UK Offence Report

Contravention of The Animal By-Products Order 1999

the instrument as a whole of The Animal By-Products Order 1999 (revoked)

This offence was read from the text as made, and no revised version was available, so a later revocation could not be ruled out. Check the current text at legislation.gov.uk.

What the provision says

Contravening this instrument is an offence under section

73 of the Animal Health Act 1981. The instrument itself contains no offence-creating words.

Text as made, from legislation.gov.uk. © Crown copyright, reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. This is the text as originally made; later amendments are not shown here.

Who it binds, and what has to be proved

Binds
a person
Conduct
breaching the provision
Fault element
Strict liability
Burden of proof
Not determined

The prosecution must prove that the conduct happened. This is a strict liability offence as drafted: the provision uses no word of intention, knowledge, recklessness or negligence, so there is no need to show that a person meant to do it, knew about it, or was careless.

Intention, knowledge and carelessness are irrelevant to guilt. They may still matter a great deal to sentence.

Classifier’s reasoning: contravention offences of this kind are strict as to the breach; the fault position is governed by the parent Act and was not read from it.

What would breach the instrument as a whole?

These are illustrations, not law. They are generated from the provision’s own words to show the shape of the offence. Whether any particular conduct is caught depends on the full text, on any amendment since, and on the facts.

  1. Doing what the provision prohibits, or failing to do what it requires under the Animal By-Products Order 1999.

Penalty

Mode of trial
Set by another provision — the instrument states the penalty by reference to an Act or to another regulation
Maximum fine
Not determined
Maximum prison (summary)
Not determined

The instrument does not state a penalty itself. It sets one by reference to section 73 of the Animal Health Act 1981.

the penalty is in the parent Act, not in this instrument.

No penalty was determined from this instrument. It may be in the enabling Act, or in a general penalties provision this pass did not connect to the offence. Absence of a figure here is not evidence that the offence carries no penalty.

Sentencing

Offences of this kind are usually sentenced under the guidelines below. This is a mapping by subject, not a finding about this provision, and the links go to a search of the Sentencing Council’s own site.

Prosecution figures

No published per-offence figure was found for this provision, and it could not be matched to a Ministry of Justice offence code. Offences created by statutory instrument very largely do not have one. Absence of a figure is not evidence that the offence is unused.

Status and lifecycle

Current status
Status not determined
Made
8 March 1999
In force from
1 April 1999
Extent
Not stated

How this was established: read from the text as made; no revised version available, so later revocation could not be ruled out.

What the instrument is for

(This note is not part of the Order) — the explanatory note published with the instrument, © Crown copyright.

This Order revokes and replaces the Diseases of Animals (Waste Food) Order 1973 as amended, the Processed Animal Protein Order 1989 and the Animal By-Products Order 1992 as amended. It implements— Council Directive 90/667/EEC laying down the veterinary rules for the disposal and processing of animal waste, for its placing on the market and for the prevention of pathogens in feedstuffs of animal or fish origin and amending directive 90/425/EEC (OJ No. L363, 27.12.90, p. 51) as supplemented by: Commission Decision 92/562/EEC on the approval of alternative heat treatment systems for processing high-risk material (OJ No. L359, 9.12.92, p. 23); Commission Decision 94/382/EC on the approval of alternative heat treatment systems for processing animal waste of ruminant origin, with a view to the inactivation of spongiform encephalopathy agents (text with EEA relevance) (OJ No. L172, 7.7.94, p. 25); Commission Decision 95/29/EC amending Decision 94/382/EC on the approval of alternative heat treatment systems for processing animal waste of ruminant origin, with a view to the inactivation of spongiform encephalopathy agents (OJ No. L38, 18.2.95, p. 17); and Commission Decision 96/449/EC on the approval of alternative heat treatment systems for processing animal waste with a view to the inactivation of spongiform encephalopathy agents (text with EEA relevance) (OJ No. L184, 24.6.96, p. 43). These establish systems and standards for the rendering of animal by-products. The Order also implements Council Decision 95/348/EC laying down the veterinary and animal health rules applicable in the United Kingdom and Ireland to the treatment of certain types of waste intended to be marketed locally as feedstuffs for certain animal categories (OJ No. L202, 26.8.95, p. 8). In addition, it implements Article 15 of Council Directive 80/217/EEC introducing Community measures for the control of classical swine fever (OJ No. L47, 21.2.80, p. 11) which requires member States to control the swill feeding of pigs. Animal by-products are defined in Part I of the Order as carcases or parts of carcases, or products of animal origin, which are not intended for human consumption, but the definition excludes catering waste and excreta. Animal by-products are divided into two categories: high risk (e.g. fallen stock) and low risk (e.g. slaughterhouse waste which is fit for human consumption). Part II of the Order requires that animal by-products be disposed of, without undue delay, by— a rendering in approved premises. The Order sets construction and operational standards for such premises; sets the standards to which by-products must be rendered; and requires the microbiological testing of rendered material intended for use in animal feedingstuffs other than swill and petfood; b incineration; c in certain, specified circumstances, burning or burial; d use for diagnostic, educational or research purposes; e for low risk material only, use for the production of pet food, pharmaceutical or technical products. The Order requires such premises to be registered and to have suitable facilities for the disposal of unused or waste material; f for low risk material and certain types of high risk material, treatment at a knacker’s yard or use at hunt kennels, maggot farms and similar premises. The Order sets construction and operational standards for approved knackers' yards and the standards to which knackers must treat by-products for use as feedingstuffs for animals whose flesh is not intended for human consumption. It also requires hunt kennels and similar premises to be registered; g export from Great Britain. Part II also controls the approval of laboratories, the transport of animal by-products and the records which must be kept (articles 16 to 18). Part III of the Order requires catering waste which contains, or has been in contact with, meat or meat products to be processed on approved premises to appropriate standards if it is to be fed to pigs and poultry as swill. It may not be fed to ruminant animals. The Order sets the construction and operational standards for such premises. Part IV of the Order regulates the feeding of swill (defined as processed catering waste and rendered non-mammalian animal by-products) to pigs and poultry and requires the approval of premises from which swill is consigned or on which it is fed to pigs or poultry. Part V of the Order makes provision for the service of notices requiring animal by-products and catering waste to be disposed of and for the cleansing and disinfection of vehicles, and also powers of inspectors. There are transitional provisions for approvals and licences granted under the revoked legislation to remain valid. The Order is enforced by the appropriate Minister in certain specified premises producing meat for human consumption, and in all other cases by the local authority. Breach of the Order is an offence under section 72 of the Animal Health Act 1981 punishable on conviction by a fine at level 5 on the standard scale. A regulatory impact assessment has been prepared and placed in the library of each House of Parliament. Copies can be obtained from the Animal Health (Disease Control) Division of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Government Buildings, Hook Rise South, Tolworth, Surbiton, Surrey KT6 7NF.

Read the full note and every offence in this instrument

How this was identified as an offence

Everything above rests on the judgement that this provision creates a criminal offence, rather than mentioning one. That judgement is made by rule, from the words of the provision, and this is the rule that made it — with a confidence of 0.55.

Basis
the penalty comes from the enabling Act rather than from this instrument
Confidence
0.55 of 1.00

A provision that states a penalty for an offence created elsewhere can read very like one that creates an offence, and the rules can mistake the one for the other. If the text quoted above sets a penalty for something made an offence by another provision, treat the classification on this page with that in mind, and read the instrument.

Check the source