The Federal Environmental Inspection carries out checks in stores, at the premises of farmers, importers, exporters, distributors, wholesalers, and at other types of retailers based in Belgium. Checks are also organised at professional users of chemical products deemed to be dangerous.
Sometimes, the Federal Environmental Inspection starts by communicating with a sector's operators in order to recall the conditions for placing products on the market and announce the forthcoming visits of inspectors and controllers. The aim is to create a sense of responsibility among the production chain, from the manufacturer to the retail outlet.
The inspectors and controllers carry out different types of checks, including documentary and technical checks and even laboratory analyses.
Checks are also organised when entering Belgian territory, mainly at airports and ports. Suspicious consignments are inspected by customs' officers who contact environmental inspectors and controllers to determine and record violations involving the trade of species, timber, and chemical products or substances. When a violation is recorded, importation is refused. The products concerned are either returned to their sender (at their expense) or destroyed.
To carry out these checks, the Federal Environmental Inspection works with the FPS Finance Customs and Excise, the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC) and the FPS Economy.
More and more non-conform products are placed on the market via electronic commerce. Surveillance and control measures for e-commerce (FR / NL) are set up by the Federal Environmental Inspection service.