The Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food has approved amendments to the Safety and Quality Requirements for Milk and Dairy Products.

The Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine has approved Order No. 2033 regarding amendments to the Safety and Quality Requirements for Milk and Dairy Products. The order was registered with the Ministry of Justice on 14 August 2024. The document provides for the improvement of measures concerning the production and circulation of milk and dairy products, in accordance with European legislation.

In particular, requirements are introduced for:

· raw milk that has not undergone heat treatment and is to be placed on the market as a food product for the end consumer;

· milk production holdings and the animals from which such milk is obtained. The locations and rules for the sale of such milk are clearly established: directly from the dairy farm, from a farm shop, from a milk container (tank, reservoir, etc.), from a vending machine for unpackaged raw milk, and from vending machines for unpackaged raw milk.

Mechanisms are also introduced for conducting laboratory tests on raw milk obtained at primary production sites for residues of antimicrobial agents/antibiotics, freezing point, and alkaline phosphatase during milk testing immediately after heat treatment. 

The Order sets out the functions of the national reference laboratory. In particular, the main objective of the reference laboratory is to provide organisational and methodological guidance, as well as advisory and practical assistance, to the network of laboratories authorised by the competent authority to test raw milk within the framework of the raw milk control programme.

The new requirements will strengthen the institutional capacity of the control system in the dairy sector and its readiness for integration with the European Union’s milk market.

The order comes into force on the day of its official publication. (photos 2–5)

Source: Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine