Council Directive 2001/112/EC
of 20 December 2001
relating to fruit juices and certain similar products intended for human consumption
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 37 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission(1),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament(2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee(3),
Whereas:
(1) Certain vertical Directives relating to foodstuffs should be simplified in order to take account only of the essential requirements to be met by the products they cover in order that those products may move freely within the internal market, in accordance with the conclusions of the Edinburgh European Council on 11 and 12 December 1992, as confirmed by those of the Brussels European Council on 10 and 11 December 1993.
(2) Council Directive 93/77/EEC of 21 September 1993 relating to fruit juices and certain similar products(4) was intended to codify Directive 75/726/EEC(5) on the same subject.
(3) Directives 75/726/EEC and 93/77/EEC had been justified by the fact that differences between national laws concerning fruit juices and nectars intended for human consumption could result in conditions of unfair competition likely to mislead consumers, and thereby have a direct effect on the establishment and functioning of the common market.
(4) The said Directives had consequently laid down common rules governing the composition, use of reserved descriptions, manufacturing specifications and labelling of the products concerned, in order to ensure their free movement within the Community.
(5) For the sake of clarity, Directive 93/77/EEC should be recast in order to make the rules on manufacturing and marketing conditions for fruit juices and certain similar products more accessible.
(6) Directive 93/77/EEC should also be brought into line with general Community legislation on foodstuffs, particularly legislation on labelling, colouring matter, sweeteners and other authorised additives.
(7) Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 March 2000 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs(6), and in particular Article 7(2) and (5) thereof, should apply subject to certain conditions. It should be clearly indicated when a product is a mixture of fruit juice and fruit juice from concentrate, and, for fruit nectar, when it is obtained entirely or partly from a concentrated product. The list of ingredients in the labelling bears the names of both the fruit juices and fruit juices from concentrate used.
(8) Subject to Council Directive 90/496/EEC of 24 September 1990 on nutrition labelling for foodstuffs(7), the addition of vitamins to the products defined by this Directive is permitted in some Member States. However, the extension of this possibility to the whole of the Community is not envisaged. Therefore, Member States are free to authorise or prohibit the addition of vitamins and also minerals as part of the manufacturing process. In all circumstances, however, the principle of the free movement of products within the Community should be observed in accordance with the rules and principles laid down in the Treaty.
(9) In accordance with the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality established by Article 5 of the Treaty, the objective of laying down common definitions and rules for the products concerned and bringing the provisions into line with general Community legislation on foodstuffs cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and can therefore, by reason of the nature of this Directive, be better achieved by the Community. This Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve the said objective.
(10) The measures necessary for the implementation of this Directive should be adopted in accordance with Council Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the procedures for the exercise of implementing powers conferred on the Commission(8).
(11) To avoid creating new barriers to free movement, Member States should refrain from adopting, for the products in question, national provisions not provided for by this Directive,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
Article 1
This Directive shall apply to the products defined in Annex I.
Article 2
Member States may, subject to Directive 90/496/EEC, authorise the addition of vitamins and minerals to the products defined in part I of Annex I hereto.
Article 3
Directive 2000/13/EC shall apply to the products defined in Annex I, subject to the following conditions:
1. (a) The product names listed in Annex I shall apply only to the products referred to therein and shall, without prejudice to subparagraph (b), be used in trade to designate them.
(b) As an alternative to the product names referred to in subparagraph (a), Annex III provides a list of particular designations. These designations may be used in the language and under the conditions laid down in Annex III.
2. If the product comes from a single kind of fruit, the name of the latter shall be substituted for the word "fruit".
3. For products manufactured from two or more fruits, except where lemon juice is used under the conditions laid down in part II.1 of Annex I, the product names shall be supplemented by a list of the fruits used, in descending order of the volume of the fruit juices or purées included. However, in the case of products manufactured from three or more fruits, the indication of the fruits used may be replaced by the words "several fruits" or a similar wording, or by the number of fruits used.
4. For fruit juices which have been sweetened by the addition of sugars, the sales name shall include the word "sweetened" or "with added sugar", followed by an indication of the maximum quantity of sugar added, calculated as dry matter and expressed in grams per litre.
5. The restoration of the products defined in part I of Annex I to their original state, by means of the substances strictly necessary for this operation, shall not entail an obligation to enter on the labels a list of the ingredients used for this purpose.
The addition to fruit juice of extra pulp or cells as defined in Annex II shall be indicated on the labelling.
6. Without prejudice to Article 7(2) and (5) of Directive 2000/13/EC for mixtures of fruit juice and fruit juice from concentrate, and for fruit nectar obtained entirely or partly from one or more concentrated products, the labelling shall bear the words "made with concentrate(s)" or "partially made with concentrate(s)", as appropriate. That information shall be entered close to the product name, standing out well from any background, in clearly visible characters.
7. For fruit nectars, the labelling shall indicate the minimum content of fruit juice, fruit purée or any mixture of those ingredients, by the declaration "fruit content: ... % minimum". That information shall be located in the same field of vision as the product name.
Article 4
The labelling of concentrated fruit juice referred to in part I point 2 of Annex I not intended for delivery to the final consumer shall bear a reference indicating the presence and quantity of added sugars, or added lemon juice or acidifying agents as permitted by Directive 95/2/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 February 1995 on food additives other than colours and sweeteners(9). This reference shall appear on the packaging, on a label attached to the packaging or on an accompanying document.
Article 5
For the products defined in Annex I, Member States shall not adopt national provisions not provided for by this Directive.
Article 6
Without prejudice to Council Directive 89/107/EEC of 21 December 1988 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States concerning food additives authorised for use in foodstuffs intended for human consumption(10), only the treatments and substances listed in part II of Annex I and the raw materials complying with Annex II may be used to manufacture the products defined in part I of Annex I. Moreover, fruit nectars shall comply with the provisions of Annex IV.
Article 7
The measures necessary for the implementation of this Directive relating to the matters referred to below shall be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure referred to in Article 8(2):
- bringing this Directive into line with general Community legislation on foodstuffs,
- adaptations to technical progress.
Article 8
1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Standing Committee on Foodstuffs (hereinafter referred to as "the Committee") set up by Article 1 of Decision 69/414/EEC(11).
2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Articles 5 and 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply.
The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be set at three months.
3. The Committee shall adopt its rules of procedure.
Article 9
Directive 93/77/EEC is hereby repealed with effect from 12 July 2003.
References to the repealed Directive shall be construed as references to this Directive.
Article 10
Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations and administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive before 12 July 2003. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
The measures shall be applied so as to:
- authorise the marketing of the products defined in Annex I if they comply with the definitions and rules laid down in this Directive, with effect from 12 July 2003,
- prohibit the marketing of products which fail to comply with this Directive, with effect from 12 July 2004.
However, the marketing of products which fail to comply with this Directive but which were labelled before 12 July 2004 in accordance with Directive 93/77/EEC may continue until stocks run out.
When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference at the time of their official publication. The methods of making such reference shall be laid down by Member States.
Article 11
This Directive shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.
Article 12
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels, 20 December 2001.