1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 1
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►B COUNCILDECISION
of29November1995
ontheequivalenceoffieldinspectionscarriedoutinthirdcountriesonseedproducingcropsand
ontheequivalence ofseedproducedinthirdcountries
(95/514/EC)
(OJ L 296, 9.12.1995, p. 34)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Commission Decision 96/217/EC of 8 March 1996 L 72 37 21.3.1996
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COUNCILDECISION
of29November1995
ontheequivalenceoffieldinspectionscarriedoutinthirdcountries
on seed producing crops and on the equivalence of seed produced
inthirdcountries
(95/514/EC)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Directive 66/400/EEC of 14 June 1966 on
the marketing of beet seed(1), and in particular Article 16 (1) thereof,
Having regard to Council Directive 66/401/EEC of 14 June 1966 on
the marketing of fodder plant seed(2), and in particular Article 16 (1)
thereof,
Having regard to Council Directive 66/402/EEC of 14 June 1966 on
the marketing of cereal seed(3), and in particular Article 16 (1) thereof,
Having regard to Council Directive 69/208/EEC of 30 June 1969 on
the marketing of seed of oil and fibre plants(4), and in particular
Article 15 (1) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Whereas there are rules on official seed control in Australia, Bulgaria,
Canada, Switzerland, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Israel,Morocco, New Zealand, Poland, Romania, Argentina, Chile, Slovakia,Slovenia, Turkey, Uruguay, the United Statesof America and South
Africa; whereas these rules provide for an official field inspection to
be carried out during the period of seed production;
Whereas the abovementioned rules provide in principle that basic seed,
certified seed and certified seed of the first generation may be officially
certified and their packagesofficially clos ed in accordance with theOECD schemes and for the varietal certification of seed moving ininternational trade; whereas, furthermore, such rules provide for seedsampling and testing in accordance with the methods of the Interna-
tional Seed Testing Association (‘ISTA’);
Whereas in the respective third countries an examination of these rules
and the manner in which they are applied has shown that the prescribed
field inspection of seed producing crops satisfies the relevant condi-
tionslaid down in the abovementioned Directives ; whereastheconditions governing seed harvested and controlled in these countriesafford the same assurances as regards the seed's characteristics, thearrangementsfor itsexamination, for ens uring identity, for markingand for control, as do the conditions applicable to seed, harvested and
controlled within the Community;
WhereasDecis ion 85/355/EEC(
5), which established equivalence for
field inspections in the abovementioned countries and Decision 85/
356/EEC(6) which established equivalences for seed produced in the
abovementioned countries, expired on 30 June 1995; whereas a newdecision is therefore necessary;1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 2
(1) OJ No 125, 11. 7. 1966, p. 2290/66. Directive aslas t amended by the 1994
Act of Accession.
(2) OJ No 125, 11. 7. 1966, p. 2298/66. Directive aslas t amended by the 1994
Act of Accession.
(3) OJ No 125, 11. 7. 1966, p. 2309/66. Directive as last amended by Commis-
sion Directive 95/6/EC (OJ No L 67, 25. 3. 1995, p. 30).
(4) OJ No L 169, 10. 7. 1969, p. 3. Directive aslas t amended by the 1994 Act
of Accession.
(5) OJ No L 195, 26. 7. 1985, p. 1. Decision as last amended by Decision 95/
20/EC (OJ No L 28, 7. 2. 1995, p. 11).
(6) OJ No L 195, 26. 7. 1985, p. 20. Decision as last amended by Decision 95/
20/EC (OJ No L 28, 7. 2. 1995, p. 11).
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Whereas the OECD schemes for the varietal certification of seed
moving in international trade, upon which this Decision is based, maybe modified in the near future; whereas, in these circumstances, it
appearsdes irable to limit the continuation of the equivalence under
this Decision to 18 months;
Whereas this Decision is without prejudice to a possible renewal of the
equivalence in respect of Cyprus where seed production and fieldinspections did not take place under Decisions 85/355/EEC and 85/356/EEC;
WhereasthisDecis ion doesnot preclude Community findingsbeing
revoked where the conditions on which they are based cease to be
satisfied; whereas, to this end, further practical information on seedproduced in the abovementioned countriess hould be obtained bygrowing and checking samples of such seed in Community comparativetests;
Whereas certain provisions in this decision are subject to technical
amendment; whereas, to simplify the procedures, such modifications
should be dealt with under the procedure of the Standing Committeeon Seedsand Propagating Material for Agriculture, Horticulture andForestry,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
It is hereby declared that field inspections of seed producing crops of
the categories ‘certified seed’ and ‘certified seed for the first genera-tion’, carried out in the countriesand by the Authoritieslis ted in Part
I of the Annex hereto, and in respect of the group of species or species
specified therein, satisfy the conditions laid down in Part A of Annex Ito Directive 66/400/EEC and in Annex I to Directives66/401/EEC, 66/402/EEC and 69/208/EEC in so far as the conditions laid down in PartII (A) of the Annex hereto are satisfied.
Article 2
It ishereby als o declared that where the conditionslaid down in Part II
(B) of the Annex hereto are satisfied, seed of the categories ‘basic
seed’, ‘certified seed’ and ‘certified seed of the first generation’
harvested in the countries listed in Part I of the Annex and officiallycontrolled by the respective Authorities also listed in Part I of theAnnex and belonging to the group of species or species specifiedtherein, is equivalent to seed of the corresponding categories harvested
within the Community and complying with Directives66/400/EEC, 66/
401/EEC, 66/402/EEC and 69/208/EEC.
Article 3
1. Seed which hasnot been officially certified by an Authority of
the producer country isals o equivalent within the meaning of Article2 in so far as the following conditions are fulfilled:
— the seed has been harvested in the Community and been subjected
to the prescribed field inspection, and
— the seed has been officially certified by an Authority referred to in
the Annex for the species concerned and belonging to the country
where the seeds of the previous generation, which shall have beenproduced either in the Community or in that country, were offi-cially certified.
2. By way of derogation from the first indent of paragraph 1 of this
Article, equivalence may be granted to seeds harvested in certain
specific third countries, in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 21 of Directives66/400/EEC, 66/401/EEC and 66/402/EEC andin Article 20 of Directive 69/208/EEC, on condition that such countriesenjoy, under this Decision, equivalence of field inspections carried outin third countries and have been subject in those countries to theprescribed field inspection.1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 3
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Article 4
Where ‘relabelling and refastening’ as referred to in the OECD
schemes takes place within the Community, the provisions laid down
in Directives66/400/EEC, 66/401/EEC, 66/402/EEC and 69/208/EEC
with respect to reclosing of packages of seed produced within theCommunity shall apply mutatis mutandis , without prejudice to the
OECD rules applicable to such operations. EC labels shall not be usedfor thispurpos e.
The conditionsunder which exceptionsto the prohibition referred to in
the first paragraph may be provided for shall be decided on, where
appropriate, in accordance with the procedure laid down for in Article
21 of Directives66/400/EEC, 66/401/EEC and 66/402/EEC and inArticle 20 of Directive 69/208/EEC.
Article 5
Technical and administrative amendments to be made to Annex I, with
exception of those concerning column 1 of the table in Part I of thatAnnex, shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid downin Article 21 of Directives66/400/EEC, 66/401/EEC, 66/402/EEC and
in Article 20 of Directive 69/208/EEC.
Article 6
This Decision shall apply from 1 July 1995 to 31 December 1996.
Article 7
This Decision is addressed to the Member States.1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 4
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ANNEX
PART I
Countries,authoritiesandspecies
Country AuthoritySpeciesreferred to in the following
Directives
12 3
Australia Department of Primary Industries and
Energy, Canberra66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC — except Sorghum
spp. and Zea mays
69/208/EEC
Bulgaria Sortovi Semena I Posadatchen Materiel,
Sofia66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Canada Agriculture Canada, Ottawa 66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Switzerland Eidgenössische Forschungsanstalt für
Landwirtschaftlichen Pflanzenbau, Zürich
Station fédérale de recherchesagronomi-
ques, Nyon66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Croatia Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry,
Zagreb66/402/EEC — only in respect
ofZea mays
Czech Republic Ministry of Agriculture, Praha 66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Hungary Institute for Agricultural Quality Control,
Budapest66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Israel Ministry of Agriculture, Bet-Dagan 66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Morocco Ministère de l'Agriculture et de la
réforme agraire, Rabat66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries,
Wellington66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Poland Ministère de l'Agriculture et de l'éco-
nomie alimentaire, Warszawa66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC — other than Zea
mays
69/208/EEC
Romania Ministère de l'Agriculture et de l'alimen-
tation, Bucarest66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Argentina Secretaría de Estado de Agricultura y
Ganadería, BuenosAires66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 5
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Country AuthoritySpeciesreferred to in the following
Directives
12 3
Chile Ministerio de Agricultura, Santiago 66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Slovakia Central Control and Testing Institute for
Agriculture, Bratislava66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Slovenia Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry,
Ljubljana►M166/401/EEC ◄
66/402/EEC — only in respect
ofZea mays
►M169/208/EEC ◄
Turkey Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and
Rural Affairs, Ankara66/400/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
Uruguay Ministerio de Ganadería, Agricultura y
Pesca, Montevideo66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC — only in respect
ofZea mays
69/208/EEC
United Statesof
AmericaUS Department of Agriculture, Beltsville,
Maryland66/400/EEC
66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC
69/208/EEC
South Africa Department of Agriculture, Pretoria 66/401/EEC
66/402/EEC — only in respect
ofZea mays andSorghum spp.
69/208/EEC1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 6
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PART II
A.Conditionsrelating to field inspectionscarried outin thirdcountries on
seedproducingcrops
1. Field inspections shall be carried out in accordance with national rules for
the application of the OECD schemes for the varietal certification of seed
moving in international trade asfollows :
— sugar beet seed and fodder beet seed, in the case of Beta vulgaris
referred to in Directive 66/400/EEC,
— herbage and oil seed, in the case of the species referred to in Direc-
tives66/401/EEC and 69/208/EEC,
— cereal seed, in the case of seed of the species referred to in Directive
66/402/EEC, other than Zea mays andSorghum spp.,
— maize and sorghum seed, in the case of seed of Zea mays and
Sorghum spp. referred to in Directive 66/402/EEC.
Field inspections shall be carried out by the Authorities of the producing
country listed in column 2 of the table in Part I of this Annex, or any
legal person, whether governed by public or by private law of that
country, acting under the responsability of such Authorities, provided
that such person derives no private gain from the result of the inspection.
2. Harvested seed shall be packed in officially closed packages which bear a
special label provided for by the OECD for seed which is not finally
certified; the label shall give the following additional information:
— reference number of the basic seed,
— name of the Member State which certified the basic seed.
3. Harvested seed shall be accompanied by an official certificate giving the
following information:
— area cultivated,
— quantity of seed,— the attestation that the conditions that have to be satisfied by the crops
from which the seed comes have been fulfilled.
B.Conditionsrelating toseedproducedinthirdcountries
1. Basic seed, certified seed and certified seed of the first generation shall
be officially certified and itspackagesofficially clos ed and marked in
accordance with the OECD schemes for the varietal certification of seed
moving in international trade specified below, and the seed lots shall be
accompanied by the certificates required under those OECD schemes:
— sugar beet seed and fodder beet seed, in the case of seed of Beta
vulgaris referred to in Directive 66/400/EEC,
— herbage and oil seed, in the case of the seed of the species referred to
in Directives66/401/EEC and 69/208/EEC,
— cereal seed, in the case of seed of the species referred to in Directive
66/402/EEC, other than Zea mays andSorghum spp.,
— maize and sorghum seed in the case of Zea mays andSorghum spp.
referred to in Directive 66/402/EEC.
Moreover, seed shall satisfy the conditions of Community rules other than
those relating to varietal identity and varietal purity.
2. Field inspections and examination of the conditions to be satisfied by the
seed shall be carried out by the Authorities of the producing countrylisted in column 2 of the table referred to in Part I of this Annex, or by
any legal person whether governed by public or by private law of that
country, acting under the responsibility of such Authorities, provided
that such person derives no private gain from the result of the inspection
or examination.
3. The conditions which seed shall satisfy in accordance with the second
subparagraph of paragraph 1 are laid down in the following Directives:
— Directive 66/400/EEC, Annex I (B)
— Directive 66/401/EEC, Annex II1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 7
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— Directive 66/402/EEC, Annex II
— Directive 69/208/EEC, Annex II.
For the purpose of the examination to check whether the abovementioned
conditions have been satisfied, samples shall be taken officially in accor-
dance with the ISTA rulesand their weightss hall conform to the weight
stipulated under such methods, taking into account those specified in the
following Directives:
— Directive 66/400/EEC, Annex II, second line,
— Directive 66/401/EEC, Annex III, columns3 and 4,
— Directive 66/402/EEC, Annex III, columns3 and 4,
— Directive 69/208/EEC, Annex III, columns3 and 4.
The examination shall be carried out officially in accordance with the
rules established under the ISTA rules.
4. Seed shall satisfy the following additional conditions in respect of
package marking:
4.1. The following official information shall be given:
— in the case of certified seed, reference number of basic seed and
name of the country where that seed was officially certified,
— a statement that the seed satisfied the conditions of Community
rulesother than thos e relating to varietal identity and varietal
purity: ‘the seed complies with EC rules and standards’,
— a statement that the seed has been sampled and tested in accor-
dance with current international methods: ‘Sampled and analyzed
according to ISTA rulesfor orangesor green certificatesby …,
(name or initials of the ISTA seed testing station)’,
— date of official closing,
— where seed lots have been ‘relabelled and refastened’ within the
meaning of the OECD schemes, also a statement that this opera-
tion took place, the most recent date of reclosing and the
Authorities responsible therefore,
— country of production,
— declared net or gross weight or declared number of pure seeds or,
in the case of beet seed, clusters,
— where weight is indicated and granulated pesticides, pelleting
substances or other solid additives are used, the nature of the
additive and also the approximate ratio between the weight of
pure seed and the total weight.
Thisinformation may be given either on the OECD label or on an
additional official label which shall give the name of the service
and the country. Any suppliers' labels shall be drawn up in such a
manner that they cannot be confused with the additional official
label.
4.2. An official notice placed inside the package shall give at least the
reference number of the lot, the species and the variety; in addition,
in the case of beet seed, it shall be stated where appropriate whether
the seed is monogerm or precision seed.
This notice is not necessary if the minimum information is printed
indelibly on the package or if an adhesive label or a label of non-
tear material isus ed.
4.3. Any chemical treatment of the seed and the active substance shall be
noted either on the official label or on a s pecial label aswell ason
the container or inside it.
4.4. All information required for official labels, for official notices and
for packages shall be given in at least one of the official languages
of the Community.
5. The seed lots shall be accompanied by an orange or green ISTA certifi-
cate giving the information relating to the conditionsin paragraph 3.
6. In the case of basic seed of varieties which are exclusively maintained
within the Community, the seed of the preceding generations shall have
been produced within the Community.
In the case of basic seed of other varieties, the seed of the preceding
generations shall have been produced under the responsibility of the
persons responsible for the maintenance breeding, referred to in the
Common Catalogue of Varietiesof Agricultural Plant Speciesor, where
the variety isnot yet lis ted there, in the National Catalogue of the
Member State of admission, either within the Community or in a third1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 8
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country which hasbeen granted, under Decis ion 92/420/EEC(1), the
equivalence of checkson practicesfor the maintenance of varieties
carried out in third countries.
In the case of basic seed of hybrid varieties, the seed of the preceding
generation may also have been produced, under the responsibility of the
above person, in a third country where the variety components are main-
tained.
7. In the case of certified seed of the first generation, the basic seed from
which it isderived s hall have been produced and officially controlled
and certified:
— either within the Community, or
— in a third country which hasbeen granted equivalence under this
Decision for the production of basic seed of the species concerned,
provided that it hasbeen produced from s eed produced in accordance
with paragraph 6.
8. In the case of the Unites States of America, by way of derogation from
paragraph 4.1, third indent and paragraph 5, sampling, testing and issue
of seed analysis certificates may be carried out by Official Seed Testing
State Laboratories according to the rules of the Association of Official
Seed Analysis (AOSA) applicable to lot inspection. In this case:
— the following statement shall be given under paragraph 4.1: ‘Sampled
and analysed according to AOSA by …’, (name or initials of the Offi-
cial Seed Testing State Laboratory), and
— the certificates required under paragraph 5 shall be the Lot Inspection
Certificate issued by the Official Seed Testing Laboratory under the
authority of the State Seed Testing Agency.
Specific cases in which this derogation shall not apply may be defined in
accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 21 of Directives66/
400/EEC, 66/401/EEC and 66/402/EEC and in Article 20 of Directive 69/
208/EEC.1995D0514 — EN — 11.03.1996 — 001.001 — 9
(1) OJ No L 231, 13. 8. 1992, p. 22.▼M1