Dover Port Health Authority
Background Information
The Dover Port Health Authority Order 1978 designated the Port
of Dover in the county of Kent as a Port Health district and Dover
District Council (DDC) as the Port Health Authority (PHA) for that
district.
Our aim is to protect and promote the public health of the
people of the district and the Nation as a whole by broadening
access to food that is safe and wholesome to eat and through the
control and prevention of infectious disease, reported cases of
food poisoning and food borne illness. We achieve this through the
provision of advice, support, training and consultation on food
safety and infectious disease control issues both to the commercial
and voluntary sector, whilst ensuring a competent, comprehensive
and consistent approach towards the enforcement of domestic and
European legislation.
Facts
Dover is the largest Ro-Ro (Roll on - Roll off) ferry port in
the world. Vessels transport visitors and goods between Dover,
France, Belgium and beyond, every day of the year.
As a PHA we are responsible for monitoring the safety of
imported food not of animal origin at the point of import, as well
as, infectious disease control, ship inspections, food safety and
hygiene standards and general public health within the Port
District. The Channel Tunnel is also located within the Port
District, import controls and checks are also the responsibility of
the council.
The PHA is no longer a Border Inspection Post (BIP) and
therefore only foodstuffs not of animal origin from third countries
(countries not part of the European Community) can be imported into
the UK via Dover port and the Channel Tunnel. Products of animal
origin that originate in a third country can travel through Dover
and or the Channel Tunnel but only if they are already in free
circulation, in other words they have been presented and cleared at
a BIP prior to their arrival at Dover or the Channel Tunnel.
Because we are not a BIP, the majority of foodstuffs entering
the United Kingdom (UK) via Dover PHA are considered to be low risk
foodstuffs, such as fruit and vegetables.
However a number of high risk foodstuffs are also imported
through Dover and these foodstuffs are controlled under specific
Emergency Control Regulations that prescribe detailed control
measures that such foodstuffs as; nuts, dried figs, uncultivated
mushrooms, spices and sweets etc are required to provide particular
evidence that they have been produced and tested to a certain
standard, such foods may also be required to be sampled before they
are cleared to enter the UK.
Ultimately we aim to provide a professional service that is
without undue delay and/or administrative burden on the commercial
sector.
Contact Port Health
Telephone: 01304 872216
E-mail: porthealth@dover.gov.uk
