Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/891Show full title

CHAPTER VI Extension of rules

Article 68 Conditions for the extension of rules

1. Article 164 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 shall apply to products of the fruit and vegetables and processed fruit and vegetables sectors provided that the rules referred to in paragraph 4 of that Article:

(a) have been in force for at least one year;

(b) are made binding for no more than three years.

However, Member States may derogate from the condition laid down in point (a) of the first subparagraph of this paragraph where the aim of the rules to be extended is one of those referred to in points (a), (e), (f), (h), (i) (j), (m) and (n) of the first subparagraph of Article 164(4) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013.

2. The rules which are made binding on all producers in a specific economic area shall not apply to products delivered for processing under a contract signed before the beginning of the harvest, unless the extension of rules expressly covers such products, with the exception of the rules on market reporting referred to in point (a) of the first subparagraph of Article 164(4) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013.

3. Rules of producer organisations or associations of producer organisations may not be made binding on producers of organic products covered by Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 unless they have been agreed by at least 50 % of producers covered by that Regulation in the economic area in which the producer organisation or the association of producer organisations operates and that organisation or association covers at least 60 % of such production of that area.

4. The rules referred to in point (b) of the first subparagraph of Article 164(4) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 shall not apply to products which were produced outside the specific economic area referred to in Article 164(2) of that Regulation.

Article 69 National rules

1. For the purposes of Article 164(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, Member States may decide that the economic area that is taken into account in the case of extension of rules of an interbranch organisation is a region or the entire national territory where production and marketing conditions are homogenous.

2. For the purpose of determining representativeness of producer organisations and associations of producer organisations within the meaning of Article 164(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, Member States shall lay down rules excluding:

(a) producers whose production is intended essentially for direct sale to consumers on the holding or in the production area;

(b) direct sales as referred to in point (a);

(c) produce delivered for processing under a contract signed before the beginning of the harvest, unless the extended rules expressly cover such products;

(d) producers or production of organic products covered by Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.

Article 70 Notification of extension of rules and economic areas

1. When a Member State notifies rules it has made binding for a given product and economic area pursuant to Article 164(6) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, it shall immediately inform the Commission of:

(a) the economic area in which those rules will apply;

(b) the producer organisation, association of producer organisations or interbranch organisation which requested the extension of the rules and the data showing the compliance with Article 164(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013;

(c) where the extension of rules is requested by a producer organisation or association of producer organisations, the number of producers who belong to that organisation or association and the total number of producers in the economic area concerned; such information shall be given in respect of the situation at the time when the request for extension is made;

(d) where the extension of rules is requested by a producer organisation or association of producer organisations, the total production of the economic area and the production marketed by that organisation or association during the last year for which figures are available;

(e) the date from which the rules to be extended have applied to the producer organisation, association of producer organisations or interbranch organisation concerned; and

(f) the date from which the extension is to take effect and its duration.

2. Where a Member State has laid down national rules regarding representativeness in case of extension of rules of interbranch organisations pursuant to the second subparagraph of Article 164(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, it shall notify those rules to the Commission and their justification together with the notification of the extension of rules itself.

3. Before making the extended rules publicly available, the Commission shall inform Member States of those rules by any means it considers appropriate.

Article 71 Repeal of extension of rules

The Commission shall adopt the decision referred to in Article 175(d) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 requiring a Member State to repeal an extension of rules decided on by that Member State pursuant to Article 164(1) of that Regulation where it finds that:

(a)

the decision of the Member State excludes competition in a substantial part of the internal market or jeopardises the free trade, or that the objectives of the Article 39 of the Treaty are endangered;

(b)

Article 101(1) of the Treaty applies to the rules extended to other producers;

(c)

the provisions of this Chapter have not been complied with.

The Commission's decision with regard to those rules shall apply from the date of the notification of such a finding to the Member State concerned.

Article 72 Buyers of produce sold on the tree

1. In cases where producers not belonging to a producer organisation sell their produce on the tree, the buyer shall, for the purposes of compliance with the rules regarding production reporting and marketing, be considered as having produced that produce.

2. The Member State concerned may decide that rules other than those referred to in paragraph 1 may be made binding on buyers where they are responsible for the management of the production concerned.