T.C.
TARIM ve KÖYİŞLERİ BAKANLIĞI
Koruma ve Kontrol Genel Müdürlüğü
Communiqué On Egg and the Egg Products
Authorization Law: Turkish Food Codex
The Official Gazette: 27.03.2000-24002
Communication No : 2000/11
Objective
Article 1 - The objective of this Communiqué is to determine the characteristics of egg and egg products to ensure their production, storage, transport and marketing in a hygienic way.
Scope
Article 2 - This Communiqué covers all eggs and egg products obtained from domestic chickens, of the family of Gallus gallus var. domestics. Eggs and egg products of other poultry and breeding eggs are not covered by this Communiqué.
Legal base
Article 3 - This Communiqué has been prepared in accordance with Government degree of Law on The Production, Consumption and Inspection of Foods, dated on 24 / 06 / 1995 and number 560, and "Turkish Food Codex" published in Official Gazette, dated 16 / 11 / 1997 and reiterated number 23172.
Definitions
Article 4 - All definitions of products and all other definitions related to products mentioned in this Communiqué are given as follows.
a) Egg; only shell eggs which obtained from domestic chickens.
b) Breeding egg; shell eggs which obtained from flocks with a rooster in order to produce chicks.
c) Shell of egg; the structure that surrounds the contents of egg from the outside to the inside on outer surface and which contains cuticle, the plate of calcium, and under which is found the dual membrane of the egg.
d) Egg albumen defines the transparent part between the shell of egg and yolk.
e) Yolk; the yellow colored material of the egg that is surrounded by the viteline membrane.
f) Cracked egg; the egg that has hard shell of which is harmed although the sub- membrane of the shell of the egg still has its integrity, the damage to the egg shall be visible to the naked eye.
g) Broken egg; the egg that has lost its entire integrity.
h) Foreign matter organic and inorganic matter, the blood spot, bloody formations, speck of flesh and embryonic formations which are originated from outside or inside and have no place in egg naturally.
ı) Dirty egg; the eggs at least 1/8 the shell surface area of which is covered by matter that is not part of the shell.
i) Slight dirty egg defines the eggs covered with matter which are from the outside of the shell like feces, contents of the coop, mud, spot of blood, and which will cover not more than the 1/8 of total surface of the egg and will cover not more than the 1/16 of the area that they exist.
j) Clean egg;the egg that contains no foreign matter or spots on the surface of the shell.
k) Egg products defines all products which can be obtained from the mix of all eggs separated from their shells, yolk, egg albumen and can be combined with other food stuffs and / or additives, liquid, concentrated, dried, crystallized, and exposed to coagulation processes.
l) Pasteurization defines the heat treatment to prolong the endurance of egg and egg products on the shelves and which is carried out using an appropriate temperature-time combination of at least 30 minutes at 63 degrees Celsius, 15 seconds at 72 degrees Celsius or any degree less than 100 degrees Celsius, that is carried out with the objective of killing all vegetative forms of pathogenic microorganisms and a greater part of other microorganisms.
The Specifications of Product
Article 5 - The specifications of the products which are covered by this Communiqué are given below.
a) Eggs that are used in the production of egg and egg products must be obtained from healthy poultry.
b) Egg and egg products shall have their own color, taste and odour.
c) The eggs that are rotten, smelling rotten, have lost their natural smell and color, and the eggs that have been subject to the process of incubation cannot be presented for consumption nor can they be used in the food industry.
d) The eggs of which the thickness of shell is less than 0,2 mm and dirty eggs cannot be presented for direct consumption.
e) The weight groups of the eggs must comply with the Annex - 1.
f) The quality classifications are given in Annex - 2.
g) The A group eggs must comprise clean eggs.
h) The A group eggs cannot be cooled below the temperature of +8°C.
ı) In the egg products that are not modified, the amount of 3 OH-butyric acids in the dry matter must not exceed 10 mg/kg.
i) In eggs and the unprocessed products of eggs, the amount of lactic acid in dry matter must not exceed 1000 mg/kg. This value is controlled in fermented products before fermentation.
j) In eggs and the unprocessed products of eggs, the amount of sucsinic acid in dry matter must not exceed 25 mg/kg. This value is controlled in fermented products before fermentation.
k) The residue of the shell and the membrane of egg must not exceed 100 mg/kg in egg products.
l) Pasteurized egg products must give negative reactions to the alpha amylase test.
m) Egg can be preserved by using calcium chloride, sodium silicate, potassium silicate, liquid oil and paraffin. The liquid oil that is used in preservation of eggs, must comply with Turkish Food Codex.
Additives
Article 6 - The values pertaining to the additives to be used in the products of egg, must comply with the Additives Section of the Turkish Food Codex Regulations.
Contaminants
Article 7 - The values of contaminants in eggs and in egg products must comply with the Section of Contaminant of the Turkish Food Codex.
Pesticides
Article 8 - The values of the pesticide residuals limits in egg and in the products of egg must comply with the Implementation “Principles of Pesticide Residuals Limits” introduced in the Section of Pesticide Residuals of the Turkish Food Codex Regulations.
The level of tolerance for veterinary drug residues
Article 9 - The level of the residual of the veterinary drugs in egg or egg products must comply with the Level of Tolerance for Veterinarian Drugs and The Values Belong to the Legal Purification Period explained in the Section of Veterinarian Drugs Tolerance Level of the Turkish Food Codex Regulation.
Hygiene
Article 10 - Egg and egg products must be produced in compliance with the general rules mentioned in the Hygiene Section of Turkish Food Codex Regulation. Moreover;
a) After egg has been broken, if the contents of the egg shall not to be exposed to the process of production, it should be kept by freezing it under conditions of hygiene or it should be kept in a temperature which should not exceed + 4°C. Preservation under these conditions must not exceed 48 hours.
b) Egg products must be rapidly cooled or frozen after following the production. The preservation under the condition of + 4°C could not exceed 48 hours. This rule is not valid for those products of which sugar in ingredients has been taken away.
c) The egg from Class A, must not be cleaned by washing or by using other methods and it cannot be exposed to a process of lubricating.
d) The industrial egg from Class C, must be washed before broken for processing and must be disinfected with a disinfectant that is used in food industry. After the disinfecting operation, the eggs must be washed again in order to broken only after it has been dried.
e) The eggs must be conservated in viols and kept in storage immediately after the egg collecting process. Eggs could not be packaged, put into boxes, and gathered in a heap until they become cool enough.
f)Viol and similar matter that are used in packaging cannot be used again without disinfecting.
g) The microbiological characteristics of eggs must comply with Annex - 3.
h) The microbiological characteristics of egg products must comply with Annex - 4.
The Specifications of Establishments
Article 11 - Establishments that produce the egg products must comply with the general rules mentioned in the section on the Specifications of Establishments of Turkish Food Codex Regulations.
Packaging, labeling and marking
Article 12 - Egg and egg products must be packaged, labeled and marked in compliance with the general rules mentioned in the Packaging, Labeling and Marking Section of Turkish Food Codex Regulations. In addition to these rules:
a) The weight and the class of quality must be stated on the same side of the name of product.
b) The Class A eggs which have spaces of atmosphere of 4 mm or less, shall be shown as “extra”.
c) The Class B eggs, on which the conservation process were not applied and not cooled under + 8°C will be showed with the sign of “B”.
d) The eggs of Class B that a cooling process were applied under + 8°C, must be showed with the sign of “s”.
e) The eggs of Class B, which are processed with the mixture of gas and then stored with or without cooling, must be showed with the sign of “?”.
f) As the date of production on the label, the date of laying the eggs should be stated.
g) As the date of packaging on the label, the date of packaging for marketing should be stated.
Transportation and storage
Article 13 - The transportation and storing of eggs and products of egg must comply with the rules of Transportation and Storage Section of Turkish Food Codex Regulations.
a) Eggs shall not be transported and stored together with other winged animals eggs.
b) Eggs shall be preserved or stored in the storage at a temperature between 8 – 15°C and a humidity of 70 - 80%.
c) The eggs shall not be preserved in marketing places in the temperature of +12°C.
d) Egg products shallbe stored at temperatures which are given below:
| Type of The Product | Temperature of the Storage |
| Deep frozen products | - 18°C |
| Frozen products | - 12°C |
| Cooled products | + 4°C |
| Pasteurized products | + 4°C |
| Dehydrated products, except egg plasma | + 15°C |
The methods of sampling and analysis
Article 14 - In egg and egg products, the samples must be taken in way that is appropriate to the rules mentioned in the Section of Taking Sample and Analysis Methods of Turkish Food Codex Regulations and they will be exposed by analysis methods which are internationally accepted.
Special Provisions
Article 15 - Among the eggs of Class A, the proportion of eggs which has not the characteristics of the eggs of Class A shall not exceed 7 %, the proportion of eggs which have the spot of blood, and spot of flesh shall not exceed 1 % and the proportion of cracked eggs shall not exceed 4%.
Among the eggs of Class B, the proportion of eggs that have not characteristics of the eggs of Class B and the proportion of cracked eggs shall not exceed 7%.
Registration and Inspection
Article 16 - Establishment which produce, store, package and market egg and egg products have to obey the provisions of this Communiqué during registration, allowance, import, control and inspection. The establishments which do not obey these provisions are subject to legal procedure according to Government Decree on the Production, Consumption and Inspection of Food published on 24 / 06 / 1995 and number 560.
Inspection
Article 17 – The provisions of this Communiqué, are inspected by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Health according to the Government Decree Law published on 24 / 06 / 1995 and number 560.
Enforcement
Article 18 - This Communiqué enters into force on the date of publication.
Repealed Legislation
Article 19 - With this Communiqué, Standards of “Eggs of Poultry - with shell” number TS 1068, published in the Official Gazette, on 02 / 02 /1981 and number 17239, have been repealed.
Execution
Article 20 - This Communiqué is executed by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs and the Minister of Health.
Provisional article 1- Presently active establishments, producing and marketing the products covered by this Communiqué, are obliged to obey the provisions of this Communiqué witin 1 year following the publication thereof.
ANNEX – 1
| Weight Group | Weight | The minimum weight of 100 eggs | The minimum weight of 360 eggs |
| 1 | > 70 g | 7.0 kg | 25.20 kg |
| 2 | 65 - 70 g | 6.6 kg | 23.76 kg |
| 3 | 60 - 65 g | 6.1 kg | 21.96 kg |
| 4 | 55 - 60 g | 5.6 kg | 20.16 kg |
| 5 | 50 -55 g | 5.1 kg | 18.36 kg |
| 6 | 45 -50 g | 4.6 kg | 16.56 kg |
| 7 | < 45 g | < 4.5 kg | < 16.56 |
ANNEX - 2
Fresh Egg - A Class Egg
The egg shell and cuticle: Normal, clean and undamaged.
The air gap: It shall not be more than 6 mm and shall not move.
Egg albumen: Transparent, limpid, the proper consistence of gel and shall not contain strange material.
Yolk: In the light test, it shall be seen as homogeneous globular shadow at the center and it shall not be torn at membrane. As the egg moved by turning shall would not get away from the center so much and it shall not contain foreign matter.
Microorganism: Ingredient of egg shall not contain any colony of microorganism and parasites that can be seen with naked eyes.
Store egg - Egg of B Class
The shell of egg: Normal, clean or lightly dirty and undamaged.
The air gap: It shall be below 9 mm.
Egg albumen: Limpid, transparent and shall not contain strange matter.
Yolk: In the light test, any strange material shall not be seen in yolk.
Microorganism: Egg shall not contain any colony of microorganism and parasite that is visible to naked eye, in its ingredient.
Industrial egg type - C class egg
Eggs that have not the characteristics and qualities of A an B class are eggs of Class C. This class of eggs shall be used just in food industry and they shall not be presented to the direct consumption.
ANNEX - 3
MICROBIOLOGICAL CRITERIA FOR EGGS
| n | c | m | M | |
| Mezofilic aerobic bacteria | 5 | 3 | 1 x 105 ml | 1 x 10 6 ml |
| Salmonella | 5 | 0 | not exist in 25 g | |
ANNEX - 4
THE MICROBIOLOGICAL CRITERIA FOR EGG PRODUCTS
| n | c | m | M | |
| Salmonella | 5 | 0 | not exist in 25 g | |
| Staphyloccocaceae* | 5 | 0 | not exist in 1 g | |
| Mezofilic aerobic bacteria | 5 | 3 | 1 x 104 gr - ml | 1 x 105 gr - ml |
| Enterobacteriaceae | 5 | 2 | 10 gr - ml | 1 x 102 gr - ml |
n : The number of samples
c : Maximum number of samples that can exist between the number of microorganism “m” and “M”.
m : The number of maximum microorganism which can exist all samples.
M : The maximum microorganism number that can exist in samples in the number of “c”.
* : It is valid just for dried products.