About the notifications
Members of the Alert and Cooperation Network (ACN) are appointed a single contact point (SCP) responsible for sending ACN notifications via iRASFF, the common online platform created by the European Commission, which access is restricted to members’ competent authorities.
Before a notification is sent, a lot of work has happened upstream:
- a) National authorities inspected an agri-food product placed on the market, physically or online, or presented at the EU border. They may have taken samples and received the results from the laboratory
b) Companies carried out own-checks and informed their competent authority - An agri-food product was found non-compliant and therefore needs to be reported.
- The national authority decided to report this non-compliance to the ACN, using its SCP, and possibly asking for assistance from other members.
- Before notifying the ACN, the SCP verified and validated the notification in iRASFF, detailing the findings and measures taken while adding any relevant documents, such as bills, lists of companies having received the products, analytical reports, etc.
What happens next depends on the type of notification:
Non-compliance notification
A non-compliance notification can concern any non-compliance with EU rules, be it on food, feed, plant health or animals, anything covered by Regulation (EU) No 2017/625 that neither presents a risk which would make it notifiable in RASFF nor involves a potential fraud. Non-compliance notifications are circulated within the AAC.
The SCP shares the notification with any other members who need to be informed or whose assistance is required.
RASFF notification
If a potential non-compliance represents a serious risk related to food or feed, it must be notified in RASFF. The SCP has to circulate it to the RASFF immediately. This first notification can be supplemented by follow-up notifications to provide subsequently additional information.
The European Commission verifies as necessary that the information circulated is appropriate, turning to SCPs to supplement it, if needed.
The RASFF notifications are categorised and labelled to ease their handling. The following categories are used:
 | Alert notifications are sent when a food or feed presenting a serious health risk is on the market and when rapid action is required. The RASFF member who identifies the problem and takes the relevant measure (e.g. withdrawal of the product from the market) triggers the alert. The goal of the notification is to give all RASFF members the information to confirm whether the product in question is on their market so that they can also take the necessary measures. |
 | Information notifications are used when a risk has been identified about food or feed placed on the market, but the other RASFF members do not have to take rapid action. This is because the product has not reached their market or is no longer present in their market or because the nature of the risk does not require rapid action. |
 | Border rejections concern food and feed consignments that have been tested and rejected at the external borders of the EU (and the European Economic Area – EEA) when a health risk has been found. The notifications are sent to all EEA border posts in order to reinforce controls and to ensure that the rejected product does not re-enter the EU through another border post. |
 | Any information related to the safety of food and feed products which has not been communicated as an alert or an information notification, but which is judged interesting for the control authorities, is transmitted to the RASFF members under the heading News. |
Fraud notification
Fraud notification means a non-compliance notification in iRASFF concerning suspected intentional action by businesses or individuals for the purpose of deceiving purchasers and gaining undue advantage therefrom, in violation of the rules referred to in Article 1(2) of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. The below defined terminology and categorisation are based on the EU legislation, the CCFICS ‘Draft guidelines on the prevention and control of food fraud’ and the CEN working document ‘Food authenticity - Food authenticity and fraud - Concepts, terms, and definitions’.
The below defined terminology and categorisation are based on the EU legislation, the CEN document ‘EN 17972:2004 Food authenticity - Food authenticity and fraud - Concepts, terms, and definitions’ and the CCFICS ‘Draft guidelines on the prevention and control of food fraud’.
Including tampering with the product packaging: changing product characteristics so that they no longer match the implicit or explicit claims associated with the product.
- Unapproved process: subjecting a product to a procedure that is not approved to increase its perceived quality (‘unapproved enhancement’) or to hide deficiencies or low quality of the product (‘concealment’).
- Undeclared process: subjecting the food product to a procedure without declaring it to increase its perceived quality (‘undeclared enhancement’) or to hide deficiencies or low quality of the product (‘undeclared concealment’).
- Removal of a substance which should have been present in the product in the view to sell valuable components separately while still charging full price for the devalued product.
- Adulteration:
- Dilution: increasing the volume of a liquid products by adding an already-present substance, usually a cheap one such as water.
- Addition: adding an undeclared ingredient or substance to a product to increase the perceived quality of the food product to hide deficiencies or low quality of the product or to increase weight or volume.
- Substitution (‘replacement’): replacing, totally or partially, a declared ingredient, nutrient, species in a food product with another ingredient, nutrient, species of lower commercial value than the replaced one.
Changing the explicit product claims so they no longer match the known characteristics of the products.
- to change the stated product name, type, definition, ingredients, category, geographical origin, species, product-related dates, product-related records, method of production, method of capture, or method of breeding, product net or gross weight, or volume.
- to add claims or labels indicating use of quality assurance scheme; specified brand or origin including protected designations of origin, protected geographical indications and traditional specialties guaranteed, specified processes, health or nutrition indicators, organic production, sustainability status (ecolabels, religious status) or similar without meeting the requirements for the claim or label in question.
- to refrain from declaring ingredients or constituents of a product that should have been declared, e.g., water or starch.
- to refrain from declaring processes that should have been declared, e.g., irradiation or freezing.
- “this product was produced, traded, and sold according to the relevant requirements and regulations” and thus when legally mandated documentation or traceability is missing; when taxes, fees or duty for the product was not paid; when the product has been stolen or smuggled before sale; when the production or processing facilities are not licensed; when the production is operated without official supervision when legally required (slaughtering operation outside working hours); when diverting a non-food grade or a non-feed grade product to the food chain or to the feed chain; when diverting a known non-EU eligible product to the supply chain (e.g. food product containing ingredients, substances, contaminants, residues in exceedance of their maximum authorised levels); when there are production agreements or quotas for the product, and the product in question is deliberately produced in excess of these (‘production over-run’); when there is a geographical restriction on the sale and distribution of the product, and the product in question is deliberately sold or distributed in other areas (‘diversion’ or ‘grey market’ sales); when an Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) infringement occurs.
Animal Welfare Notifications
Animal Welfare Notifications are created to report non-compliance with animal welfare standards during farming, transportation, or slaughter, as well as to share best practices and contingency plans addressing welfare issues. These notifications facilitate collaboration among EU Member States, ensuring consistent implementation of EU animal welfare legislation and the humane treatment of animals across their lifecycle.
Pet Animals Notifications
Pet Animals Notifications are created to report health and welfare concerns, cross-border irregularities, or illegal activities involving companion animals, such as cats and dogs. These notifications address issues like the illegal movement of pets, which not only impacts animal welfare and public health but also affects consumers and causes economic damage through tax evasion and undeclared revenues. By facilitating collaboration among EU Member States, the notifications enable efficient communication, information exchange, and coordinated action to enhance the welfare and protection of pet animals across Europe.
Plant Health Notification
Plant Health Notifications are created to report non-compliant consignments of plants, plant products and other items (such as live plants, seeds, fruits, vegetables, flowers, leaves and wood). They can also be used to share contingency plans for priority plant pests or to address other plant health issues.