Stakeholder group
The role of the stakeholder group is to advise the Agency on the appropriate risk management measures in the light of the risk assessment provided by the Risk Assessment Group (RAG), taking into account practicalities of enforcement of any replacement rule and the costs and benefits.
In the light of that advice, the Agency will issue their recommendations on the future of the OTM rule for public consultation. As part of the consultation process, we held a public meeting, at which the risk assessment and the emerging recommendations coming from the review were presented. The public consultation process includes two public meetings. These were held on 2 July 2003 and 7 March 2003.
The end point will be recommendations to the FSA Board on any changes to the rule.
The Risk Asseement Group (RAG) is chaired by SEAC Chairman, Professor Peter Smith. Members include current and former SEAC members, together with additional experts, particularly in the field of epidemiological modelling but also to advise on issues such as BSE testing, which is of course the measure applied elsewhere in the EU to OTM cattle slaughtered for human consumption.
The RAG is charged with advising the FSA on the levels of BSE infectivity entering the food chain now and in the future, under the current rule and possible options for amending the rule.
The centrepiece of the risk assessment is modelling of the BSE epidemic which the FSA commissioned from Professor Ferguson of Imperial College, which provides predictions of the numbers of infected animals entering the food chain in GB under the various scenarios identified for changing the OTM rule.
The RAG considered this work alongside output from the Veterinary Laboratories Agency model, to provide a comparison. This modelling work was presented to SEAC for comment. Further work included consideration of additional modelling by DNV, which used the output from the GB model of numbers of infected animals to provide a measure of the level of infectivity entering the food chain, i.e. taking account of the SRM controls.
We also commissioned further modelling by the Imperial Group of the BSE epidemic in Northern Ireland (because the review concerns the operation of the OTM rule in the whole of UK) and the Republic of Ireland.
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OTM Stakeholder Group: Members and Terms of reference
To advise the Food Standards Agency on whether, or not, the over thirty months rule may be varied without unacceptable risk to consumers. If so, to make recommendations on appropriate measures which could replace the rule.