PROPOSAL FOR A COUNCIL REGULATION ( EEC ) AMENDING REGULATION ( EEC ) NO 104/76 LAYING DOWN COMMON MARKETING STANDARDS FOR SHRIMPS ( CRANGON CRANGON ), EDIBLE CRABS ( CANCER PAGURUS ) AND NORWAY LOBSTERS ( NEPHROPS NORVEGICUS )
Date: 1991-04-30
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: United Kingdom, coastal region, crustacean, derogation from EU law, marketing standard, supply

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

COM(91) 148 final 

Brussels, 30 ApriI  1891 

Proposal  for a 

COUNCIL  REGULATION  (EEC) 

amending Regulation  (EEC) No 104/76  laying down  common 

marketing  standards for shrimps  (Crangon  crangon), edible crabs 

(Cancer  pagurus) and Norway  lobsters  (Nephrops  norvegicus) 

(presented  by the Commission) 

- 2 -

EXPLANATORY  MEMORANDUM 

Council  Regulation  (EEC)  No  104/76  of  19  January  1976,  which  it  is 
proposed  to  amend,  lays  down  common  marketing  standards  for  shrimps, 
edible  crabs  and  Norway  lobsters  and  establishes  grading  categories  for 
the  three  products  in  question  as  well  as  freshness  categories  for 
shrimps  and  Norway  lobsters. 

Article  7  provides  for  derogations  from  the  minimum  marketing  sizes  laid 
down  within  the  grading  categories  for  shrimps  (paragraph  4)  and  edible 
crabs  (paragraph 5 ). 

So  far, only  the  derogation  for  crabs  has  been  applied,  the  coastal  zones 
of  the  United  Kingdom  where  the  size  derogation  is  authorized  having 
being  laid  down  in Commission  Regulation  (EEC)  No  1048/86. 

In  order  to  conserve  crab  stocks,  the  British  authorities  increased  the 
minimum  biological  size  for  crabs  to  12.5  cm  in  several  of  the  areas 
specified  in  Regulation  (EEC)  No  1048/86  on  1 February  1990,  the  uniform 
size  of  11.5  cm  laid  down  by  Regulation  (EEC)  No  104/76  continuing  to  be 
authorized  for  the other  areas. 

Since  a  Community  minimum  biological  size  has  not  yet  been  fixed  for 
edible  crabs,  there  is  now  a  contradiction  between  Community  rules  on 
marketing  standards  and  British  legislation  on  the  conservation  of 
resources. 

Producers  may  therefore  be  unsure  of  the  legal  position. 

The  Community  rules  regarding  derogations  must  therefore  be  amended  but, 
since  different  minimum  sizes  have  been  introduced  in  certain  zones,  it 
is  proposed,  in  the  interests  of  simplification  and  to  facilitate  future 
management  of  the  application  of  these  measures,  to  retain  the  principle 
of  the  derogation  contained  in  Council  Regulation  (EEC)  No  104/76,  its 
application  being  determined  in  accordance  with  the  procedure  laid  down 
•r, Article  33 of  Regulation  (EEC)  No  3796/81. 

it  also  appears  sensible,  again  for  reasons  of  simplification,  to  bring 
the  derogations  for  shrimps  and  crabs  together  in  the  same  text  and  to 
lay  down  identical  application  procedures  for  the  two  products. 

This  proposal  has  no  financial  impact  on  the  Community  budget. 

It  does  not  affect  the  SMEs  concerned. 

-  3 -

Proposal  for a 

COUNCIL REGULATION  (EEC) 

amending Regulation (EEC) No 104/76  laying down 

common marketing  standards  for shrimps  (Crangon  crangon), 

edible crabs  (Cancer  pagurus) and Norway  lobsters  (Nephrops norvegicus) 

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES, 

Having  regard  to the Treaty establishing  the European Economic  Community, 

Having  regard  to Council  Regulation  (EEC) No 3796/81  of  29 December  1981 

on  the  common  organization  of  the  market  in  fishery  products1,  as  last 

amended  by  Regulation  (EEC) No 2886/892,  and  in particular  Article  2(3) 

thereof, 

Having  regard  to the proposal  from  the Commission, 

Whereas  Council  Regulation  (EEC)  No 104/76 3,  as  last  amended  by 

Regulation  (EEC)  No  4213/884,  lays  down,  inter alia,  the  sizing 

categories  applicable  to  shrimps  and  crabs,  and  fixes  a  minimum  size 

below  which  these  products  may  not  be  marketed  for  human  consumption 

within  the Community; 

Whereas Article 7(4) of  the above Regulation  provides  for exemptions  from 

the  minimum  size  for  shrimps,  in  order  to  ensure  local  supplies  for 

certain coastal  areas of  the  Community; 

Whereas,  in  order  to  ensure  local  or  regional  supplies  of  crabs  for 

certain  coastal  zones  of  the  United Kingdom,  Article 7(5)  of  the  above 

Regulation  introduces  an  exception  reducing  the  minimum  marketing  size 

for  this product  to 11.5 cm  in these zones; 

1  0J No L 379, 31.12.1981, p. 1. 

2  0J  No L 282, 2.10.1989, p. 1. 

3  0J  No L 20, 28.1.1976, p. 35. 

4  0J  No L 370, 31.12.1988, p. 33, 

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Whereas  experience  has  shown  that  exceptions  from  the minimum  sizes must 
be  differentiated  according  to  the  zones  concerned  in  order  to  take 

account  of  differing conditions of production and  sale  in these  zones; 

Whereas,  in order  to ensure efficient management  of  the scheme,  identical 
procedures  for  the  fixing  of  the  size  exceptions  and  for  the 
determination of  the coastal  zones  in which  these sizes are  to apply  must 
be  laid down  for  the two products  concerned, 

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 

Article 1 

Article 7 of Regulation  (EEC) No 104/76  is hereby  amended  as  follows: 

1.  Paragraph  4  is replaced  by  the  following: 

"4.  Exemptions  from  the  minimum  sizes  referred  to  in  paragraph  1(a)  and 
(b) may  be  laid down  in order  to ensure  local or  regional  supplies of 
shrimps and crabs  for certain  coastal  zones of  the  Community. 
These zones shall  be determined  and  the corresponding  marketing  sizes 
fixed  in  accordance  with  the  procedure  laid  down  in  Article 33  of 
Regulation  (EEC) No 3796/81." 

2.  Paragraph  5  is deleted. 

Article  2 

This Regulation  shall  enter  into force on  1 June 1991. 

This  Regulation  shall  be binding  in  its entirety  and  directly  applicable 
in ai I Member  States. 

Dons at Brussels, 

For  the Council 
The President 

ISSN.Q254-1475 

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