestically or imported.

National authorities are responsible for carrying out the checks on imports that arrive from third countries to assess their compliance with EU food and feed safety rules. The Commission performs audits on the third countries to assess the countries' systems and their reliability, while also working closely with the veterinary and customs authorities in the Member States.

The focus will be on food and feed safety, pesticide residues and coordinated EU monitoring actions on specific imported products. It brings together expertise from the Commission and Member States, (industry/trade is not involved).

The aim is to work towards:

• Further harmonising of import controls across the EU;
• Developing recommendations for joint actions between the Commission and Member States;
• Identifying where additional administrative or regulatory measures are needed to strengthen controls.