Ukraine enforces poultry moisture content ruling in 2014

Ukraine will introduce new hygienic requirements and marketing standards for poultry meat not in 2016, as were proposed earlier but already on July 1, 2014, locals reports state.

The new standards will cover both domestic and imported products and will contain maximum water content requirements for frozen poultry.

According to local officials, for poultry carcasses that are chilled with the air method the content of moisture should not exceed 1.5%, for poultry that is chilled with spray cooling it should not exceed 3.3 %, and for chilling by immersion in water – no more than 5.1%.

Previously the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food already offered to set the maximum amount of moisture in the poultry meat at the level of 4% from the total weight of the carcass, but this proposal was not supported by Ukrainian producers.

Ukraine claims that the new requirements are in compliance with provisions of Commission Regulation (EC) No. 543/2008 of 16 June 2008 Council Regulation on (EC) No. 1234/2007.

In August 2013, after debates with domestic poultry producers and consumer organisations, Ukraine’s Ministry of Health adopted and published the “Hygienic Requirements for Poultry Meat and Some Quality Indicators” which is closely resemble of this Commission Regulation.