Regulations to determine the requirements and standards for milk and milk products processing plants (L.N. No. 113 of 2006)

Legal Notice No. 113/2006 Rcgulations to Determine the Requirements and Standards for Milk and Milk Products Processing Plants Article 1 Short Title These Regulations may be cited as the "Regulations to Determine the Requirements and Standards for Milk and Milk Product. Processing P1Rnt.-LeV\1 Notic e No.1 13/2006". Article 2 Definition In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires: "Minister" or " Ministry" means the Minister or Ministry of Agriculture. "Plant" means an approved establishment which processes milk and milk products. "PersOli" means any natural or juridical person engaged in processing milk and milk products. Article 3 Registration and licensing Any person who intends to establish a plant, may apply to the Ministry for acquiring a certificate of qualification. Upon ensuring that all requirements are met, the Ministry may register the person and issue a certificate of qualification to enable the person to acquire a business license from the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Article 4 Design of a Plant (I) Any person applying for a certificate of qualification should submit to the Ministry thc site plan drawings and specifications of the plant, (2) The Ministry, upon receiving an application, shall review the design and assign inspectors to examine whether the premises on which milk is to be processed is adequate in size to handle the planned quantity of milk and ensure that milk is free from outside contaminating sources. (3) Plants under operation prior to the coming into force of these Regulations that do not comply with the minimum requirements hereof shall be required to comply with these Regulations within a period ofone year. Article 5. Infrastructural Facilities A plant should comply with the following minimum hygienic requirements: (l) The floor should have white, smooth, and impervious surface suitable for easy cleaning that facilitates removal of any liquid matter conveying it to a suitably located floor drain. (2) The walls should be white, smooth, and impervious for easy removal of any matter which may be deposited on the walls. (3) The ceiling or interior surface of the roof should be constructed so as to ensure that it is easy to remove dirt and dust from it, while the roof should be constructed to ensure protection from excessive heat and rain water. (4) Liquid waste produced in the plant should be properly drained into a drainage system so as to avoid contamination of milk. Liquid disposal pit should be constructed outside the premises and should be periodically cleaned. (5) The premises of a plant should be made of smooth concrete or asphalt so as to ensure that the premises is free ofany dirt or dust. Article 6 Staff hygiene (1) Each employee of a plant should be provided with at least two pairs of white overalls, head gear and boots which should be kept clean at all times. (2) Each employee, in order to protect milk and milk products consumers from communicable diseases, should have an official medical certificate and such a certificate should be renewed every four months. (3) Any plant is responsible for the implementation of these provisions regarding staff hygiene, 2 Article 7 Other facilities (1) Milk brought from dairy farm or milk collection center to a processing plant should be received in milk cans or other stainless milk tank containers, and should be stored to below +4 ·C immediately after milking. (2) The washing and sterilization of milk containers and vessels should be achieved with steam and chemical sterilization. All containers and equipment should be washed and sterilized daily after their use and also be thoroughly rinsed with clean water before their use. (3) Facilities for cooled storage should be set at a temperature on - 4 · C. (4) Milk products processing house, processing and pasteurized milk-filling house and pasteurized milk storage room, quality control laboratory, changing rooms, toilets and showers for workers. offices and storage of materials for milk packing should be prepared in accordance with the standards established by the Ministry. (5) The Iacillties listed under sub-Articles 1 - 4 should not be used for purposes other than their intended use. Article 8 Dairy farms (I) The Ministry shall introduce a process ofaccreditation system of dairy farms that are free from bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis, and any dairy farm that processes milk not free from these two diseases shall not be allowed to sell milk. Article 9 Requirements for milk pasteurization In order to eliminate any disease causing microorganisms, any milk for sale should be heat treated or boiled at 72 up to 75° C for IS seconds. Article 10 Pasteurized milk filling and packing (I) Milk packing materials should protect the product and preserve its food nutritional value as well as protect the product from mechanical shock, light and oxygen. (2) Milk should be filled and packed in paperboard, plastic-bottles or plastic bags. 3 (3) The Ministry shall decide, in consultation with concerned government bodies, the quality or thickness of milk packing plastic bags. (4) Milk packing materials should be hermetically sealed and no leakage should occur to allow any contamination of milk. (S) In Milk packaging materials, the trade name of the processing plant, the volume and composition of the pasteurized milk being packaged, including its fat and protein content, and manufacturing and expiry dates should be clearly and indelibly indicated on the lables . Article 11 Quality Control Laboratory (l) Any plant should establish quality control laboratory to carry out taste and smell tests, hygiene, fat content, pH and density tests . (2) Milk that doesn't not possess normal taste and smell shall be dumped. (3) If the Ministry finds it to be necessary, additional tests such as th e phosphatase, coliform, methylene blue and somatic cell count may be carried out. Article 12 Milk composition standards (I) Any plant should comply with the following standards: (a) Ensuring that butter fat content of the raw milk is 3.3% or above. (b) Unless it is clearly indicated that the milk is low fat milk, butter fat content ofnormal pasteurized milk must be 3%. (c) Ensuring that pH of normal milk must vary from 6.S -6.7 in an ambient temperature of2SoC. (d) Density or specific gravity, in a lactometer reading, ofraw milk must be a minimum of 1.026 and may reach up to 1.038 gram in 1m3• 4 (2) Raw milk that is supplied to a plant shall be discarded and immediately dumped under one of the following conditions: (a) where any foreign material (skimmed milk or dirt ) is added or when any of its natural components are missing; or (b) whenever colostrwn is added; or (c) whenever its taste, smell or colour is changed; or (d) whenever antibiotic residues are detected; or (e) whenever its hygiene is poor; or (f) whenever it is contaminated by bio-organisms or contains unusual number of somatic cells; or (g) whenever its density test in a lactometer reading is lower than 1.026. Article 13 Milk inspectors The Ministry shall designate qualified inspectors to control quality standards of plants. Any plant shall render the necessary cooperation to designated inspectors. Article 14 Suspension or revocation of Certification of qualification (I) The Minister may suspend or revoke the certificate of qualification if the person to whom the certificate ofqualification is issued: (a) fails to implementthe minimum requirements of hygienic, infrastructure and other facilities; or (b) sells milk contaminated with bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis; or (c) fails to fulfill the requirements of quality control laboratory; or (d) fails to comply with milk composition standards . (2) The Minister may revoke the certificate ofqualification if a person repeatedly fails to comply with the provisions of sub-Article 1 ofthis Article. (3) The Minister may request the Ministry ofTrade and Industry to suspend or revoke the license pursuant to the provisions ofArticle 20(2) of the Business Licensing Amendment Proclamation No.12812002. 5 Article15 Appeal Any person who is aggrieved by a refusal tu issue or renew, or the decision of the Minister to suspend or revoke a certificate of qualification may appeal to the High Court within30 days of the decision. The decision of the High Court shall be final. Article16: Entry into force TIlls Legal Notice shall enter into force on the date of its publication in the Gazette of Eritrean Laws. Done at Asmara, this 20th day of September, 2006 Government of Eritrea 6