1. 4. 74 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities No C 37/1 
II 
(Preparatory  Acts) 
COUNCIL 
CONSULTATION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
on a proposal  for a Council  Directive  on the harmonization  of the  laws  of the  Member 
States  concerning  coffee  and  tea  extracts  and  their  substitutes,  including  chicory  and 
blends  based  on these  extracts 
A. REQUEST  FOR  AN  OPINION 
At its 238th  meeting  held  on 9 and  10 April  1973,  the  Council  decided  in accordance 
with  the  provisions  of Article  100  of the  Treaty  establishing  the  European  Economic 
Community  to consult  the  Economic  and  Social  Committee  on the  above  proposal  for 
a Directive. 
The request  for  an Opinion  was  sent  by the  President  of the  Council  to the  Chairman 
of the  Economic  and  Social  Committee  on 11 April  1973. 
B. TEXT  WHICH  WAS  THE  SUBJECT  OF  THE  CONSULTATION 
The text  which  was  the subject  of the consultation  was  published  in the Official  Journal 
of the European  Communities,  No  C 76 of 22 September  1973,  page  11. 
C. OPINION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
At its 116th  Plenary  Session  held  in Brussels  on 12  and  13  December  1973,  the 
Committee  adopted  its Opinion  on the  text  referred  to under  B by a unanimous  vote 
of all the members  present  or represented. 
The text  of the  Opinion  is as follows: 
THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE, 
Having  regard  to the  request  by the President  of the 
Council  of the  European  Communities  on 11 April 
1973  for  an Opinion  on the  proposal  for  a Council 
Directive  concerning  the  harmonization  of the  laws 
of the  Member  States  with  regard  to coffee  and  tea 
extracts  and  their  substances,  including  chicory  and 
blends  based  on these  extracts; Having  regard  to  Article  100  of  the  Treaty 
establishing  the European  Economic  Community; 
Having  regard  to the  Decision  of its Chairman  on 
26 April  1973,  entrusting  the  Section  for  Industry, 
Commerce,  Crafts  and  Services  with  the  preparation 
of an Opinion  and  a report  on the matter; 
Having  regard  to the General  Programme  of 28 May 
1969  to eliminate  technical  barriers  to trade  in 
No C 37/2 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities 1.4. 74 
foodstuffs,  resulting  from  disparities  between  the 
laws,  regulations  and  administrative  provisions  of 
the Member  States; 
Having  regard  to the  Opinion  delivered  by  the 
Section  for  Industry,  Commerce,  Crafts  and  Services 
at its meeting  on 7 November  1973; 
Having  regard  to the  report  presented  by Mr  Bourel, 
the Rapporteur; 
Having  regard  to  the  discussions  on  12  and 
13 December  1973  during  its 116th  Plenary  Session, 
sitting  of 13 December  1973, 
HAS  ADOPTED  THE  FOLLOWING  OPINION: 
The Economic  and  Social  Committee  approves  the 
proposal  for  a Directive,  subject  to the  following 
general  and  specific  comments. 
I. GENERAL  COMMENTS 
The Committee  notes  first  of all that  the  proposal 
for a Directive  is based  on  the  system  of 'total' 
harmonization.  It is delighted  at this  choice,  which 
corresponds  to what  it has  always  requested. 
However,  the  Committee  thinks  it necessary  to 
suggest  a number  of modifications  to the proposal  for 
a Directive.  The  most  important  are  as follows. 
1. Definition  of coffee  extracts 
The definition  of  coffee  extracts  contained  in 
Chapter  1 of Annex  I must  cover  the  bulk  of the 
products  offered  to consumers  in the  Community. 
This  would  not  be  the  case  if the  Commission's 
wording  were  adopted.  The  extraction  process 
described  by  the  Commission  is  in  fact  both 
insufficiently  clear  and  does  not  conform  to reality. 
In particular,  the  addition  of exterior  acids  during 
the manufacturing  process  (hydrolysis  by  the 
addition  of acids)  should  be prohibited. 
Furthermore,  the  ratio  between  the  minimum 
quantity  of green  coffee  originally  used  and  the 
quantity  of  coffee  extract  obtained  should  be 
indicated  in the  definition.  This  ratio  is 2'3  and 
corresponds  to what  the  Commission  calls  a degree 
of extraction  of 2-3.  In this  matter  the  Section  agrees 
with  the  Commission's  proposal. 
2. Designation  of products  for  which  the  degree  of 
extraction  is less  than  2*3 
The Committe  considers  that  the  quantity  and 
quality  of savoury  and  aromatic  elements  of coffee 
in these  products  is insufficient  to warrant  their being  presented  to consumers  under  the  designation 
'soluble  coffee',  even  if  that  designation  is 
accompanied  by  a  statement  of  any  kind 
whatsoever. 
Such  products,  which  are  perfectly  fit  for 
consumption,  should  be mentioned  in Annex  I in a 
new chapter  — Chapter  7 — on  'Preparations  for 
beverages  based  on  extracts  of  coffee  and/or 
chicory'. 
3. Tea  mixes 
The Committee  recognizes  the  importance  of the 
consumption  of  tea  mixes,  especially  to  certain 
Member  States.  In view  of the  fact  that,  among 
other  things,  processes  for  producing  these  products, 
whether  they  be soluble  in hot  or cold  water,  are 
constantly  developing,  the  Committee  considers  that 
they  should  be dealt  with  in a special  chapter  in the 
Annex. 
4. Scope  of the  proposal  for  a Directive 
The Committee  regrets  that  the  Commission  did  not 
think  it  necessary  to  propose  a  Directive 
harmonizing  roasted  coffee  beans  and  tea  before  one 
harmonizing  coffee  and  tea  extracts.  It would  have 
been  more  logical  to do so and  this  would  without 
doubt  have  enabled  a number  of  interpretation 
difficulties  encountered  in the  present  proposal  for  a 
Directive  to be avoided. 
II. SPECIFIC  COMMENTS 
Article  I 
The Committee  considers  that  Annex  I, to which 
Article  1 refers,  must  be  amended  as  suggested 
below. 
Article  7 (b) 
The Committee  requests  that  this  be deleted  and  the 
products  mentioned  listed  in a new  chapter  of the 
Annex. 
Article  7 (c) 
The Committee  requests  that  this  subparagraph  be 
modified.  It must  refer  to the  quantity  of  raw 
material  orginally  used  and  not  to the  dry-matter 
content. 
Article  7 (k) 
The Committee  requests  that  this  subparagraph  be 
amended  so as to specify  simply  that  the  extract  is 
imported  'from  a State  outside  the  Community'. 
1. 4. 74 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities No C 37/3 
Annex  1 — Chapter  1 
The Committee  requests  that  the  following 
definition  of  'coffee  extracts'  be  inserted  in 
paragraph  1: 
'1. 'Coffee  extract'  is the  product,  in any 
concentration,  obtained  exclusively  from  roasted 
coffee  by physical  means  using  water  as the  sole 
extracting  agent  not  originating  from  coffee,  to 
the exclusion  in particular  of any  hydrolysis 
process  involving  the  addition  of acids,  and 
containing  only  the  soluble  and  aromatic 
elements  of  coffee,  apart  from  technically 
unavoidable  particles  insoluble  in water'. 
It must  indeed  be  noted  that  it is technically 
inevitable  in  practice  that  an  extremely  small 
quantity  of particles  insoluble  in water  will  be 
found  in  the  finished  product.  The  maximum 
acceptable  percentage  of such  particles  should  be 
determined  (by,  say,  experts  instructed  to work  out 
the methods  of analysis). 
Chapter  1, paragraph  2 
Subparagraph  (a) 
The Committee  requests  that  the  second  sentence  of 
this subparagraph  be completed  as follows: 
'and in the  manufacture  of which  the  minimum 
quantity  of green  coffee  used  is not  less  than 
2'3 kg per  kg of finished  product,  after  packing'. 
Subparagraph  (b) 
The Committee  considers  that  the  definition  of 
'liquid  coffee  extract'  should  be clarified  along  the 
lines  of what  it proposed  under  Article  7 (c). 
Annex  1 — Chapter  2 — Tea  extracts 
The Committee  believes  that  the  definition  of 'Tea 
extract'  should  be amplified,  to define  more  closely 
the substance  from  which  the  extract  is made,  and 
to provide  more  specifically  for  the  use  of process 
aids and  additives,  some  of which  may  leave  residues 
which,  were  analysis  to be made,  could  in fact  be 
regarded  as an  infringement  of the  sense  of the 
word  'exclusively'.  In  this  view  the  first 
subparagraph  of Chapter  2 (1) might  be re-drafted 
as follows: '1. Tea  extract  is the product  at various  levels 
of concentration  and/or  dryness  originating 
exclusively  from  the  aqueous  extraction  of 
species  of the  Camellia  genus  known  to  be 
suitable  for  making  tea,  with  or  without 
permitted  aromatic  substances  such  as jasmine 
flowers,  rose  petals,  mint  leaves,  bergamot  oil, 
mint,  lemon  or orange  essences,  together  with 
the residues  if any  of permitted  process  aids  and 
of permitted  additives'. 
Chapter  3, paragraph  1 
The Committee  requests  that  the  beginning  of the 
first sentence  should  read  as follows: 
'Chicory  extract  is the concentrated  and/or  dried 
product.  . 
Chapters  5 and  6 
The Committee  requests  that  Chapter  5 of the 
proposal  for  a Directive  be deleted  and  replaced  by 
new Chapters  5, 6 and  7, thus  making  clearer  the 
necessary  demarcation  between  products  possessing 
distinctly  different  characteristics.  These  chapters 
could  be worded  as follows: 
Chapter  5 — 'Extracts  of coffee  and/or  chicory  and/ 
or their  substitutes'. 
The designation  'extracts  of coffee  and/or  chicory 
and/or  their  substitutes'  shall  be  reserved  for 
products  in any  concentration  which  are  obtained 
by the  aqueous  extraction  of roasted  coffee,  of 
chicory  and/or  of their  substitutes,  and  contain  at 
least  one-third  of dry  coffee  extract  calculated  on 
the basis  of their  total  dried  matter. 
To these  extracts  may  be added  carbohydrates  up to 
a level  of 50'"/o  of the  dry  matter  of the  product 
marketed. 
Chapter  6 — Tea  mixes 
The designation  'tea  mixes'  shall  be reserved  for 
products  in any  concentration  which  are  obtained 
by the aqueous  extraction  of tea and  contain  at least 
3 % of dry  tea  extract  calculated  on the  basis  of 
their  total  dried  matter,  together  with  other  edible 
substances. 
Chapter  7 — Preparations  for  beverages  based  on 
extracts  of coffee  and/or  chicory 
This  chapter  should  group  together  all  products 
which  are  obtained  from  coffee  and/or  chicory  and 
No C 37/4 Official  Journal  of the  European  Communities 1. 4. 74 
which  do  not  correspond  to the  specifications  of 
Chapters  1, 3, 4 and  5. 
The demarcation  thus  established  between  the 
products  in the  new  Chapters  5, 6 and  7 should  of 
Done  at Brussels,  13 December  1973. course  lead  to a review  of all  references  to the 
different  chapters  of the  Annex,  which  are  made 
several  times  in the  text  of the  proposed  Directive 
itself  (in particular  Articles  3 and  7). 
The Chairman 
of the Economic  and  Social  Committee 
Alfons  LAPPAS 
CONSULTATION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
on a proposal  for a Council  Regulation  on the tariff  treatment  applicable  to agricultural 
products  contained  in travellers'  personal  luggage 
A. REQUEST  FOR  AN  OPINION 
At its 250th  meeting  held  on 16 July  1973,  the  Council  decided  to exercise  its option 
of consulting  the  Economic  and  Social  Committee  on  the  above  proposal  for  a 
Regulation. 
The request  for an Opinion  was  sent  by the  President  of the  Council  to the Chairman 
of the  Economic  and  Social  Committee  on 18 July  1973. 
B. TEXT  WHICH  WAS  THE  SUBJECT  OF  THE  CONSULTATION 
The text  which  was  the subject  of the consultation  was  published  in the Official  Journal 
of the European  Communities,  No  C 100  of 22 November  1973. 
C. OPINION  OF  THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE 
At its 115th  Plenary  Session  held  in Strasbourg  on 29 November  1973,  the Committee 
adopted  its Opinion  on the  text  referred  to under  B by a unanimous  vote  of all the 
members  present  or represented. 
The text  of the  Opinion  is as follows: 
THE  ECONOMIC  AND  SOCIAL  COMMITTEE, 
Having  regard  to the  letter  of 18  July  1973,  by 
which  the  President  of the  Council  of the  European 
Communities  requested  it to deliver  an Opinion  on 
the proposal  for  a Council  Regulation  on the  tariff 
treatment  applicable  to  agricultural  products 
contained  in travellers'  personal  luggage; 
Having  regard  to  the  Treaty  establishing  the 
European  Economic  Community,  and  in particular 
Article  100  thereof; 
Having  regard  to the  Decision  of its  Bureau  on 
26 September  1973,  entrusting  the  Section  for 
Agriculture  with  the  preparation  of an Opinion  on 
the subject; Having  regard  to the  Opinion  delivered  by  the 
Section  for  Agriculture  at  its  meeting  on 
8 November  1973; 
Having  regard  to its discussions  at its 115th  Plenary 
Session  on 29 November  1973, 
HAS  ADOPTED  THE  FOLLOWING  OPINION: 
The Economic  and  Social  Committee  approves  the 
proposal  for  a Council  Regulation  extending 
exemption  from  duties  under  the  Common  Customs 
Tariff,  laid  down  by Regulation  (EEC)  No  1544/69 
and applicable  to agricultural  products  contained  in