Legislation and meat products
The definition of a “meat product” is laid down in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 853/20041. Meat includes parts
of domestic ungulates and solipeds, poultry, lagomorphs and wild game animals as well as blood, carcase and
viscera. Following the bovine spongiform encephalopathy crisis, the European Union (EU) rearranged the hygiene
legislation to enhance responsibility of food producers, and used scientific information coming from ad hoc expertgroups to define a template for the future EC 2073/20052. This regulation on microbiological criteria for foodstuffs
entered into force on January, 1st, 2006 in all EU Member States (EU MS). With this regulation, process hygiene
criteria as well as food safety criteria were introduced. Process hygiene criteria have been defined for five food
categories (meat and meat products, milk and milk products, egg products, fish products and vegetables, fruits) and
food safety criteria were defined for six hazards (Salmonella spp., Listeria monocytogenes, staphylococcal
enterotoxins, Cronobacter sakazakii, Escherichia coli and histamine). Other items are also covered in the regulation
including sampling plan, test portion and the couple analyte/food stuff to be tested. Tables 1 and 2 present the food
safety criteria and the process hygiene criteria to be tested in meat and meat-based products according to the EU
regulation N2073/2005.