Statutory guidance

Import of rodentia and lagomorpha to be used for feeding to reptiles, non-wild birds of prey and zoo animals (other than farmed land animals) - Import Information Note (IIN) ABP/27

Published 2 December 2024

1. General information 

This Import Information Note (IIN) must be read in conjunction with the IIN for general information for imports of animal by-products (ABPs), which provides information on pre-notifications, veterinary checks, risk categories and more.

References to European Union (EU) legislation within this document are references to direct EU legislation which has been assimilated in Great Britain (assimilated direct legislation), as defined in the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 and can be viewed on the UK legislation website

2. Scope 

Import conditions for rodentia and lagomorpha (rodents and rabbits or hares) to be used for feeding to reptiles, non-wild birds of prey and zoo animals (other than farmed land animals).  

Note: The scope of this IIN does not extend to rodentia and lagomorpha (rodents and rabbits or hares) which are to be used for feeding to pet animals including cats and dogs. 

Please refer to the following IINs for import conditions for:

  • import of raw pet food for direct sale IIN ABP/3D

  • import of animal by-products for the manufacture of pet food IIN ABP/3F 

Under Annex XIV, Chapter IV, Section 2 of Regulation (EU) 142/2011 the competent authority may authorise the import of Category 3 material comprising of animals and parts thereof of the zoological orders of rodentia and lagomorpha, for purposes other than feeding to farmed land animals

Imports of consignments of these ABPs shall take place in accordance with veterinary and sanitary certification requirements in accordance with national rules. 

3. Production standards 

The rodentia and lagomorpha must be deep frozen and free from salmonella and other pathogenic organisms or dried by a treatment sufficient to destroy pathogenic organisms, including salmonella. 

4. Country of origin 

In the case of rodentia, applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

In the case of lagomorpha, imports are permitted from trading partners listed in a document published by the Secretary of State, with the consent of the Scottish and Welsh Ministers for:

Imports are permitted from countries listed in the documents for meat of wild leporidae, of certain wild land mammals and of farmed rabbits from which imports of fresh meat from leporidae (rabbits and hares) species are authorised. 

5. Documentation 

Each consignment must be accompanied by a commercial document stating the details as laid down in the authorisation issued by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA).

6. Authorisation

Prior to importation, an authorisation is required from APHA. The authorisation sets out the conditions for importing these ABPs into Great Britain (GB). This document is required before imports can take place. 

From non-EU countries

Animal pathogens and products: import licence application

From EU and EFTA member states

There is currently no requirement to apply to APHA for an authorisation to import these types of animal by-products from the EU and EFTA member states.

Authorisation to import these products from EU and EFTA member states is now provided by general import authorisation IMP-GEN-2024-07, which does not need to travel with the consignment.

The consignment must be accompanied by a commercial document.

New general import authorisations are currently under development for certain types of products from EU and EFTA member states, which may introduce new import conditions to ensure animal and public health is protected. Sufficient time will be given to traders before their use is required.

This section will also be updated if a new general import authorisation is published which is relevant to the products covered by this import information note. 

7. Labelling requirements 

All packages must either:

  • bear a label indicating “NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION, NOR FEEDING TO FARMED LAND ANIMALS, DOGS OR CATS” 

  • if they are dispatched in ready-to-sell packages the label must state “FOR FEEDING TO REPTILES/NON-WILD BIRDS OF PREY / ZOO ANIMALS (EXCLUDING FARMED LAND ANIMALS) ONLY”

8. Salmonella testing requirements 

In the case of rodentia 

All consignments must be subject to random testing (approximately 2% of consignments with consignment release) (with at least one consignment tested in the 6-month period following the issue of the authorisation) for salmonella at the Border Control Post (BCP) of introduction to GB, in addition to any other tests the official veterinary surgeon deems appropriate. 

For each consignment to be sampled, 60 rodents should be collected from throughout the consignment (in that each sample should be taken from a different bag as far as practicable) and be submitted as 12 final samples for analysis (designed to detect a 5% within-batch prevalence). 

If any samples are found to have a positive result the information will be passed to the relevant local authority who will act in accordance with the latest guidance from public health agencies including Public Health England (PHE), Public Health Scotland (PHS) and Public Health Wales (PHW). Following a positive result the next 10 consignments will be tested for salmonella and detained at the BCP until the test results are known in accordance with Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1715. The costs incurred to the BCP (above the standard charge) will need to be met by the importer. Once 10 consecutive consignments have been tested without any testing positive for salmonella, the sampling will revert back to random testing. 

If any samples test positive for salmonella, the whole consignment will be rejected, and either be re-dispatched or destroyed. All costs must be met by the importer.

In the case of lagomorpha 

All consignments must be subject to random testing (approximately 2% of consignments with consignment release) for salmonella at the BCP of introduction under the sampling protocol as laid down in Regulation (EU) 142/2011, in addition to any other tests the official veterinary surgeon deems appropriate. 

9. Movement from the BCP to premises of destination 

On arrival into GB the by-products must be delivered either:

  • to a technical plant dedicated to the use of such materials, and which has been approved in accordance with Article 24 of Regulation (EC) 1069/2009

  • to a pet food plant approved in accordance with Article 24 of Regulation (EC) 1069/2009

  • to a holding or establishment keeping animals in accordance with the requirements referred to in Article 18 of Regulation (EC) 1069/2009

  • directly for retail sale where the ABPs are dispatched in ready-to-sell packages bearing a label with a clear indication that the content is only destined for the feeding to reptiles, non-wild birds of prey or zoo animals (other than farmed land animals) only (see labelling requirement in Section 7) and is deep frozen or dried

10. Contact for further information  

For more information about import requirements, contact the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) imports team:

Centre for International Trade - Carlisle
Eden Bridge House
Lowther Street
Carlisle
CA3 8DX

Email: imports@apha.gov.uk 

Telephone: 03000 200 301