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<oai_dc:dc xmlns:oai_dc="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc.xsd">
  <dc:title xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">England and Wales - Shellfish Classification Zones of England and Wales</dc:title>
  <dc:type xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">dataset</dc:type>
  <dc:identifier xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">https://portal.medin.org.uk/portal/start.php?tpc=009_CEFASb1d8dc6c-8874-41fe-a812-a748af5d4a4a</dc:identifier>
  <dc:description xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">Map of Bivalve mollusc (shellfish) classification zones. Available on Magic, 
Spire and Cefas website.

Bivalve mollusc (shellfish) harvesting areas are classified according to the 
extent of contamination shown by monitoring of *E. coli* in shellfish 
flesh. Treatment processes are stipulated according to the classification 
status of the area.

The classification categories are:

**Class A** (80% of samples must be = 230 *E. coli*/100g; all samples must 
be less than 700 E. coli/100g) - molluscs can be harvested for direct human 
consumption

**Class B** (90% of samples must be = 4600 *E. coli*/100g; all samples 
must be less than 46000 E. coli/100g) - molluscs can be sold for human 
consumption:


- after purification in an approved plant, or
- after re-laying in an approved Class A re-laying area, or
- after an EC-approved heat treatment process.

**Class C** (= 46000 *E. coli*/100g) - molluscs can be sold for human 
consumption only after re-laying for at least two months in an approved 
re-laying area followed, where necessary, by treatment in a purification 
centre, or after an EC-approved heat treatment process.

In all cases, the health standards in Annex III of EC Regulations 853/2004 and 
the microbiological criteria adopted under EC Regulation 2073/2005 must be 
met. Molluscs must not be subject to production or collected in prohibited 
areas.

There are two classification systems in England and Wales:


( 1.)the annual or "temporary" classification system
( 2.)the long-term classification (LTC) system.

New areas are initially given annual/temporary classifications until they meet 
the criteria for an LTC. Harvesting sites that do not meet LTC criteria are 
automatically classified under the annual/temporary classification system.

Classification: Class A=1, Class B=2, Class C=3, Prohibited=4, Long Term Class 
B=5, Seasonal Class B/Class C=6, Seasonal ClassA/Class B=7</dc:description>
  <dc:date xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">20131017 20111007</dc:date>
</oai_dc:dc>
