Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:1999:630
Date: 1999-12-16
Language of the case: French
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Agriculture and Fisheries;Beef and veal
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: France

Summary of the Judgment 
1. Preliminary rulings — Admissibility — Need to provide the Court with sufficient 
details of the factual and legal context 
(EC Treaty, Art.177 (now, after amendment, Art. 234 EC)) 
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SUMMARY — CASE C-56/99 
2. Agriculture •— Common organisation of the markets — Beef and veal — Intervention 
mechanisms — Early marketing premium for calves — Grant of premium according to 
average carcase weight of calves slaughtered in each of the Member States during 
1995 — Principle of non-discrimination — Breach —• None 
(EC Treaty, Art.40(3) (now, after amendment, Art. 34(2) EC); Council Regulations 
No 805/68, Art. 4(i)(2) and No 2222/96; Commission Regulations No 3886/92, 
Art. 50(1) and No 2311/96) 
1. The need to provide an interpretation 
of Community law which will be of use 
to the national court makes it necessary 
that the national court define the 
factual and legal context of the ques­
tions it is asking or, at the very least, 
explain the factual circumstances on 
which those questions are based. 
That is the case where the order for 
reference contains information which is 
sufficiently precise and complete to 
enable the Court to give a useful reply 
on the question posed and where the 
information contained in that order in 
fact enables the governments of the 
Member States effectively to state their 
views on that question. 
(see paras 25, 28-29) 
2. The fact that the adoption of a given 
measure under a common organisation 
of the market may affect producers in 
different ways, depending upon the 
particular nature of their production 
or on local conditions, cannot be 
regarded as discrimination prohibited 
by Article 40(3) of the Treaty (now, 
after amendment, Article 34(2) EC) if 
that measure is determined on the basis 
of objective rules, formulated to meet 
the needs of the general common 
organisation of the market. 
The differentiation of entitlement to 
early-marketing premium for calves 
according to the average carcase 
weight of calves slaughtered in each 
of the Member States during 1995 and 
the uniform application of a 15% 
reduction on the average weights thus 
determined do not entail discrimina­
tion between Community producers 
prohibited under Article 40(3) of the 
Treaty. 
(see paras 44, 48) 
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