1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COUNCILDIRECTIVE98/56/EC
of20July1998
onthemarketingofpropagatingmaterial ofornamentalplants
(OJ L 226, 13.8.1998, p. 16)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Regulation (EC) No 806/2003 of 14 April 2003 L 122 1 16.5.2003
▼B
COUNCILDIRECTIVE98/56/EC
of20July1998
onthemarketingofpropagatingmaterial ofornamentalplants
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and
in particular Article 43 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),
(1)Whereasthe production of ornamental plantsoccupiesan impor-tant place in the agriculture of the Community;
(2)Whereas satisfactory results in the cultivation of ornamental
plantsdepend to a large extent on the quality and health of the
material used for their propagation;
(3)Whereas the establishment of harmonised conditions at Commu-nity level will ensure that purchasers throughout the Community
receive propagating material which ishealthy and of good
quality;
(4)Whereas, so far as they relate to plant health, such harmonisedconditions must be consistent with Council Directive 77/93/
EEC of 21 December 1976 on protective measures against the
introduction into the Member Statesof organis msharmful toplants or plant products and against their spread in the Commu-nity (
4);
(5)Whereas it is appropriate to establish Community rules for allgenera and species of ornamental plants in the Community,with the exception of those covered by Council Regulation(EC) No 338/97 of 9 December 1996 on the protection ofspecies of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein (
5);
(6)Whereas, without prejudice to the plant health provisions ofDirective 77/93/EEC, it isnot appropriate to apply the Commu-nity ruleson the marketing of propagating material when it isshown that such material and plants are intended for export to
third countries, as the rules applicable there may be different
from those contained in this Directive;
(7)Whereasthe determination of plant health and quality s tandardsfor particular genusand s peciesof ornamental plant requires
lengthy and detailed technical and scientific consideration;
whereas a procedure should accordingly be established for thedetermination of these standards;
(8)Whereas in the first instance it is the responsibility of the
suppliers of propagating material to ensure that their products
fulfil the conditionslaid down in thisDirective;
(9)Whereasthe competent authoritiesof the Member States , whencarrying out controls and inspections, should ensure that
suppliers fulfil those conditions;
(10)Whereas Community control measures should be introduced to
ensure uniform application in all the Member States of the stan-dardslaid down in thisDirective;1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 2
(1) OJ C 50, 17. 2. 1998, p. 8.
(2) OJ C 104, 6. 4. 1998, p. 40.
(3) OJ C 157, 25. 5. 1998, p. 3.
(4) OJ L 26, 31. 1. 1977, p. 20. Directive as last amended by Commission
Directive 98/2/EC (OJ L 15, 21. 1. 1998, p. 34).
(5) OJ L 61, 3. 3. 1997, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Commission Regula-
tion (EC) No 938/97 (OJ L 140, 30. 5. 1997, p. 1).
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(11)Whereas it is in the interests of the purchasers of propagating
material that the namesof varietiesor of groupsof plantsbe
known and that their identity be safeguarded;
(12)Whereas the characteristics specific to the industry operating inthe ornamental plant sector are a complicating factor; whereas,
accordingly, the objective stated above can best be achieved
either through common knowledge of the variety or, in the caseof varietiesor groupsof plants , through the availability of adescription drawn up and kept by the suppliers;
(13)Whereas, in order to ensure the identity and orderly marketing ofpropagating material, Community rulesmus t be laid downconcerning the separation of lots and marking; whereas thelabelss hould give the particularsneeded both for official controland for the information of the grower;
(14)Whereas rules should be established permitting, in the case oftemporary supply difficulties, the marketing of propagatingmaterial subject to requirements less stringent than those
contained in thisDirective;
(15)Whereas provisions should be made for authorising the
marketing, within the Community, of propagating materialproduced in third countries, provided always it affords equivalent
guaranteesin all res pectsto propagating material produced in the
Community and complying with Community rules;
(16)Whereas, in order to harmonise technical methods of examina-
tion used in the Member States and to compare propagating
material produced in the Community with those produced inthird countries, comparative trials should be carried out to checkcompliance of propagating material with the requirementsof thisDirective;
(17)Whereas, in order to facilitate the effective operation of thisDirective, the Commission should be entrusted with the task ofadopting measures for its implementation; whereas suchmeasures should be adopted by a procedure involving close
cooperation between the Commission and the Member States
within a Standing Committee for Propagating Material of Orna-mental Plants;
(18)WhereasCouncil Directive 91/682/EEC of 19 December 1991on the marketing of ornamental plant propagating material andornamental plants(
1) established harmonised conditions at
Community level to ensure that purchasers throughout theCommunity receive propagating material and ornamental plantswhich are healthy and of good quality;
(19)WhereasMember Stateshave experienced difficultiesin theinterpretation and transposition of the said Directive;
(20)Whereas the said Directive was considered to be suitable forinclusion in the SLIM Initiative (Simpler Legislation for theInternal Market) which was launched by the Commission inMay 1996;
(21)Whereasthe Ornamental PlantsSLIM team made variousrecom-mendations aimed at simplifying the said Directive; whereasthose recommendations are contained in the Communicationfrom the Commission to the Council and the European Parlia-
ment on the SLIM Initiative;
(22)Whereas those recommendations related to the persons to be
controlled by the said Directive, the species to be covered bythat Directive, varietal authenticity, the interrelationship with
Directive 77/93/EEC and third country equivalence;
(23)Whereas, after consideration of those recommendations it is
desirable to amend certain provisions of Directive 91/682/EEC;1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 3
(1) OJ L 376, 31. 12. 1991, p. 21.
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whereas given the number of such amendments, the said Direc-
tive should be recast in the interests of clarity,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DIRECTIVE:
TITLE I
SCOPE
Article 1
1. ThisDirective s hall apply to the marketing of propagating mate-
rial of ornamental plantswithin the Community. Thiss hall be without
prejudice to the ruleson protection of wild flora laid down by Regula-tion (EC) No 338/97, the ruleson packaging and packaging was te laiddown by Directive 94/62/EC of the European Parliament and of theCouncil (
1), or, save where otherwise provided for in this Directive or
on the basis thereof, the plant health rules laid down by Directive 77/
93/EEC.
2. ThisDirective s hall not apply to:
— material shown to be intended for export to third countries, which is
identified as such and is kept sufficiently isolated,
— material the productsof which are not intended for ornamental
purposes, if it is covered by other Community legislation on themarketing of such material.
3. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17, it may
be decided that some or all of the requirements of this Directive shall
not apply in respect of seed of particular species or groups of plants,
where intended for the production of further propagating material andwhere there is no significant connection between the quality of suchseed and the quality of the material grown from it.
TITLE II
DEFINITIONS
Article 2
For the purpose of this Directive, the following definitions shall apply:1. ‘Propagating material’: plant material intended for:
— the propagation of ornamental plants, or
— the production of ornamental plants; however, in the case of
production from complete plants, this definition applies only tothe extent that the resulting ornamental plant is intended forfurther marketing.
‘Propagation’: reproduction by vegetative or other means.
2. ‘Supplier’: any natural or legal person engaged professionally in
marketing or importing of propagating material.
3. ‘Marketing’: sale or delivery by a supplier to another person. ‘Sale’
includes holding available or in stock, display with a view to sale,
offering for sale.
4. ‘Responsible official body’:
(a) an authority, established or designated by the Member State
under the supervision of the national government and respon-
sible for questions concerning quality;
(b) any State authority established:
— either at national level, or
— at regional level, under the supervision of national authori-
ties, within the limits set by the constitution of the MemberState concerned.1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 4
(1) OJ L 365, 31. 12. 1994, p. 10.
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The bodiesreferred to above may, in accordance with their national
legislation, delegate the tasks provided for in this Directive to beaccomplished under their authority and supervision to any legal
person, whether governed by public or by private law, which, under
its officially approved constitution, is charged exclusively withspecific public functions, provided that such person, and itsmembers, has no personal interest in the outcome of the measuresit takes.
Moreover, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17,
other legal persons established on behalf of the body referred to inpoint (a) and acting under the authority and supervision of such
body may be approved, provided that such person has no personal
interest in the outcome of the measures it takes.
Member States shall notify the Commission of their responsible offi-
cial bodies. The Commission shall forward that information to the
other Member States.
5. ‘Lot’: a number of unitsof a s ingle commodity, identifiable by its
homogeneity of composition and origin.
TITLE III
REQUIREMENTS TO BE MET BY PROPAGATING MATE-
RIAL
Article 3
1. Suppliersmay market propagating material only if it meetsthe
requirementslaid down in thisDirective.
2. Paragraph 1 shall not apply to propagating material intended for:
(a) trials or scientific purposes,
(b) selection work, or
(c) the conservation of genetic diversity.
3. Detailed rulesfor the application of paragraph 2 may be adopted
in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17.
Article 4
Propagating material shall, where applicable, comply with the relevant
plant health conditionslaid down in Directive 77/93/EEC.
Article 5
1. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 1 and Article 4,
propagating material when marketed:
— shall at least on visual inspection, be substantially free from any
harmful organisms impairing quality, or any signs or symptomsthereof, which reduce its usefulness,
— shall be substantially free of any defects likely to impair its quality
aspropagating material,
— shall have satisfactory vigour and dimensions in respect of its
usefulness as propagating material,
— in the case of seeds, shall have satisfactory germination capacity,— if marketed with reference to a variety pursuant to Article 9, shall
have satisfactory varietal identity and purity.
2. Any propagating material which, on the basis of visible signs or
symptoms, is not substantially free of harmful organisms, shall beproperly treated or, where appropriate, shall be removed.
3. In the case of citrus material the following requirements shall also
be met:
(a) it shall be derived from initial material which has been checked
and found to show no symptoms of any viruses, virus-like organ-isms or diseases;1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 5
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(b) it shall have been checked and found to be substantially free of
such viruses, virus-like organisms or disease since the beginningof the last cycle of vegetation; and
(c) in the case of grafting, it shall have been grafted onto rootstocks
other than those susceptible to viroids.
4. In the case of flower bulbs the following requirement shall also
be met:
— the propagating material shall be derived directly from material
which, at the stage of the growing crop, has been checked andfound to be substantially free from any harmful organisms anddiseases, signs or symptoms thereof.
5. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 18, a sche-
dule may be established for a particular genus or species, laying down
additional conditionsconcerning the quality with which propagating
material when marketed must comply. A genus or species shall onlybe included in the schedule if there is a demonstrated need for suchadditional rules. In determining such need the following criteria shallapply:
— the existence of problems with the quality of propagating material
of the species or genus concerned, which can only be resolved satis-factorily through legislative means,
— the economic importance of propagating material of the species or
genusconcerned,
— consistency with any international standards on regulated non-quar-
antine pests.
TITLE IV
REQUIREMENTS TO BE MET BY SUPPLIERS OF PROPA-
GATINGMATERIAL
Article 6
1. Without prejudice to paragraph 2, suppliers shall be officially
registered in relation to the activities which they carry out under this
Directive. The responsible official body may deem suppliers, who arealready registered under Directive 77/93/EEC, to be registered for thepurposes of the current Directive. Such suppliers shall nonethelesscomply with the requirementsof the current Directive.
2. Paragraph 1 shall not apply to suppliers marketing only to persons
not professionally engaged in the production or sale of ornamental
plants or propagating material. Such suppliers shall nonetheless complywith the requirementsof the current Directive.
Article 7
1. Suppliersengaged in production of propagating material s hall:
— identify and monitor critical pointsin their production proces s
which influence the quality of the material,
— keep information, for examination when requested by the respon-
sible official body on the monitoring laid down in the first indent,
— take samples where necessary for analysis in a laboratory with
suitable facilities and expertise,
— ensure that, during production, lots of propagating material remain
separately identifiable.
2. In the case of the appearance, on the premises of a supplier
engaged in the production of propagating material, of a harmful
organism listed in Directive 77/93/EEC or in any measures establishedpursuant to Article 5(5), the supplier shall report it to the responsibleofficial body and shall carry out any measures laid down by that body.
3. When propagating material is marketed, registered suppliers shall
keep records of their sales or purchases for at least 12 months.1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 6
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4. Rules for the application of paragraph 1 above may be established
in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17.
TITLE V
MARKETING ANDLABELLING OF PROPAGATING MATE-
RIAL
Article 8
1. Propagating material shall be marketed in lots. However, propa-
gating material of different lotsmay be marketed in a s ingle
consignment, provided that the supplier keeps records of the composi-tion and origin of the different lots.
2. Propagating material when marketed shall be accompanied by a
label or other document made out by the supplier.
3. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17,
requirementsasto the label or document referred to in paragraph 2shall be established. In the case of marketing of propagating materialfor persons not professionally engaged in the production or sale ofornamental plantsor propagating material, requirementson labelling
may be confined to appropriate product information. Requirementsas
to packaging of propagating material may be adopted in accordancewith the same procedure.
4. Paragraph 1 shall not apply to propagating material which is
marketed for persons not professionally engaged in the production or
sale of ornamental plants or propagating material.
Article 9
1. Propagating material may be marketed with a reference to a
variety, only if the variety concerned is:
— legally protected by a plant variety right in accordance with provi-
sions on the protection of new varieties, or
— officially registered, or— commonly known, or— entered on a list kept by a supplier with its detailed description and
denomination. Such lists shall be drawn up in accordance withaccepted international guidelines, where these are applicable. Thelists shall be available, on request, to the responsible official body
of the Member State concerned.
2. As far as possible, each variety shall bear the same denomination
in all the Member States, in accordance with implementing measureswhich may be adopted in accordance with the provisions of Article 17or, in their absence, in accordance with accepted international guide-
lines.
3. Where propagating material ismarketed with a reference to a
group of plantsrather than a variety referred to in paragraph 1, thesupplier shall indicate the group of plants in such a way as to avoidconfusion with any varietal denomination.
4. Additional implementing provisions for the fourth indent of para-
graph 1 may be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down inArticle 17.
TITLE VI
PROPAGATING MATERIAL MEETING LESS STRINGENT
REQUIREMENTS
Article 10
In the event of temporary difficultiesin the s upply of propagating
material satisfying the requirements of this Directive which cannot beovercome within the Community, rulesmay be adopted, in accordance1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 7
▼B
with the procedure laid down in Article 17, concerning the marketing
of propagating material meeting less stringent requirements.
TITLE VII
PROPAGATING MATERIAL PRODUCED IN THIRD COUN-
TRIES
Article 11
1. In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17, it shall
be decided whether propagating material produced in a third country
affordsequivalent guaranteesin all res pectsto material produced in
the Community in accordance with thisDirective.
2. Pending the decision referred to in paragraph 1, propagating
material may not be imported from third countriesunles sthe importingsupplier ensures prior to import that the material to be imported affords
equivalent guaranteesin all res pectsto propagating material produced
in the Community in accordance with thisDirective, in particular inrelation to quality, identification and plant health.
3. The importer shall notify the responsible official bodies of mate-
rial imported under paragraph 2 and shall keep documentary evidence
of hiscontract with the s upplier in the third country.
4. Implementing measures relating to the procedure to be followed
and further requirements to be met by importers may be established in
accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17.
TITLE VIII
CONTROLMEASURESANDGENERALPROVISIONS
Article 12
1. Member States shall require that suppliers take all necessary
measures to guarantee compliance with the requirements of this Direc-
tive. To this end Member States shall ensure that propagating material
isofficially ins pected:
— at least by random checks, and
— at least in respect of marketing to persons professionally engaged in
production or sale of ornamental plants or propagating material,
to verify compliance with the requirements. Member States may also
take samples in order to verify compliance. In carrying out supervision
and monitoring, the responsible official bodies shall have free access toall parts of suppliers' establishments at all reasonable times.
The Commission shall, by 31 December 2002, submit a report to the
Council, on the operation of the control arrangementsfores een in this
Article, together with any appropriate proposals which may, if appro-priate, include proposals for removing requirements of this Directivefrom retail sales.
2. Detailed implementing proceduresfor official ins pectionsunder
this Directive may be established in accordance with the procedure
laid down in Article 17.
Article 13
1. If, during official inspections referred to in Article 12, or the
trialsreferred to in Article 14, it isfound that propagating materialdoes not meet the requirements of this Directive, the responsible offi-cial body shall ensure that the supplier takes appropriate correctiveaction or, if that is not possible, shall prohibit the marketing of thatpropagating material in the Community.
2. If it isfound that propagating material marketed by a particular
supplier does not comply with the requirements of this Directive, theMember State concerned shall ensure that appropriate measures aretaken in relation to that supplier.1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 8
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3. Any measures taken under paragraph 2 shall be withdrawn as
soon as it has been established with sufficient certainty that the propa-gating material intended for marketing by the supplier will, in future,
comply with the requirementsand conditionsof thisDirective.
Article 14
1. Where appropriate, trials or tests shall be carried out in the
Member Stateson s amplesto check that propagating material complieswith the requirementsand conditionsof thisDirective. The Commis -sion may organise inspections of trials by representatives of theMember States and of the Commission.
2. It may be decided in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 17 that it is necessary to carry out Community trials or tests for
the same purpose as mentioned in paragraph 1. The Commission mayorganise inspections of Community trials by representatives of theMember States and of the Commission.
3. The trials or tests referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be used
to harmonise technical methods of examination of propagating mate-rial. Progress reports on the trials or tests shall be sent to the
Commission and submitted to the Committee referred to in Article 17.
4. The Commission shall ensure that, in appropriate cases, arrange-
mentsfor coordinating, carrying out and ins pecting the trialsreferred toin paragraphs 1 and 2, and assessing their results, are made within theCommittee referred to in Article 17. When problemsoccur in relationto organisms covered by Directive 77/93/EEC, the Commission shall
notify the Standing Committee on Plant Health, which shall also be
consulted on protocols for Community trials where these concernorganisms covered by Directive 77/93/EEC. Propagating materialproduced in third countriesmay be included in the trials .
Article 15
The marketing of propagating material which complieswith the
requirements of this Directive shall be subject to no restrictions asregardss upplier, quality, plant health, labelling and packaging, other
than those laid down in this Directive.
Article 16
In accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17, a Member
State may at itsreques t and under certain conditionsbe wholly orpartially released from certain obligations under this Directive inrespect of types of propagating material of certain genera or speciesthe production of which isof minimal economic importance in itsterri-tory, save where this would run counter to Article 15.
TITLE IX
COMMITTEEPROCEDURES
Article 17
1. The Commission shall be assisted by a committee called the
Standing Committee for Propagating Material of Ornamental Plants.
2. Where reference ismade to thisArticle, Articles4 and 7 of Deci-
sion 1999/468/EC (1) shall apply.
The period laid down in Article 4(3) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be
set at one month.
3. The Committee shall adopt its Rules of Procedure.1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 9
(1) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.▼M1
▼M1
Article 18
1. The Commission shall be assisted by the Standing Committee for
Propagating Material and Ornamental Plants.
2. Where reference ismade to thisArticle, Articles5 and 7 of Deci-
sion 1999/468/EC (1) shall apply.
The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC shall be
set at three months.
TITLE X
FINALPROVISIONS
Article 19
1. Member States shall bring into force the laws, regulations or
administrative provisions necessary to comply with this Directive on 1July 1999. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.
2. When Member States adopt these measures, they shall contain a
reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference
on the occasion of their official publication. The methods for makingsuch reference shall be adopted by the Member States.
3. Member States shall communicate to the Commission the text of
the main provisions of domestic law they adopt in the field covered bythisDirective.
Article 20
1. Directive 91/682/EEC shall be repealed with effect from 1 July
1999 without prejudice to Member States' obligations in relation tothe period of transposition and implementation referred to in Part A of
the Annex hereto.
2. Referencesto the repealed Directive 91/682/EEC s hall be under-
stood as references to this Directive and shall be read in accordancewith the correlation table in Part B of the Annex hereto.
3. Implementing provisions adopted under Directive 91/682/EEC
shall continue to have effect unless amended or repealed by new imple-menting provisions.
Article 21
This Directive is addressed to the Member States.1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 10
(1) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23.▼B
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ANNEX
PART A
Time-limitsfortranspositionintonationallawandimplementation
Directive Time limit for transposition Time limit for implementation
91/682/EEC (OJ L 376,
31.12.1991, p. 21.)31 December 1992 Articles5-11, 14, 15, 17, 19
and 24 (for all genera and
species) 31 December 1993
PART B
Correlationtable
ThisDirective Directive 91/682/EEC
Article 1 Articles1 and 2
Article 2 Article 3
Article 3 Article 8
Article 4 —
Article 5 Article 4
Article 6 Article 6
Article 7 Article 5
Article 8 Articles10 and 11
Article 9 Article 9
Article 10 Article 13
Article 11 Article 16
Article 12 Articles17 and 18
Article 13 Article 19
Article 14 Article 20
Article 15 Article 14
Article 16 —Article 17 Article 21
Article 18 Article 22
Article 19 —
Article 20 —
Article 21 —1998L0056 — EN — 05.06.2003 — 001.001 — 11