Opinion of the Advocate General — ECLI:EU:C:2010:519
Date: 2010-09-14
Language of the case: German
Subject matter: Agriculture and Fisheries;Milk products
Procedure: Reference for a preliminary ruling
Origin: Germany

Summary of the Judgment 1. Agriculture – Common organisation of the markets – Milk and milk products – Levy in the milk and dairy sector – Reallocation of the unused part of the national reference quantity allocated to deliveries (Council Regulation No 1788/2003, as amended by Regulation No 2217/2004, Arts 5(j) and 10(3)) 2. Agriculture – Common organisation of the markets – Milk and milk products – Levy in the milk and dairy sector – Reallocation of the unused part of the national reference quantity allocated to deliveries (Council Regulation No 1788/2003, as amended by Regulation No 2217/2004) 3. Agriculture – Common agricultural policy – Direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy – Single payment scheme – Concept of individual reference quantity eligible for premium and available on the holding (Council Regulations No 1782/2003, as amended by Regulation No 118/2005, Art. 95(1), and No 1788/2003, as amended by Regulation No 2217/2004, Art. 5(k)) 1. Article 10(3) of Regulation No 1788/2003 establishing a levy in the milk and milk products sector, as amended by Regulation No 2217/2004, must be interpreted as meaning that the reallocation of the unused part of the national reference quantity allocated to deliveries must be carried out in proportion to the individual reference quantity of each producer having overdelivered, namely, that determined at 1 April of the relevant 12-month period, or according to objective criteria to be set by the Member States. The concept of individual reference quantity, as defined in Article 5(j) of the said regulation, in that it refers to the starting date of the relevant 12‑month period, does not allow transfers of reference quantities during that period to be taken into account. (see paras 72, 79, operative part 1) 2. National legislation implementing the option, provided for in Article 10(3) of Regulation No 1788/2003 establishing a levy in the milk and milk products sector, as amended by Regulation No 2217/2004, of setting objective criteria according to which the reallocation of the unused part of the national reference quantity allocated to deliveries is to be carried out must observe, in particular, the general principles of EU law and the objectives pursued by the common agricultural policy, more especially those concerning the common organisation of the markets in the milk sector. Those objectives do not preclude national legislation, adopted in the context of the implementation of that option, which allows overdelivering producers, who have, in accordance with the provisions of Regulation No 1788/2003 as amended, received a transfer, during the relevant 12‑month period, of an individual reference quantity under which milk has already been delivered for that same period by the producer who previously held it, to participate in that reallocation by including some or all of that reference quantity. Member States must, however, ensure that such legislation does not give rise to transfers which, while formally satisfying the conditions laid down by that regulation, are intended solely to allow certain overdelivering producers to obtain a more favourable position on that reallocation. (see para. 79, operative part 2-3) 3. The expression ‘individual reference quantity eligible for premium and available on the holding’ contained in Article 95(1) of Regulation No 1782/2003 establishing common rules for direct support schemes under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers, as amended by Regulation No 118/2005, which corresponds to the expression ‘available reference quantity’ contained in Article 5(k) of Regulation No 1788/2003, establishing a levy in the milk and milk products sector, as amended by Regulation No 2217/2004, must be interpreted as meaning that, when a producer has received a transfer, during the relevant 12-month period, of a reference quantity under which milk has already been delivered by the transferor during the same period, that expression does not cover, as regards the transferee, that part of the transferred reference quantity under which milk has already been delivered exempt from the levy by the transferor. (see para. 93, operative part 4)