final report of a mission carried out in brazil from 15 to 24 march ...

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provided by the EMPRAPA and MAPA.In March-April 2009, a one-week training session was organised by MAPA for 65 federal inspectorsfrom all over Brazil. Among other things, it covered the sampling of Brazil nuts for aflatoxincontrol.5.3.2 The National Health Surveillance AgencyThe National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) under the Ministry of Health hasresponsibility for food hygiene controls at Brazil nut processors and for aflatoxin controls of Brazilnuts intended for the Brazilian market. The mission team was informed that ANVISA’s role in theofficial control of the production and processing of Brazil nuts is complementary, as it can intervenein any situation whenever there is a health concern. In addition, under MAPA Normative InstructionNo 13/2004, MAPA and ANVISA can take joint action in the case of rejected or returned Brazil nutconsignments, in particular for the destruction or reuse of nuts in the domestic market.5.3.3 Customs authoritiesCustoms authorities at the point of export are responsible for the customs clearance of Brazil nutconsignments for export.ConclusionsMAPA is designated as the main CA for export control of Brazil nuts, but its competence andresponsibilities are not clearly defined with regard to the role of VIGIAGRO. 2Progress has been made since the last mission, SANCO/7074/2004, with regard to the training ofofficial staff involved in the Brazil nut control chain.5.4 PROCESS CONTROLS IN THE BRAZIL NUT PRODUCTION CHAIN5.4.1 Harvesting, transport and warehouse storage conditionsAnnual Brazil nut production in Brazil is around 30 000 tonnes (2008). Of this amount, around 160tonnes of in-shell nuts were exported to the EU in 2009. This represents a significant drop from2003, when approximately 3000 tonnes of nuts in shell were exported.The mission team noted that there have been no major changes in the overall procedures of Brazilnut collection and intermediate storage (prior to industrial processing) since the last missionSANCO/2004/7074. However, the mission team noted the following:• Since the last mission, improvements have been made in the removal of nuts from pods andtheir first drying. The mission team noted that, as recommended in the Codex AlimentariusCode of Practice for the prevention and reduction of aflatoxin contamination in tree nuts(CAC/RCP 59-2005, REV.1-2006), nuts are now removed from the pods the same day whencollected and left to dry in the sun.• It may take almost 3 months to deliver collected nuts for industrial drying in processingfacilities (storage of up to 40 days in the forest or community, a further 30 days inintermediate storage facilities, up to 30 days in the nut processor before actual drying).However, the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF) project — SAFENUT —which was implemented in Brazil between 2006 and 2008, recommends that collected nutsshould be delivered quickly for industrial drying to a safe moisture content in order to2 In their response to the draft report the Brazilian Authorities noted that Normative Instruction No 11, of 22 March2010 nowdays defines the competencies and responsibilities of VIGIAGRO (Article 20 of the NormativeInstruction).7
Conclusionsprevent fungal growth and aflatoxin contamination.Since the last mission, improvements have been made in terms of good practices for Brazil nutharvesting and first drying. However, a recommendation made in a national project on quickdelivery of collected nuts for industrial drying, has not been implemented.Findings5.4.2 Brazil nut processors visitedThere are 5 Brazil nut processors authorised for EU export. Two of them were visited by themission team in Belém and Óbidos. The mission team was informed by both companies that theyhad not exported in-shell Brazil nuts to the EU since at least 2002.The mission team was informed that authorised companies were inspected by SIPAG inspectorswhen they applied for the licensing as EU exporters. There had not been any inspections since theirauthorisation because there was no such legal requirement at the moment. The mission team wasinformed that MAPA Normative Instruction No 11/2010, once in force, would provide a clear legalbasis for such controls and establish GMP requirements for such establishments. 3As already described under point 5.2, there is no legal requirement for Brazil nut exportersexporting their nuts to the EU to have HACCP systems in place. The mission team was informedthat only one of the three authorised EU exporters in the Pará region had an HACCP system inplace.In both factories visited, internal checks were performed to determine moisture content and also thepercentage of rotten or mouldy nuts upon reception and in the final product. In addition, whenrequired by the Brazil nut buyer, samples were taken for aflatoxin analysis prior to delivery of theconsignment. The mission team was informed that the period between sampling and obtaining theresults was at least 8 days.The mission team noted in one of the factories visited that the device used for moisture control ofincoming raw material could measure moisture content only up to 25 %, whereas the companystated that the average moisture content of incoming nuts would be between 28-32 %.In the establishments visited, the mission team noted that the facilities used for storing the incomingnuts and the final product did not always follow the requirements of section 2.8 of the CodexAlimentarius Code of Practice for the prevention and reduction of aflatoxin contamination in treenuts (CAC/RCP 59-2005, REV.1-2006). In particular, the facilities did not always provideprotection against rain, were open to insects, rodents and birds, and also did not have any possibilityto control temperature and humidity.Both establishments had established traceability systems in the form of the registration of incomingand outgoing products. These data included the name of the supplier, the region, the quantity ofnuts, and data on moisture control. However, full traceability was not always possible back toindividual suppliers as nuts were generally stored in bulk.ConclusionsThere is no legal requirement for Brazil nut exporters exporting their nuts to the EU to haveHACCP systems in place.Very few Brazil nut establishments exporting Brazil nuts to the EU hadestablished system of control based on HACCP principles as required by Article 10 together with3 In their response to the draft report the Brazilian Authorities noted that Normative Instruction No 11, of 22 March2010 is already in force and provides clear requirements in relation to the control of Good Manufacturing Practice(GMP) and additional requirements.8
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