OPINION OF THE COMMISSION pursuant to Article 189 b (2) (d) of the EC Treaty, on the European Parliament' s amendments to the Council' s common position regarding the proposal for a EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) laying down a Community procedure for flavouring substances used or intended for use in foodstuffs
Date: 1996-06-10
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: consumer protection, flavouring, food additive, foodstuffs legislation, intellectual property

COMMISSION  OF THE EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

Brussels,  10 06 1996 
COM(96) 270 final  - COD 478 

OPINION  OF THE COMMISSION 
pursuant to Article  189 b (2) (d) of the EC Treaty, 
on the European Parliament's amendments 
to the Council's common position regarding the 

proposal  for a 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) 

laying down a Community procedure for flavouring substances 
used or intended for use in foodstuffs. 

AMENDING THE PROPOSAL OF THE COMMISSION 
pursuant to Article  189 a (2) of the EC Treaty 

On  22  May  1996 

the  European  Parliament  adopted  2  amendments  to  the  common 

position  adopted  by  the  Council  on  22  December  1995  in  respect  of  the  Commission 

proposal  for  a  Regulation  of  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  laying  down  a 
Community  procedure  for  flavouring  substances  used  or  intended  for  use  in  foodstuffs1. 

In  accordance  with  paragraph  2  (d)  of  Article  189b of  the  EC  Treaty,  the  Commission  is 

able  to  give  a  favourable  opinion  on  the  2  amendments  adopted  by  Parliament  for  the 

following  reasons: 

the  Commission  can  accept  the  addition  of  a  recital  on  the  re-evaluation  by  the 

Scientific  Committee 

for  Food  of  already  authorised 

flavounng 

substances, 

produced  by  different  methods.  This  principle  is  already  applied  in  the  directive  on 

purity  criteria  for  food  additives  recently  adopted  by  the  Commission. 

the  Commission  can  accept  the amendment  concerning  the designation  of  substances 

in  the  positive  list.  The  Commission  agrees  that  intellectual  property  shall  be 

protected.  It  will  however  be  necessary  to  elaborate  an  appropriate  and  transparent 

procedure  which  at  the  same  time  protects  intellectual  properties  and  the  interests  of 

the  consumer. 

1  COM  (93)  609  final;  COD  478;  O J . N °C  1„ 4.1.1994.  COM  (94)  236  final;  O.J.  N°  C  171. 24.6.1994,  p. I  1 

Amended  proposal  for  a 

EUROPEAN  PARLIAMENT  AND COUNCIL  REGULATION  (EC) 
laying down a Community procedure for flavouring substances 
used or intended for use in  foodstuffs. 

(presented by the Commission pursuant to Article  189 A (2) of the EC Treaty) 

- 3-

Current  Proposal 

Amended  Proposal 

Recital  9 

Whereas  this  list  must  be  open-ended  and  Whereas  this  list  must  be  open-ended  and 
capable  of  being  amended  in  the  light  of  capable  of  being  amended  in  the  light  of 
scientific  and  technical  developements 

scientific  and  technical  developements. 

flavouring 
Whereas  already  authorised 
substances,  which  are  to  be  produced  in 
processes  or  with  primary 
substances 
which  were  not  the  basis  for  the  Scientific 
Committee  for  Food's  assessment,  shall  be 
resubmitted  to the  Scientific  Committe  for 
Food  for  a complete  assessment. 

Article  3(2) 

1,  and 

in  paragraph 

On  the  basis  of  the  notification  provided 
for 
following 
Commission  scrutiny  of  the  notification, 
in the  light of  subparagraph  (c),  flavouring 
substances,  the  legal  use  of  which  in  one 
Member  State  must  be  recognized  by  the 
other  Member  States  shall  be  entered  in  a 
register  which 
in 
accordance  with  the  procedure  laid  down 
in  Article  7 within  a year  of  the  end  of  the 
notification 
in 
paragraph  1.  If  necessary,  this  register 
may  comprise  conditions  of use. 

shall  be  adopted 

provided 

period 

for 

1,  and 

in  paragraph 

On  the  basis  of  the  notification  provided 
for 
following 
Commission  scrutiny  of  the  notification, 
in the  light  of subparagraph  (c),  flavouring 
substances,  the  legal  use  of  which  in  one 
Member  State  must  be  recognized  by  the 
other  Member  States  shall  be  entered  in  a 
register  which 
in 
accordance  with  the  procedure  laid  down 
in  Article  7 within  a year  of  the  end  of  the 
notification 
in 
paragraph  1.  If  necessary,  this  register 
may  comprise  conditions  of  use. 

shall  be  adopted 

provided 

period 

for 

Flavouring  substances  shall  be  designated 
in  such  a way  as  to  protect  the  intellectual 
flavouring 
of 
property 
substances'  producer. 

rights 

the 

ISSN 0254-1475 

COM(96) 270  final 

DOCUMENTS 

EN 

m 

Catalogue number  :  CB-CO-96-280-EN-C 

ISBN 92-78-05358-9 

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