Key Takeaways
- ▸France requires one extra certificate beyond the standard EU CAT 3.
- ▸The attestation is bilingual, in French and Portuguese, travelling with the consignment.
- ▸It declares no prohibited processed animal proteins or ruminant fats are present.
- ▸The rule traces to Regulation (EC) 999/2001 and the Arrete of 18 July 2006.
- ▸It is a BSE-era declaration, not a prohibition; solvable, not a wall.
TRADE & REGULATION
An exporter can hold a perfect EU health certificate and still get a surprise at the French border. France quietly asks for one more document than the rest of the bloc — and knowing about it in advance is the whole game.
The standard EU CAT 3 certificate is bloc-wide: one listing serves all 27 member states. France layers a national attestation on top — a bilingual certificate, in French and Portuguese, that must travel with the consignment.
What does it attest? That the product contains no prohibited processed animal proteins or ruminant fats under Regulation (EC) 999/2001. The requirement dates to the Arrêté of 18 July 2006 — a national add-on born of mad-cow-era caution rather than any new science.
Where the BSE era still echoes
The rule traces straight to mad-cow-era caution: France wants written proof, in two languages, that nothing prohibited under Reg. (EC) 999/2001 is in the box. It is extra paperwork, not a prohibition.
Most 'closed' markets are not closed at all. They just ask for one more signature than the exporter expected.
The 4DW Angle
National quirks like this are exactly what a trading desk exists to absorb. The France attestation is a solved problem for a plant that knows the drill — and a nasty surprise for one that doesn't. We prefer to sell the first kind of certainty.
▮ Frequently asked questions
What extra certificate does France require for animal by-products?
Beyond the bloc-wide EU CAT 3 health certificate, France requires a national attestation: a bilingual certificate in French and Portuguese that must travel with the consignment. It attests that the product contains no prohibited processed animal proteins or ruminant fats under Regulation (EC) 999/2001, a requirement dating to the Arrete of 18 July 2006.
Why does France ask for the Arrete 2006 attestation?
The requirement traces straight to mad-cow-era caution. France wants written proof, in two languages, that nothing prohibited under Regulation (EC) 999/2001 is in the box. Born of BSE-era caution rather than any new science, it is extra paperwork, not a prohibition, and a solved problem for a plant that knows the drill.
Is the French certificate a barrier to exporting there?
No. For in-natura and basic processed by-products the non-conformity risk is genuinely low, so it is a declaration rather than a hurdle. An exporter holds the EU CAT 3 base, adds the bilingual French attestation, files it and ships, turning France into a normal destination rather than a closed door.
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