# C_2013019EN.01000601.xml

| 23.1.2013 | EN | Official Journal of the European Union | C 19/6 |
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23.1.2013

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 19/6

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Call for applications for the selection of experts as members of the High Level Forum for a Better Functioning Food Supply Chain

2013/C 19/05

1.   Description of the group

Description of the group

On 30 July 2010, the Commission set up the High Level Forum for a Better Functioning Food Supply Chain (1). The task of this group is to assist the Commission with the development of industrial policy in the agro-food sector. For this purpose, it shall follow the recommendations of the High Level Group on the Competitiveness of the Agro-Food Industry established by Commission Decision 2008/359/EC (2) on the one hand and, on the other hand, the implementation of the initiatives proposed by the Commission in its Communication ‘A better functioning food supply chain in Europe’ (3).

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On 5 December 2012, the Forum reported on its work and recommended further action to be carried out in several specific areas (4). On 19 December 2012, the Commission decided to prolong the Forum's mandate by two years and to review its membership on the basis of a public call for application (5).

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In accordance with Article 4(1) of the Decision of 30 July 2010 as modified by the Decision of 19 December 2012, the Forum shall comprise up to 50 organisations including national authorities from Member States. This call for application is open for the selection of members other than national authorities, which will be selected among:

| — | businesses actively involved in the agro-food industry, and in the trade and distribution of agro-food products in the EU, |
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businesses actively involved in the agro-food industry, and in the trade and distribution of agro-food products in the EU,

| — | associations and federations representing farmers, the agro-food industry and the trade and distribution of agri-food products in the EU, |
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associations and federations representing farmers, the agro-food industry and the trade and distribution of agri-food products in the EU,

| — | non-governmental organisations with expertise in matters relating to the food supply chain. |
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non-governmental organisations with expertise in matters relating to the food supply chain.

Current members who would look for a renewal of their mandate should respond to this call.

The Commission shall select members for a one year renewable mandate.

Members and their representatives shall respect the conditions of confidentiality mentioned in Article 5(6) of the Decision of 30 July 2010. They will receive no remuneration for their duties.

Most meetings will be held in English.

2.   Eligibility criteria

Eligibility criteria

Candidates must, as of the closing date for applications:

| — | be a legal entity (6) registered in one of the Member States of the European Union, or in an acceding country or a European Economic Area country, |
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be a legal entity (6) registered in one of the Member States of the European Union, or in an acceding country or a European Economic Area country,

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| — | be registered in the Union transparency register (7). |
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be registered in the Union transparency register (7).

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3.   Selection criteria

Selection criteria

The Commission will take the following criteria into account when assessing applications:

| — | extent of proven record of activity relevant to the tasks of the High Level Forum for a Better Functioning Food Supply Chain, |
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extent of proven record of activity relevant to the tasks of the High Level Forum for a Better Functioning Food Supply Chain,

| — | extent of proven operational capacity to take part in the work of the Forum, to be demonstrated by a description of the organisation, its experience, its resources and its achievements, |
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extent of proven operational capacity to take part in the work of the Forum, to be demonstrated by a description of the organisation, its experience, its resources and its achievements,

| — | extent of competence, experience and hierarchical level of the proposed representative(s) of the organisation, |
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extent of competence, experience and hierarchical level of the proposed representative(s) of the organisation,

| — | the need to strike a balance within the group of experts in terms of representativeness of applicants and of their respective geographical origin, interests, and relevant expertise. |
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the need to strike a balance within the group of experts in terms of representativeness of applicants and of their respective geographical origin, interests, and relevant expertise.

4.   Selection procedure

Selection procedure

A panel of at least three Commission officials will be nominated by the Director-General for Enterprise and Industry. They will decide which applicants will be invited to become members of the Forum. The new members will be appointed as of 1 March 2013.

5.   Submission of applications

Submission of applications

A letter of motivation, together with the application form (Annex), duly signed by an authorised representative of the applicant legal entity, must be sent to the e-mail address: entr-food-forum@ec.europa.eu, by 8 February 2013 at the latest, as attested by a delivery notification. Applications received after this date will not be evaluated.

All applying organisations must clearly indicate the type of interest they represent (i.e. consumers, environment, employees, SMEs, economic sector etc.), propose their representative(s) and their registration number in the Union transparency register.

Applications must be completed in one of the official languages of the European Union. However applications in English would facilitate the selection procedure.

The Commission reserves the right to ask for any supporting documents at a later stage, and to replace any member who has provided inaccurate or false declarations.

Personal data will be collected, processed and published in accordance with the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 (8).

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The list of members of the Forum shall be published in the register of Commission expert groups (9).

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For any further information please send your query to: entr-food-forum@ec.europa.eu

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(1)  Commission Decision of 30 July 2010 establishing the High Level Forum for a Better Functioning Food Supply Chain (2010/C 210/03) (OJ C 210, 3.8.2010, p. 4).

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(2)  Commission Decision 2008/359/EC of 28 April 2008 setting up the High Level Group on the Competitiveness of the Agro-Food Industry (OJ L 120, 7.5.2008, p. 15).

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(3)  COM(2009) 591, 28.10.2009.

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(4)  http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/food/files/hlf-third-meeting-final-report-cover_en.pdf

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(5)  Commission Decision of 19 December 2012 amending the Decision of 30 July 2010 as regards its applicability and the composition of the High Level Forum for a Better Functioning Food Supply Chain (2012/C 396/06) (OJ C 396, 21.12.2012, p. 17).

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(6)  If no legal entity exists (e.g. for certain trade unions), the organisation should be represented by a natural person.

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(7)  http://europa.eu/transparency-register/. Non-registered organisations may apply for registration online.

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(8)  Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data (OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1).

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(9)  http://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regexpert/index.cfm?do=groupDetail.groupDetail&groupID=2510

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ANNEX

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