l^oC44714 Official Journal of the European Communities 1^,2.8^ 
Opinion on theproposalforaCouncilDirectiveamendingDirective81B^n2BEEC concerning 
the prohibition of certain substances havingahormonal action and of any substances havinga 
thyrostatic actions) 
(8^7C 44711) 
On^]ulyl984 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under 
Article 198 of the treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on the 
abovementioned proposal, 
l^be Section for Agriculture,v^hichv^as responsible forpreparingtheCommittee^sv^or^ on the 
subject, adopted its opinion on 29 November 1984, in the light of the report by ^ir 
Jaschicm 
Atits222ndplenarysession(meetingofl3December 1984) the Committee adopted the 
following opinion by^^ votes to five,v^ithl^abstentions^ 
1, I^heCommitteehasta^ennoteoftheproposalfora 
Directivedated 12]une 1984 and the accompanying 
communciation from the Commission concerningthe use 
of certain substances havingahormonal action in animal 
production, 
Lbe Committee has examined the matter in depth, but is 
unable to support the Commission proposal, 
T^beCommittee^sopinion,in outline,is that the present 
proposalshouldberejectedandthe conditions of the 
original Directive retained for the time being untilthe 
Commission can consider fully the scientific evidence for 
which it originally called. Eurthermore, examination 
should continue of any available additional data arising 
from practical experience with particular reference to the 
health aspects. 
Implementation of the Committee^sopinionwould^ 
— allow ^viemberStatestocontinuethe banning oforthe 
permission for the useof the five anabolic agents 
under discussion, 
— allow a more detailed and practical account of 
enforceable controls and analytical measures (both as 
regards Community meat production and of imports 
fromthird countries), reference shoulde^ually be 
made to the anabolics which are already forbidden, 
— allowfor special attention to bepaid to measures 
needed in relation to the certification and labelling of 
meat and meat products, 
— allow the whole question ofthe use of anabolics to be 
dealt with by a unified procedure leading to an 
acceptable harmonization ^ the topic itself being 
discussed asawhole and not piecemeal. 
^OJ^DCIBO,^ D,1^4,D,4, 2, ^PheCommitteenotes thattheCommission was 
seeding to fulfil the tasl^ assigned to it in Article8of the 
basic Directive 817^107EEC, under which the 
Commission was to submit to the Council, not later than 
ljuly 1984, areportonthee^perienceacquiredand 
scientific developments, ^Phis report was to be 
accompanied,ifnecessary,by proposals which tal^e these 
developments into account, I^he Council wishes, in 
accordance with Article^ofthe basic Directive, to tal^ea 
decision as soon as possible on the use of five anabolic 
substances for fattening farm animals, 
3, ^Phe deadline prescribed by the basic Directive 
perhaps explains why the Commission submitted its 
communication to the Council before compilation of the 
additional report on the tonicity of two exogenous 
anabolics(trenboloneand^eranol)byaspecial wording 
party of the additional report, ^Phis additional report is 
expected to be completed at the end of the year. If the 
Commission had been able to talee this report into 
consideration it would undoubtedly have considered 
more thoroughly the health, economic and quality 
aspects which justified amending the basic Directive, 
4, I^he Commissions call for an urgent Council 
decision seemsmainlymotivatedbyitsdesireto safeguard 
health and consumer interests, Plowever, the first recital 
and thenewversionofArticle^areliableto stand atleast 
the title of the basic Directive on its head, ^fhus the first 
two recitals of both the basic Directive and the present 
proposal for a Directive mal^e protection of the 
consumers health and economic interests priority 
objectives, Lhese objectives cannot, however, be cited as 
justification for the present proposals, which seel^ 
precisely to abolish consumed and public health 
protection measures guaranteed up to now by the bas^c 
Directive, 
^, ^Phe use of anabolics for fattening purposes can at 
present be banned bythe member States,^PheCommittee 
notes that this situation leads to distortions in 
15. 2. 85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 44/15 
competition which should be stopped. The Committee 
thus feels that harmonized Community-wide rules should 
be introduced as soon as possible. According to the last 
sentence of Article 5 of the basic Directive, the Member 
States are merely forbidden to authorize the use of new 
substances for the time being. The Commission is now 
seeking to remove this restriction through a Council 
decision which must be taken unanimously. According to 
the Commission proposal, the current Member State bans 
on the use of the two exogenous anabolics trenbolone and 
zeranol could be lifted by a qualified-majority Council 
decision on a subsequent proposal from the 
Commission. 
6. In the current state of the art satisfactory solutions 
to the problems that evidently exist in all the Member 
States regarding the enforcement of current law cannot be 
guaranteed. Until this indispensable precondition is 
fulfilled the basic Directive should remain unchanged in 
the interests of health protection. 
7. The Committee would point out that on 30 
September 1980 the Council undertook unanimously, 
under the pressure of public opinion, to prohibit the 
administering of all hormones (other than for therapeutic 
purposes) in livestock production. Both the Committee 
and the European Parliament came out clearly in favour 
of the proposal for a Regulation subsequently submitted 
by the Commission on 3 November 1980. The first two 
recitals of this proposal for a Regulation stated 
unequivocally that the use of substances with a hormonal 
or thyrostatic action for fattening purposes must be 
prohibited on account of the risks to health and meat 
quality. 
8. Neither farmers' organizations nor meat processors 
and traders have taken an official stand at EC level with 
regard to the need to authorize or prohibit the use of 
anabolics in the Community. 
Done at Brussels, 13 December 1984. 9. The representatives of consumers and workers have 
for a long time been unequivocally opposed to the use of 
anabolics in livestock fattening. 
10. The Committee would stress that even the lifting of 
the bans on the three endogenous anabolics (oestradiol 
170, testosterone and progesterone) in respect of 
foodstuffs of animal origin cannot be regarded as 
unobjectionable from the point of view of the safety, 
health and well-being of the population, until they have 
been proved harmless on the basis of sound experience 
covering, inter alia, conditions of use. Thus, even if the 
reasons for their action are not always the same, it is clear 
that neither the European occupational interest groups 
nor the Economic and Social Committee have called for 
the present Commission proposal. 
11. Under these conditions it is highly unlikely that 
the different national and Community bodies concerned 
will be able to reach agreement on the Commission 
proposals. 
12. This is why the Committee feels that the 
Commission must first make proposals which guarantee 
the introduction and application in all Member States of 
checks as described under Article 7 of the basic Directive, 
as regards both Community production and imports from 
third countries. 
13. The Committee underlines that, pending the 
adoption of uniform Community-wide rules, it is 
essential to introduce Community measures which would 
enable products obtained with or without the aid of 
anabolic agents to be identified. 
14. The Committee intends to keep the matter under 
close review. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Gerd MUHR 
No C 44/16 Official Journal of the European Communities 15. 2. 85 
APPENDICES 
to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee 
APPENDIX I 
Voting 
A roll-call vote was taken on the opinion as a whole. The following members, present or represented, voted 
for the opinion: 
Mr Amato, Mr Beretta, Mr Berger, Mr Bernasconi, Mr Binnenbruck, Mr Boddy, Mr Bonety, Mr Bornard, 
Mr Brassier, Mrs Bredima, Mr Briganti, Mr Burnel, Mr De Caffarelli, Mr Campbell, Mr Cavazzuti, 
Mr Cremer, Mr Curlis, Mr von der Decken, Mr De Grave, Mr d'Elia, Mr Delia Croce, Mr Drago, 
Mrs Engelen-Kefer, Mr Flum, Mr Fuller, Mr Glesener, Mrs Gredal, Mr van Greunsven, Mr Hammond, 
Mr Hannon, Mrs Heuser, Mr Hilkens, Mr Houthuys, Mr Jarvis, Mr Jaschick, Mr Jenkins, Mr Kenna, 
Mr Kirschen, Mr Low, Mr Marvier, Mr Masucci, Mr Meraviglia, Mr Milne, Mr Monier, Mr Mourgues, 
Mr Muller, Mrs Nielsen M., Mr Nierhaus, Mr De Normann, Mr Ognibene, Mr Paggi, Mrs Patterson, 
Mr Pearson, Mr Pfeiffer, Mr Plank, Mr Poeton, Mr Pronk, Mr Querleux, Mr Ramaekers, Mr Regaldo, 
Mr van Rens, Mr Romoli, Mr Roseingrave, Mr Schneider, Mr Schoepges, Sir George Sharp, Mr Soulat, 
Mr Spijkers, Mr Staratzke, Mr Storie-Pugh, Mrs Strobel, Mr Swift, Mr Tamlin, Mr van Melckenbeke, 
Mr Vercellino, Mrs Williams. 
The following members, present or represented, voted against the opinion: 
Mr de Tavernier, Mrs Quigley, Mr Strauss, Mr van der Mensbrugghe, Mr Zinkin. 
The following members, present or represented, abstained: 
Mr Antonsen, Mr Berns, Mr Cashmann, Mr Ceyrac, Mr De Bruyn, Mr Dracos, Mr Emo Capodilista, 
Mr Fortuyn, Mr Goris, Mr Law, Mr Margot, Mr Masprone, Mr Pelletier, Mr Rainero, Mr Schnieders, 
Mr Stahlmann, Mr Wick. 
APPENDIX II 
Rejected proposal for an amendment 
The following proposal for an amendment, submitted on the basis of the opinion of the Section for 
Agriculture and in accordance with the Rules of Procedure, was rejected during the Committee's debate 
in a vote by name. 
Point 1, amend the second paragraph to read: 
'The Committee has examined the matter in depth and is able to support the Commission 
proposal.' 
Point 3: 
Replace point 3 and the remainder of the text by the following points 3 and 4: 
'3. The Committee is in agreement with the Commission proposal under which the Member States 
are to be allowed to authorize the administering to farm animals for fattening purposes of the 
substances oestradiol 17 P, testosterone, progesterone and certain of their derivatives, provided this 
takes place in appropriate, prescribed circumstances and provided there are effective checks. 
4. The Committee is also in agreement with the Commission proposal concerning possible 
additions to the list of authorized substances, particularly as regards the procedure in connection with 
trenbolone and zeranol.' 
Results of the voting: 
For: 14. Against: 77. Abstentions: 15. 
The following members, present or represented, voted in favour of the proposal for an amendment: 
Mr De Caffarelli, Mr Campbell, Mr Cashmann, Mr Ceyrac, Mr De Bievre, Mr De Tavernier, Mr Fortuyn, 
Mr Law, Mrs Quigley, Mr Stahlmann, Mr Strauss, Mr van der Mensbrugghe, Mr van Melckenbeke, 
Mr Zinkin. 
The following members, present or represented, voted against the proposal for an amendment: 
Mr Amato, Mr Beretta, Mr Bernasconi, Mr Boddy, Mr Bonety, Mr Bornard, Mr Brassier, Mrs Bredima, 
Mr Briganti, Mr Burnel, Mr Cavazzuti, Mr Cremer, Mr Curlis, Mr von der Decken, Mr De Grave, 
Mr d'Elia, Mr Delia Croce, Mr Delourme, Mr Drago, Mr Emo Capodilista, Mrs Engelen-Kefer, Mr Flum, 
15. 2. 85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 44/17 
Mr Fuller, Mr Glesener, Mrs Gredal, Mr van Greunsven, Mr Hammond, Mr Hannon, Mrs Heuser, 
Mr Hilkens, Mr Houthuys, Mr Jarvis, Mr Jaschick, Mr Jenkins, Mr Kamizolas, Mr Kenna, Mr Kirschen, 
Mr Low, Mr Marvier, Mr Masucci, Mr Meraviglia, Mr Milne, Mr Monier, Mr Mourgues, Mr Muller, 
Mrs Nielsen M., Mr Nierhaus, Mr Noordwal, Mr de Normann, Mr Ognibene, Mr Paggi, Mrs Patterson, 
Mr Pearson, Mr Pfeiffer, Mr Plank, Mr Poeton, Mr Pronk, Mr Querleux, Mr Rainero, Mr Ramaekers, 
Mr Regaldo, Mr van Rens, Mr Romoli, Mr Roseingrave, Mr Schneider, Mr Schnieders, Mr Schoepges, 
Sir George Sharp, Mr Soulat, Mr Staratzke, Mrs Strobel, Mr Spijkers, Mr Vandenbroucke, Mr Vercellino, 
Mr Wick, Mr Williams, Mr de Wit. 
The following members, present or represented, abstained: 
Mr Arena, Mr Berger, Mr Berns, Mr Binnenbruck, Mr Bos, Mr de Bruyn, Mr Dracos, Mr Eelsen, 
Mr Goris, Mr Margot, Mr Masprone, Mr Pelletier, Mr Storie-Pugh, Mr Swift, Mr Tamlin. 
Own-initiative opinion on the Commission's proposals concerning integrated Mediterranean 
programmes 
(85/C 44/12) 
At its 222nd plenary session held on 12 and 13 December 1984 the Economic and Social 
Committee decided to draw up an own-initiative opinion, under the fourth paragraph of 
Article 20 of the Rules of Procedure, on the abovementioned proposal. 
At the same plenary session it appointed Mr Lauga as rapporteur-general and adopted the 
following opinion on the second day by a very large majority (there being one vote against and 
11 abstentions): 
The Economic and Social Committee notes with concern 
the accumulation of delays in the adoption and 
implementation of the integrated Mediterranean 
programmes, which should have been launched before 
the end of 1984. 
The Committee would point out that as the body 
representing European socio-economic interest groups it 
has twice (x) come out unanimously in favour of this initiative, given that the prime aim is to bring about an 
equitable balance between the various regions of the 
Community in accordance with the objectives of the 
Treaty of Rome. 
The Committee would therefore once more call upon the 
relevant Community authorities to act within their 
respective spheres of competence and take the decisions 
required for rapid implementation of this action. 
Done at Brussels, 13 December 1984. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Gerd MUHR 
(M ESC opinion of 24 November 1983 (OJ No C23, 
30. 1. 1984) and ESC opinion of 24 May 1984 (OJ No 
C206, 6.8. 1984).