Cadmium levels in crab to be amended from the 1st November 2023
The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) recently issued an Information Notice to industry in relation to technical requirements for Irish companies trading with China in an evolving third country regulatory environment. In June 2023, the Chinese competent authority, the General Administration of Customs China (GACC), updated their regulatory standard for cadmium levels in crab.
The previous Chinese maximal limit of 0.5 mg/kg of cadmium concentration in crab was amended to 3.0 mg/kg. From the 1st of November 2023, the SFPA intend to introduce compliance assurance with these standards for the purposes of export health certification of crab to China.
The previous per-consignment cadmium testing regime will be replaced from the 1st of November 2023 by a routine export certification model supported by a cadmium-specific background monitoring programme under which Irish Food Business Operators (FBOs) will export crab to China. This will align with current routine controls and will be supported by sampling results provided by the Marine Institute. The compliance standard will be the new Chinese limit of 3.0 mg/kg.
Irish exporters who wish to export crab to China, whether live or processed crab products, need to be registered with GACC. FBOs already on the approved exporters of live aquatic animals list who wish to resume exports to China based on these changes, should contact the SFPA Trade Compliance and Internal Audit Unit in order to ensure compliance with the above cadmium requirements. Similarly, if you wish to register with GACC for the first time or have any other queries on this notice please contact SFPATradeandAudit@sfpa.ie.
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