Legislative Decree No. 577: Amendments to the Law on Plant Health, Animal Health and Food Safety of Unprocessed Plant or Animal-Origin Foods

Legislative Decree No. 577 amends El Salvador's Law on Plant Health, Animal Health and Food Safety of Unprocessed Plant or Animal-Origin Foods in order to clarify the authority of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock regarding certification, control, validation, verification and surveillance of animal-origin, aquaculture and fishery foods and products. The amendment authorizes the Ministry to certify production processes and domestic and foreign establishments producing poultry, pork and beef products, dairy products and dairy mixtures, honey, egg products, aquaculture products and fishery products. Certification may apply equivalence measures based on international best-practice standards and trade agreements signed and ratified by El Salvador. For dairy products and dairy mixtures, the regulation expressly applies Central American Technical Regulation RTCA 67.04.65:12 on the Use of Dairy Terms. The Decree amends Article 4, replaces Article 79 and repeals Article 80 of the Law.