1997R0412 — EN — 11.06.2001 — 003.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COMMISSIONREGULATION(EC)No412/97
of3March1997
layingdowndetailedrulesfortheapplicationofCouncilRegulation(EC)No2200/96asregardsthe
recognitionofproducerorganizations
(OJ L 62, 4.3.1997, p. 16)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Commission Regulation (EC) No 1119/97 of 19 June 1997 L 163 11 20.6.1997
►M2Commission Regulation (EC) No 1493/97 of 29 July 1997 L 202 32 30.7.1997
►M3Commission Regulation (EC) No 1120/2001 of 7 June 2001 L 153 10 8.6.2001
NB: This consolidated version contains references to the European unit of account and/or the ecu, which from 1 January 1999
should be understood as references to the euro — Council Regulation (EEC) No 3308/80 (OJ L 345, 20.12.1980, p. 1) andCouncil Regulation (EC) No 1103/97 (OJ L 162, 19.6.1997, p. 1).
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COMMISSIONREGULATION(EC)No412/97
of3March1997
layingdowndetailedrulesfortheapplicationofCouncilRegulation
(EC) No 2200/96 as regards the recognition of producer organiza-
tions
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 of 28 October
1996 on the common organization of the market in fruit andvegetables(
1), and in particular Articles 11 (2) (a) and 48 thereof,
Whereas a minimum number of members and a minimum volume of
marketable production should be laid down using a pragmatic approachand taking into account the structural, economic and administrativesituation in the Member States; whereas these minimum conditionsshould be modulated for different categories of producer organizations
to take account of different circumstances of production and of
experience acquired; whereas the Member States should therefore beallowed to lay down minimum conditions more stringent than thoseprovided for by this Regulation;
Whereas the minimum volume of marketable production should be
expressed in ecus so that it may be more representative; whereas
Member States should nevertheless be permitted to express theminimum volume as a percentage of production in an economic regionwhere producers are established in order to take account of specificsituations;
Whereas, in order to ensure that producer organizations genuinely
represent a minimum number of producers, Member States should takesteps to ensure that a minority of members who may account for the bulkof production in the producer organization do not unduly dominate itsmanagement and operation;
Whereas the main and essential activities of a producer organization
should relate to the production of its members; whereas nevertheless theproducer organization should be allowed to engage in other activities,whether or not of a commercial nature, without prejudice to the right ofMember States to lay down stricter limits;
Whereas, in view of the nature of the products, their production and their
marketing, the holdings of members of a producer organization may belocated in Member States other than that in which the producerorganization has its head office;
Whereas Article 11 (1) (a) and (3) of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 make
provision for different types of producer organizations; whereas all
producer organizations for which an application for recognition issubmitted should fall into one of the categories laid down;
Whereas, in order to facilitate the concentration of supply, the merger of
existing producer organizations to form new ones should be encouraged;
whereas the acquired rights referred to in Article 53 of Regulation (EC)No 2200/96 apply to the new producer organizations resulting from themerger of organizations already recognized under Regulation (EEC) No1035/72(
2), as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1363/
95(3);
Whereas, in order to help achieve the goals of the common organization
of markets and to ensure that producer organizations carry out their workin a sustainable and effective way, there should be the utmost stabilitywithin producer organizations; whereas membership of a producerorganization should therefore be for a minimum period, particularly with1997R0412 — EN — 11.06.2001 — 003.001 — 2
(1) OJ No L 297, 21. 11. 1996, p. 1.
(2) OJ No L 118, 20. 5. 1972, p. 1.
(3) OJ No L 132, 16. 6. 1995, p. 8.
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regard to the obligations relating to an operational programme of the
type referred to in Article 15 of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96; whereasthe minimum period of membership should be laid down within certain
limits, without prejudice to the right of Member States to lay down
stricter limits;
Whereas, in order to ensure the sound operation of the market
organization, Member States should keep the Commission regularlyinformed about the situation and developments in the sector; whereas thearrangements for so doing should be laid down;
Whereas, the recognition of organizations of citrus-fruit producers, on
the basis of certain specific conditions, is included in this Regulation;whereas, accordingly, Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2602/90 of 7September 1990 laying down detailed rules concerning citrus-fruit
producers' organizations(
1) should be repealed;
Whereas the Management Committee for Fresh Fruit and Vegetables has
not delivered an opinion within the time limit set by its chairman,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
1. This Regulation lays down the detailed rules for the application of
Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 as regards the conditions for recognition ofproducer organizations pursuant to Article 11 of that Regulation.
2. For the purposes of this Regulation:
(a) ‘producer’ shall mean any individual or legal person who is a
member of a producer organization to which he delivers his
production for marketing in accordance with Regulation (EC) No2200/96;
(b) ‘marketed production’ shall mean the production of members of a
producer organization, disposed of in accordance with Article 11 (1)(c) (3) of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 for the category of products
for which recognition is requested, measured at the ‘ex-producer
organization’ stage and, where applicable, as ‘packaged or preparedbut not processed product’;
(c) ‘marketable production’ shall mean marketed production, plus
withdrawals.
Article 2
1. The minimum number of producers and the minimum volume of
marketable production referred to in Article 11 (2) (a) of Regulation(EC) No 2200/96 are given in Annexes I and II to this Regulation.
Where a producer organization is made up in whole or in part of
members who, in turn, are legal persons made up exclusively ofproducers, the minimum number of producers referred to in the firstsubparagraph shall be calculated on the basis of the number of producerswho are members of each of the legal persons.
2. Member States may replace the volume of production set out in
Annex I by a percentage of the marketable production of a producerorganization in terms of the average total production of the economic
region where the producers in the organization are established. This
percentage shall not be lower than 15 %. In such cases, the minimumnumber of producers shall be twenty for the producer organizationsreferred to in Article 11 (1) (a) (i) to (iv) of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96and five for the producer organizations referred to in paragraph (1) (a)(vi) and (vii) and paragraph (3) of that Article.1997R0412 — EN — 11.06.2001 — 003.001 — 3
(1) OJ No L 245, 8. 9. 1990, p. 13.▼M2
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Member States shall determine the economic regions in the light of the
existing conditions of production and marketing. They shall notify theCommission of these regions.
3. For the purposes of applying paragraphs 1 and 2, the volume to be
taken into consideration shall be the average volume of marketable
production of all member producers during the three marketing yearspreceding recognition.
4. Member States may fix minimum numbers of producers and
minimum volumes of marketable production greater than those laiddown in paragraphs 1 and 2. They shall notify the Commission thereof.
Article 3
Member States shall take such measures as are required to avoid any
abuse of power or influence by one or more producers on themanagement and operation of the producer organization. They shallnotify the Commission of the measures taken before 1 July 1997.
Article 4
The turnover of a producer organization arising from the sale, where
applicable after processing, of the production of its members may not beless than the turnover generated by the group's other activities. Activitiesrelating to the production of other agricultural products and, whereapplicable, their development shall not be taken into consideration.
Article 5
In the case of transnational producer organizations, the rules applicable
under this Regulation shall be those applicable in the Member State inwhich the organization's head office is located.
The head office of the organization must be located in a Member State
where the organization has significant holdings or a significant numberof members.
Article 6
Applications for recognition submitted by producer organizations shall
indicate, from amongst those listed in Article 11 (1) (a) or 11 (3) ofRegulation (EC) No 2200/96, the product category for which recognitionis requested.
Article 7
New producer organizations resulting from the merger of bodies
recognized under Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 shall retain theacquired rights referred to in Article 53 of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96. If they do not secure recognition under Article 11 of Regulation (EC)
No 2200/96, they shall be considered producer organizations as provided
for in Article 13 (1) of that Regulation.
Article 8
1. The minimum membership period of aproducer sha ll not be less
than one year. However, where an operational plan pursuant to
Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 has been submitted, no member may
disclaim his obligations under that programme during the period of itsimplementation, except where the producer organization concernedgives its approval.
2. Resignation of membership shall be notified to the group in writing
no later than 31 May, to take effect on 1 January of the following year.The rules of the producer organization may require a longer period ofnotice to be given.1997R0412 — EN — 11.06.2001 — 003.001 — 4
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Article 9a
As a transitional measure for 1997, Member States, acting in the
interests of the producer organizations concerned, may, in duly justified
cases, extend by two months the time limit referred to in Article 12 (1)(a) of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96.
Article 10
Regulation (EEC) No 2602/90 is hereby repealed.
Article 11
This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following that
of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities .
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in
all Member States.1997R0412 — EN — 11.06.2001 — 003.001 — 5
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ANNEXI
RECOGNITION CRITERIA FOR PRODUCER ORGANIZATIONS OTHER THAN FOR
CITRUSFRUITS
Member States or specific regionsProducer organizations Article 11
(1) (a) categories (i) to (iv)Producer organizations Article 11
(1) (a) categories (vi) and (vii) and
Article 11 (3)
Minimum
number of
producersMinimum
volume (million
ecus)Minimum
number of
producersMinimum
volume (million
ecus)
Belgium, Germany, Spain
(except Balearic Islands and
Canaries), France, Greece (1),
Italy, Netherlands, Austria,
United Kingdom (except
Northern Ireland)40 1,5 5 0,25
or 15 2,5
or 5 3
Denmark, Ireland, Northern
Ireland, Greece (2), Balearic and
Canary Islands, Portugal (except
Madeira and Azores)15 0,5
or 5 1
Finland, Sweden, Greece
(Nomoi(regions) other than
under (1) and (2))10 0,25
or 5 0,5
Greece (islands), Luxembourg,
Madeira and Azores5 0,1 5 0,1
(1)Nomoi: Imathias, Pellas, Artas, Argolidas, Korinthias, Viotias, Serron, Kavallas.
(2)Nomoi: Larisas, Magnisias, Karditsas, Evrou, Thessalonikis, Prevezas, Kilkis, Pierias, Lakonias, Kastorias.1997R0412 — EN — 11.06.2001 — 003.001 — 6
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ANNEXII
RECOGNITIONCRITERIAFORPRODUCERORGANIZATIONSFORCITRUSFRUITS
Member StatesProducer organizations Article 11 (1) (a) category (v)
Minimum number of produ-
cersMinimum volume (tonnes)
GREECE
Nomoi(regions) (1) 100 5 000
Nomoi(regions) (2) 50 1 500
Other 20 100
SPAIN
All regions 25 2 500
Balearic Islands 25 1 200
FRANCE 20 2 000ITALY
Sicily and Calabria 100 10 000
Other 100 5 000
PORTUGAL 10 1 000
Other Member States 10 100
(1)Nomoi: Piraias, Chania, Preveza, Arta, Achaia, Arkadia, Argolida.
(2)Nomoi: Korinthias, Messinia, Aitoloakarnania, Ilia, Lakonia, Thesprotia, Zakynthos, Chios.1997R0412 — EN — 11.06.2001 — 003.001 — 7
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ANNEXIII
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