Order No. 51 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development validating the national rules regarding the authorization of import of ecological agri-food products from third countries.

This Order establishes the national legal framework regarding the release for free circulation on the European Union market of ecological products from third countries. Inspection/control certificate shall be intended the document issued by the competent authorities from a third country or a third country with equivalence, for a batch of ecological agrifood products that confirms compliance with requirements set for ecological agri-food production. Supporting document shall be intended the document issued by an authority or a control body from a third country or a third country with equivalence, which includes information that allows the identification of the economic operator who carried out the last operation, the type and the range of organic food products, as well as their validity period. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is the competent authority for authorizing import from third countries. The release into free circulation on the territory of the European Union of ecological agri-food products originating from third countries is carried out after the performance of controls at the border inspection posts or at the sanitary-veterinary and food safety departments of the county, respectively of the municipality of Bucharest, within whose territorial radius the final import points are located, in case the import takes place through other entry points on the territory of the European Union, other than border inspection posts, entry points, exit points and designated entry points on the territory of Romania. For the free circulation on the territory of the European Union of imported organic food products, which come from third countries, the competent authority for the control of import of organic agri-food products has the following duties: (a) to verify the accompanying documents; (b) to verify the conformity of the transported commodities with the information in the documents; and (c) to complete and sign the 17th box of the inspection/control certificate if the lots are compliant.