Waste meat hauliers told to use tachographs
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By Roger Brown WASTE MEAT hauliers have been told their exemption from EU drivers' hours rules does not extend to vehicles that transport products such as meat and bone meal or supermarket waste.
• vehicles transporting animal-derived products — i.e, those that were originally animal waste and carcasses not fit for human consumption that have been processed to make a product; • waste from supermarkets, shops and fast food outlets such as meat or dairy that is past its sell-by date, waste from a subsequent butchery process, or oil that has been used to cook meat.
However, the DfT said the interpretation of the meaning and scope of the legislation is "a matter for the courts".
In a test case last year, two operators transporting supermarket meat waste were prosecuted by Vosa for using log books rather than tachographs (CM 12 July 2012). The case was thrown out of court after the judge accused Vosa of "abuse of process".
Anton Balkitis, a lawyer at Rothera Dowson, who represented the operators, told CM: "Hauliers in this sector must now use tachographs or face prosecution."
The derogation was introduced for health reasons.