Regulation (EU) 2017/2393 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilShow full title

Article 4 Amendments to Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013

Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 is amended as follows:

(1)

Article 33 is amended as follows:

(a)

in paragraph 1, point (f) is replaced by the following:

‘(f) crisis prevention and management, including providing coaching to other producer organisations, associations of producer organisations, producer groups or individual producers;’;

(b)

the first subparagraph of paragraph 3 is amended as follows:

(i)

points (c) and (d) are replaced by the following:

‘(c)

promotion and communication, including actions and activities aimed at diversification and consolidation on the fruit and vegetable markets, whether for prevention or during a crisis period;

(d)

support for the administrative costs of setting up mutual funds and financial contributions to replenish mutual funds, following the compensation paid to producer members who experience a severe drop in their income as a result of adverse market conditions;’;

(ii)

the following point is added:

‘(i) coaching to other producer organisations, associations of producer organisations, producer groups or individual producers.’;

(c)

the second and third subparagraphs of paragraph 5 are replaced by the following:

‘Environmental actions shall respect the requirements for agri-environment-climate or organic farming commitments laid down in Article 28(3) and Article 29(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013.

Where at least 80 % of the producer members of a producer organisation are subject to one or more identical agri-environment-climate or organic farming commitments provided for in Article 28(3) and Article 29(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013, each one of those commitments shall count as an environmental action as referred to in point (a) of the first subparagraph of this paragraph.’;

(2)

in Article 34, paragraph 4 is replaced by the following:

‘4. The 50 % limit provided for in paragraph 1 shall be increased to 100 % in the following cases:

(a) market withdrawals of fruit and vegetables which do not exceed 5 % of the volume of marketed production of each producer organisation and which are disposed of by way of:

(i)

free distribution to charitable organisations and foundations, approved to that effect by the Member States, for use in their activities to assist persons whose right to public assistance is recognised in national law, in particular because they lack the necessary means of subsistence;

(ii)

free distribution to penal institutions, schools and public education institutions, establishments referred to in Article 22 and to children's holiday camps as well as to hospitals and old people's homes designated by the Member States, which shall take all necessary steps to ensure that the quantities thus distributed are additional to the quantities normally bought in by such establishments;

(b) actions related to coaching of other producer organisations, or of producer groups recognised in accordance with Article 125e of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 or Article 27 of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013, provided those organisations or groups are from regions of Member States referred to in Article 35(1) of this Regulation, or of individual producers.’;

(3)

Article 35 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 35 National financial assistance

1. In regions of Member States in which the degree of organisation of producers in the fruit and vegetables sector is significantly below the Union average, Member States may grant producer organisations national financial assistance equal to a maximum of 80 % of the financial contributions referred to in point (a) of Article 32(1) and up to 10 % of the value of the marketed production of any such producer organisation. That assistance shall be additional to the operational fund.

2. The degree of organisation of producers in a region of a Member State shall be considered as significantly below the Union average where the average degree of organisation has been less than 20 % for three consecutive years preceding the implementation of the operational programme. The degree of organisation shall be calculated as the value of fruit and vegetable production that was obtained in the region concerned and marketed by producer organisations, associations of producer organisations and producer groups recognised in accordance with Article 125e of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 or Article 27 of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013, divided by the total value of the fruit and vegetable production that was obtained in that region.

3. Member States that grant national financial assistance in accordance with paragraph 1 shall inform the Commission of the regions that meet the criteria referred to in paragraph 2 and of the national financial assistance granted to producer organisations in those regions.’;

(4)

in Article 37, point (d)(ii) is replaced by the following:

‘(ii) conditions relating to points (a), (b), (c) and (i) of the first subparagraph of Article 33(3);’;

(5)

in the first paragraph of Article 38, point (i) is replaced by the following:

‘(i) promotion, communication, training and coaching measures in cases of crisis prevention and management;’;

(6)

in Article 62, the following paragraph is added:

‘5. Member States may apply this Chapter to areas producing wine suitable for producing wine spirits with a geographical indication as registered in accordance with Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 110/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council(1). For the purposes of this Chapter, those areas may be treated as areas where wines with a protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication may be produced.’;

(7)

Article 64 is amended as follows:

(a)

in the second subparagraph of paragraph 1, the following point is inserted:

‘(ca) the applicant does not have vines planted without authorisation as referred to in Article 71 of this Regulation or without a planting right as referred to in Articles 85a and 85b of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007;’;

(b)

in paragraph 2, the introductory part is replaced by the following:

‘2. If the total area covered by the eligible applications referred to in paragraph 1 in a given year exceeds the area made available by the Member State, authorisations shall be granted according to a pro-rata distribution of hectares to all applicants on the basis of the area for which they have requested the authorisation. Such granting may establish a minimum and/or a maximum area by applicant and also be partially or completely made in accordance with one or more of the following objective and non-discriminatory priority criteria:’;

(c)

the following paragraph is inserted:

‘2a. If the Member State decides to apply one or more of the criteria referred to in paragraph 2, the Member State may add the additional condition that the applicant shall be a natural person who is no more than 40 years of age in the year of submission of the application.’;

(d)

paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:

‘3. Member States shall make public the criteria referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 2a that they apply and shall notify them forthwith to the Commission.’;

(8)

Article 148 is amended as follows:

(a)

the following paragraph is inserted:

‘1a. Where Member States do not make use of the possibilities provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article, a producer, a producer organisation, or an association of producer organisations may require that any delivery in raw milk to a processor of raw milk be the subject of a written contract between the parties and/or be the subject of a written offer for a contract from the first purchasers, under the conditions laid down in the first subparagraph of paragraph 4 of this Article.

If the first purchaser is a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise within the meaning of Recommendation 2003/361/EC, the contract and/or the contract offer is not compulsory, without prejudice to the possibility for the parties to make use of a standard contract drawn up by an interbranch organisation.’;

(b)

in paragraph 2, the introductory part is replaced by the following:

‘2. The contract and/or the offer for a contract referred to in paragraphs 1 and 1a shall:’;

(c)

paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:

‘3. By way of derogation from paragraphs 1 and 1a, a contract and/or an offer for a contract shall not be required where raw milk is delivered by a member of a cooperative to the cooperative of which he is a member if the statutes of that cooperative or the rules and decisions provided for in or derived from these statutes contain provisions having similar effects to the provisions set out in points (a), (b) and (c) of paragraph 2.’;

(d)

in paragraph 4, the introductory part and point (a) of the second subparagraph are replaced by the following:

‘Notwithstanding the first subparagraph, one or more of the following shall apply:

(a)

where a Member State decides to make a written contract for the delivery of raw milk compulsory in accordance with paragraph 1, it may establish:

(i)

an obligation for the parties to agree on a relationship between a given quantity delivered and the price payable for that delivery;

(ii)

a minimum duration, applicable only to written contracts between a farmer and the first purchaser of raw milk; such a minimum duration shall be at least six months, and shall not impair the proper functioning of the internal market;’;

(9)

in Article 149, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

‘1. A producer organisation in the milk and milk products sector which is recognised under Article 161(1) may negotiate on behalf of its farmer members, in respect of part or all of their joint production, contracts for the delivery of raw milk by a farmer to a processor of raw milk, or to a collector within the meaning of the third subparagraph of Article 148(1).’;

(10)

Article 152 is amended as follows:

(a)

in paragraph 1, point (b) is replaced by the following:

‘(b) are formed on the initiative of the producers and which carry out at least one of the following activities:

(i)

joint processing;

(ii)

joint distribution, including by joint selling platforms or joint transportation;

(iii)

joint packaging, labelling or promotion;

(iv)

joint organising of quality control;

(v)

joint use of equipment or storage facilities;

(vi)

joint management of waste directly related to the production;

(vii)

joint procurement of inputs;

(viii)

any other joint service activities pursuing one of the objectives listed in point (c) of this paragraph;’;

(b)

the following paragraphs are inserted:

‘1a. By way of derogation from Article 101(1) TFEU, a producer organisation recognised under paragraph 1 of this Article may plan production, optimise the production costs, place on the market and negotiate contracts for the supply of agricultural products, on behalf of its members for all or part of their total production.

The activities referred to in the first subparagraph may take place:

(a) provided that one or more of the activities referred to in point (b)(i) to (vii) of paragraph 1 is genuinely exercised, thus contributing to the fulfilment of the objectives set out in Article 39 TFEU;

(b) provided that the producer organisation concentrates supply and places the products of its members on the market, whether or not there is a transfer of ownership of agricultural products by the producers to the producer organisation;

(c) whether or not the price negotiated is the same as regards the aggregate production of some or all of the members;

(d) provided that the producers concerned are not members of any other producer organisation as regards the products covered by the activities referred to in the first subparagraph;

(e) provided that the agricultural product is not covered by an obligation to deliver arising from the farmer's membership of a cooperative, which is not itself a member of the producer organisations concerned, in accordance with the conditions set out in the cooperative's statutes or the rules and decisions provided for in or derived from those statutes.

However, Member States may derogate from the condition set out in point (d) of the second subparagraph in duly justified cases where producer members hold two distinct production units located in different geographical areas.

1b. For the purposes of this Article, references to producer organisations shall also include associations of producer organisations recognised under Article 156(1) if such associations meet the requirements set out in paragraph 1 of this Article.

1c. The national competition authority referred to in Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 1/2003 may decide in individual cases that, for the future, one or more of the activities referred to in the first subparagraph of paragraph 1a are to be modified, discontinued or not take place at all if it considers that this is necessary in order to prevent competition from being excluded or if it considers that the objectives set out in Article 39 TFEU are jeopardised.

For negotiations covering more than one Member State, the decision referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph shall be taken by the Commission without applying the procedure referred to in Article 229(2) or (3).

When acting under the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the national competition authority shall inform the Commission in writing before or without delay after initiating the first formal measure of the investigation and shall notify the Commission of the decisions without delay after their adoption.

The decisions referred to in this paragraph shall not apply earlier than the date of their notification to the undertakings concerned.’;

(c)

paragraph 3 is deleted;

(11)

Article 154 is amended as follows:

(a)

the following paragraph is inserted:

‘1a. Member States may, on request, decide to grant more than one recognition to a producer organisation operating in several sectors referred to in Article 1(2) provided the producer organisation fulfils the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article for each sector for which it seeks recognition.’;

(b)

paragraphs 2 and 3 are replaced by the following:

‘2. Member States may decide that producer organisations which have been recognised before 1 January 2018 and which fulfil the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be deemed to be recognised as producer organisations pursuant to Article 152.

3. Where producer organisations have been recognised before 1 January 2018 but do not fulfil the conditions set out in paragraph 1 of this Article, Member States shall withdraw their recognition no later than 31 December 2020.’;

(12)

Article 157 is amended as follows:

(a)

in point (c) of paragraph 1, the following points are added:

‘(xv)

establishing standard value sharing clauses within the meaning of Article 172a, including market bonuses and losses, determining how any evolution of relevant market prices of the products concerned or other commodity markets is to be allocated between them;

(xvi)

implementing measures to prevent and manage animal health, plant-protection and environmental risks.’;

(b)

the following paragraph is inserted:

‘1a. Member States may, on request, decide to grant more than one recognition to an interbranch organisation operating in several sectors referred to in Article 1(2) provided the interbranch organisation fulfils the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 and, where applicable, paragraph 3 for each sector for which it seeks recognition.’;

(c)

in point (c) of paragraph 3, the following points are added:

‘(xii)

establishing standard value sharing clauses within the meaning of Article 172a, including market bonuses and losses, determining how any evolution of relevant market prices of the products concerned or other commodity markets is to be allocated between them;

(xiii)

implementing measures to prevent and manage animal health, plant-protection and environmental risks.’;

(13)

in Article 159, the heading is replaced by the following:

‘Mandatory recognition’;

(14)

Article 161 is amended as follows:

(a)

in paragraph 1, the introductory part and point (a) are replaced by the following:

‘1. Member States shall, on request, recognise as producer organisations in the milk and milk products sector all legal entities or clearly defined parts of such entities, provided that:

(a) they are constituted by producers in the milk and milk products sector, are formed on their initiative and pursue a specific aim which may include one or more of the following objectives:

(i)

ensuring that production is planned and adjusted to demand, particularly in terms of quality and quantity;

(ii)

concentration of supply and the placing on the market of the products produced by their members;

(iii)

optimising production costs and stabilising producer prices;’;

(b)

paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:

‘2. Member States may decide that producer organisations which have been recognised before 2 April 2012 on the basis of national law and which fulfil the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 are to be considered as recognised producer organisations.’;

(15)

Article 168 is amended as follows:

(a)

the following paragraph is inserted:

‘1a. Where Member States do not make use of the possibilities provided for in paragraph 1 of this Article, a producer, a producer organisation or an association of producer organisations, in respect of agricultural products in a sector referred to in Article 1(2) other than the milk, milk products and sugar sector, may require that any delivery of its products to a processor or distributor be the subject of a written contract between the parties and/or be the subject of a written offer for a contract from the first purchasers, under the conditions laid down in paragraph 4 and in the first subparagraph of paragraph 6 of this Article.

If the first purchaser is a micro, small or medium-sized enterprise within the meaning of Recommendation 2003/361/EC, the contract and/or the contract offer is not compulsory without prejudice to the possibility for the parties to make use of a standard contract drawn up by an interbranch organisation.’;

(b)

in paragraph 4, the introductory part is replaced by the following:

‘4. Any contract or offer for a contract referred to in paragraphs 1 and 1a shall:’;

(c)

paragraph 5 is replaced by the following:

‘5. By way of derogation from paragraphs 1 and 1a, a contract or an offer for a contract shall not be required where the products concerned are delivered by a member of a cooperative to the cooperative of which he is a member if the statutes of that cooperative or the rules and decisions provided for in, or derived from, these statutes contain provisions having similar effects to the provisions set out in points (a), (b) and (c) of paragraph 4.’;

(16)

Articles 169, 170 and 171 are deleted;

(17)

the following Section is inserted:

‘Section 5a Value-sharing clauses

Article 172a Value-sharing

Without prejudice to any specific value-sharing clauses in the sugar sector, farmers, including associations of farmers, and their first purchaser may agree on value sharing clauses, including market bonuses and losses, determining how any evolution of relevant market prices for the products concerned or other commodity markets is to be allocated between them.’;

(18)

in Article 184, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

‘1. Tariff quotas for the import of agricultural products for release into free circulation in the Union or a part thereof, or tariff quotas for imports of Union agricultural products into third countries, which are to be partly or fully administered by the Union, resulting from international agreements concluded in accordance with the TFEU or any other act adopted in accordance with Article 43(2) or Article 207 TFEU, shall be opened and/or administered by the Commission by means of delegated acts pursuant to Article 186 of this Regulation and implementing acts pursuant to Article 187 of this Regulation.’;

(19)

Article 188 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 188 Allocation process for tariff quotas

1. The Commission shall make public, via an appropriate web-publication, the results of tariff quota allocation for the applications notified taking into account the tariff quotas available and the applications notified.

2. The publication referred to in paragraph 1 shall also make reference, when appropriate, to the need of rejecting pending applications, suspending the submission of applications or allocating unused quantities.

3. Member States shall issue import licences and export licences for the quantities applied for within the import tariff quotas and export tariff quotas, subject to the respective allocation coefficients and after they are made public by the Commission in accordance with paragraph 1.’;

(20)

Article 209 is amended as follows:

(a)

the second subparagraph of paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

‘Article 101(1) TFEU shall not apply to agreements, decisions and concerted practices of farmers, farmers' associations, or associations of such associations, or producer organisations recognised under Article 152 or Article 161 of this Regulation, or associations of producer organisations recognised under Article 156 of this Regulation, which concern the production or sale of agricultural products or the use of joint facilities for the storage, treatment or processing of agricultural products, unless the objectives set out in Article 39 TFEU are jeopardised.’;

(b)

in paragraph 2, the following subparagraphs are inserted after the first subparagraph:

‘However, farmers, farmers’ associations, or associations of such associations, or producer organisations recognised under Article 152 or Article 161 of this Regulation, or associations of producer organisations recognised under Article 156 of this Regulation, may request an opinion from the Commission on the compatibility of those agreements, decisions and concerted practices with the objectives set out in Article 39 TFEU.

The Commission shall deal with requests for opinions promptly and shall send the applicant its opinion within four months of receipt of a complete request. The Commission may, at its own initiative or at the request of a Member State, change the content of an opinion, in particular if the applicant has provided inaccurate information or misused the opinion.’;

(21)

Article 222 is amended as follows:

(a)

in paragraph 1, the introductory part is replaced by the following:

‘1. During periods of severe imbalance in markets, the Commission may adopt implementing acts to the effect that Article 101(1) TFEU is not to apply to agreements and decisions of farmers, farmers' associations, or associations of such associations, or recognised producer organisations, associations of recognised producer organisations and recognised interbranch organisations in any of the sectors referred to in Article 1(2) of this Regulation, provided that such agreements and decisions do not undermine the proper functioning of the internal market, strictly aim to stabilise the sector concerned and fall under one or more of the following categories:’;

(b)

paragraph 2 is deleted;

(22)

in Article 232, paragraph 2 is deleted;

(23)

Annexes VII and VIII are amended in accordance with Annex III to this Regulation.

(1)

Regulation (EC) No 110/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 January 2008 on the definition, description, presentation, labelling and the protection of geographical indications of spirit drinks and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 1576/89 (OJ L 39, 13.2.2008, p. 16).’;