OREANDA-NEWS. May 04, 2012. Issuing veterinary accompanying documents to economic entities has become more complicated due to inconsistency between normative legal acts of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Government of the Russian Federation. The FAS Commission found that the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation violated Part 1 Article 15 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”, reported the press-centre of FAS Russia.

The case was initiated due to omissions by the Ministry of Agriculture to adjust its documents on compliance with veterinary-and-sanitary norms regarding veterinary control facilities in accordance with a Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation (1).

The Decree provided clear demarcation of the scope of reference between the Ministry of Health Care and Social Development and the Ministry of Agriculture in regulation of control of quality and safety of food products in order to exclude duplication of the functions of Rosselkhoznadzor and Pospotrebnadzor. The scope of reference of the Ministry of Agriculture – Rosselkhoznadzor included control only of alimentary raw materials of animal origin without industrial processing or heat treatment.

The Ministry of Agriculture was obligated to adjust its normative regulatory acts in accordance with the Decree within three months.

However, the Ministry of Agriculture failed to change its normative regulatory acts, in particular – the Order (2), followed by public veterinary organizations for issuing veterinary accompanying documents.

The FAS Commission concluded that as a result of omissions by the Ministry of Agriculture public veterinary organizations set unreasonable requirements to economic entities for mandatory registering (obtaining) veterinary accompanying documents for products of animal origin after industrial processing or heat treatment. In its turn, it creates an artificial administrative barrier and discriminatory conditions for entrepreneurial activity.

Based on its decision, the FAS Commission issued a determination to the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation to stop violating the antimonopoly law.

Reference:

1. No. 1009 Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation “On the Procedures for Joint Regulation by the Ministry of Health Care and Social Development of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation of Control of the Quality and Safety of Food Products and organization of Such Control” of 14th December 2009.

2. No. 422 Order of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation “On Approving the Rules for Organizing the Work for Issuing Veterinary Accompanying Documents” of 16th November 2006.