Internal market imports of foodstuffs of animal origin are
- Import for sale or preparation.
- Intermediary activities, i.e., importing directly to food business operators (FBO) (in which case the intra-EU trade operator does not itself store food in its own or rented warehouse).
- Import through distance sales to FBOs or consumers.
- Imports that are sold for delivery to ships flying the Finnish flag
- Imports to be sold from mobile food premises to food business operators or consumers (both domestic and foreign internal market importers).
The same requirements also apply to occasional or seasonal imports (both domestic and foreign operators).
Internal market imports of food of animal origin are supervised as part of the Oiva supervision carried out by the municipalities.
Food of animal origin include e.g., meat and meat products including blood and viscera, insect food and insects, fishery products and live seafood, dairy, and egg products and e.g., collagen, snails and honey. Foods that contain both plant products and processed (cooked) animal products are not animal products, but combined foodstuff.
Examples of different types of foodstuffs: Foods of animal origin and combination foods (Finnish Food Authority)
Operators planning to import foodstuffs of animal origin from the EU should consider the following:
Registration with the authority
Report intra EU-trade operations of food of animal origin to the local food control authority at least four weeks prior to commencement, significant change or discontinuation of activities. Registered food premises make an announcement using the registration form for food premise and approved food establishments notify the import activity to the supervisor of the establishment. The announcement is made to the location of the fixed food apartment or in the case of a virtual premises or mobile food premises, the announcement is made to its home municipality. You can notify electronically in ilppa.fi or by email to [email protected]
If necessary, you can contact the service desk by phone tel. 041 730 8168 weekdays from 9 am to 4 pm.
Monthly report of the foodstuffs of animal origin imported from other EU-member states.
The importer is responsible for making the notifications. The notification will be made four times a year retroactively for the preceding three months, by 15th January 15th April 15th July and 15th October. Announcements can also be made monthly by 15th of the following month. The operator may also report individual consignments received if they so wishes. The notification must also be made in the months during which there have been no imports from the internal market.
The notification obligation applies to the following foodstuffs:
- Products with a special salmonella guarantee: raw meat of beef and pork, including minced meat, meat of domestic chickens, turkeys, guinea fowl, ducks and geese, including minced meat and raw eggs
- Other raw meat obtained from animals
- Raw meat products of all animal species
- Non-heat-treated milk
- Cheeses made from non-heat-treated milk
The following can be done electronically:
More information: [email protected]
Approval of the establishment sending the products
Food of animal origin imported into Finland must come from approved establishments. The exception is honey and insect foods. Check the EU Commission website for approved EU establishments Non-EU establishments.
Traceability and identification markings
An operator importing food of animal origin into Finland shall be able to demonstrate where the imported batch of raw materials or other products came from and where it may have been dispatched. Read more about the traceability of imported foods and the required identification and health labels:
Intra-EU safeguard measures on importing certain foodstuffs.
Importation of some products may be prohibited entirely or from certain regions. Especially check the requirements related to pork imports and African swine fever. Knowing the constraints is the operators responsibility. Decisions on current constrains:
Special guarantees regarding salmonella
When importing raw meat (fresh or frozen) of beef, pork and poultry (incl. offal and blood) or minced meat made of these products to be delivered to Finland, shipment must include a commercial document relating salmonella and a laboratory examination certificate (salmonella). The commercial document may constitute a document in accordance with Annex IV of Commission regulation 1688/2005 or document containing equivalent information. Salmonella samples should be taken at the dispatching facility.
Consignments containing eggs to Finland must be accompanied by a certificate of intra-Community trade (Commission regulation 1688/2005 Annex V, Part 1 and Part 2). Salmonella documents should be combined with shipping documents and foodstuffs sent.
The above requirements do not apply to:
- Raw beef, pork and poultry meat and eggs received from Sweden and Norway
- Raw poultry/chicken meat and eggs received from Denmark and Iceland.
- Raw turkey meat and minced meat received from Iceland.
For these products, standard shipping documents are sufficient.
Before starting importation, it is good to make sure from the consignor that they are ready to carry out the required examinations and provide related documents.
Import country
Imports are possible under internal market trade terms from EU countries and EU special agreement countries: Andorra (all food of animal origin), Faroe Islands (fishery products), Iceland (all food of animal origin), Liechtenstein (all food of animal origin), Monaco (all food of animal origin), Norway (all food of animal origin), San Marino (all food of animal origin) Switzerland (all food of animal origin), Greenland (fishery products and live bivalve molluscs, echinoderms, tunicates and marine gastropods)
Import of insect foods
The Food Authority's website has compiled a list of insect species legally on the market in EU countries, which are allowed to be imported into Finland:
Own-check system
The internal market imports of foodstuffs of animal origin shall be incorporated into the operator's own-check and consider the following:
- Notifications related to internal market imports
- Verification of shipments to be received
- Corrective actions in connection with irregularities
- Sampling and testing plan
- Own-check bookkeeping
In the planning of own-check, you can use the Finnish Food Authority website (Ruokavirasto)
Labelling
It is the responsibility of the operator placing products on the Finnish market to ensure that the labelling of foodstuffs when they enter the Finnish market comply with local law.
More information on labelling:
If import requirements are not met, for example, the documents are incomplete or the identification mark is missing, the products may not be sold or sent forward.
In case of abnormalities, please contact Tampere food control.
Tampere food control email: [email protected]
Service desk weekdays from 9 am to 16 pm tel: 041 730 8168.
More information on internal market imports can be found on the Finnish Food Authority website for intra EU-trade operators of food of animal origin
