1999/77/EC: Commission Decision of 20 January 1999 authorising the Member States to permit temporarily the marketing of vine propagating material not satisfying the requirements of Council Directive 68/193/EEC (notified under document number C(1999) 98)
Date: 1999-01-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: derogation from EU law, marketing, plant health legislation, plant propagation, vineyard

L 23/62

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

30. 1. 1999

COMMISSION DECISION

of 20 January 1999

authorising the Member States to permit temporarily the marketing of vine
propagating material not satisfying the requirements of Council Directive 68/
193/EEC

(notified under document number C(1999) 98)

(1999/77/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Directive 68/193/EEC of 9
April 1968 on the marketing of material for the vegetative
propagation of the vine (1), as last amended by the Act of
Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden, and in par-
ticular Article 14 thereof,

Having regard to the requests submitted by France, Italy
and Austria,

Whereas in the Community, in particular in France, Italy
and Austria the production of certain vine propagating
materials satisfying the requirements of Directive 68/
193/EEC, has been insufficient in 1997 and is therefore
not adequate to meet that country’s needs;

Whereas it is not possible to cover this demand satis-
factorily with material satisfying all the requirements laid
down in the said Directive;

Whereas Austria should therefore be authorised to permit
the marketing, for a period expiring on 15 February 1999
and France and Italy for a period expiring on 30 March
1999, of material of a category to which less stringent
requirements apply;

Whereas other Member States likely to supply France,
Italy or Austria with such material should furthermore be
authorised to permit its marketing to this end;

Whereas in the case of Austria the propagating material
will be imported in the forms of rootstock cuttings to be
used for grafting; whereas, according to the request, the
rooted grafts produced in the Community from such
propagating material are then intended to be marketed in
the Community;

Whereas in the case of France and Italy the propagating
material will be imported in the form of dormant buds to
be used for grafting; whereas, according to the requests,
the rooted grafts produced in the Community from such

propagating material are then intended for export to third
countries;

Whereas this authorisation may only be used in accord-
ance with the plant health conditions and requirements
laid down by Council Directive 77/93/EEC (2), as last
amended by Commission Directive 98/2/EC (3), and in
any implementing measures made thereof;

Whereas the measures provided for in this Decision are in
accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee
on Seeds and Propagating Material for Agriculture, Horti-
culture and Forestry,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

1.
Austria is authorised to permit, for a period expiring
on 15 February 1999, the marketing on its territory of a
maximum of 1 500 000 rootstock cuttings for grafting,
which have been harvested in Hungary or Romania and
which do not satisfy the requirements laid down in
Directive 68/193/EEC as regards certification and inspec-
tion of standard propagation material, provided that the
official label is brown and bears the words ‘less stringent
requirements'.

2.
Austria is authorised to permit the marketing in its
territory of rooted grafts produced in the Community
from the abovementioned rootstock cuttings for grafting,
provided that the official label is brown and bears the
words ‘less stringent requirements'.

Article 2

Italy is authorised to permit, for a period expiring on 30
March 1999, the marketing on its territory of a maximum
of 500 000 dormant buds for grafting harvested in Croatia
which do not satisfy the requirements laid down in
Directive 68/193/EEC as regards certification and inspec-
tion of standard propagating material, provided that the
official label is brown and bears the words ‘less stringent
requirements'.

(1) OJ L 93, 17. 4. 1968, p. 15.

(2) OJ L 26, 31. 1. 1977, p. 20.
(3) OJ L 15, 21. 1. 1998, p. 34.

30. 1. 1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 23/63

Article 3

Article 5

France is authorised to permit, for a period expiring on 30
March 1999, the marketing on its territory of a maximum
of 150 000 dormant buds for grafting harvested in Swit-
zerland which do not satisfy the requirements laid down
in Directive 68/193/EEC as regards certification and
inspection of standard propagating material, provided that
the official label is brown and bears the words ‘less strin-
gent requirements'.

The authorisations under Articles 1 to 4 shall be without
prejudice to Directive 77/93/EEC and any implementing
measures thereof.

Article 6

Member States shall immediately notify the Commission
and the other Member States of the quantities of prop-
agating material permitted to be marketed in their ter-
ritories under this Decision.

Article 7

Article 4

This Decision is addressed to the Member States.

Member States other than the applicant Member States
are also authorised to permit, on the terms set out in
Articles 1, 2 and 3 and for the purposes intended by the
applicant Member States, the marketing in their territories
of the material authorised to be marketed under this
Decision.

Done at Brussels, 20 January 1999.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission