Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the 'Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive amending Directive 79/373/EEC on the marketing of compound feedingstuffs and Directive 96/25/EC on the circulation of feed materials'
Date: 1999-01-28
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: ESC opinion, animal nutrition, application of EU law, marketing, trading operation

12.4.1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 101/89

Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a European Parliament
and Council Directive amending Directive 79/373/EEC on the marketing of compound
feedingstuffs and Directive 96/25/EC on the circulation of feed materials’ (1)

(1999/C 101/19)

On 29 October 1998 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee,
under Articles 43 and 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the
above-mentioned proposal.

The Section for Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, which was responsible
for preparing the Committee’s work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 8 January 1999.
The rapporteur was Mr Bento Gonçalves.

At its 360th plenary session (meeting of 28 January 1999), the Economic and Social Committee
adopted the following opinion by 53 votes to six with three abstentions.

1.

Introduction

1.1. Scope and legal basis of the proposal

and dealers of feed materials, manufacturers of
compound feedingstuffs and livestock farmers,
whether they use manufactured compound feeding-
stuffs or make direct use of feed materials.

1.1.1. S c o p e o f

t h e p r o p o s a l

2.1.2.
additives are not dealt with in this directive.

Veterinary medicinal products and feedingstuff

General objective: to extend the scope of the directive
to the circulation and use of raw materials for animal
feedingstuffs (feed materials), with the ultimate aim of
creating the conditions to guarantee that they are ‘sound,
genuine and of merchantable quality’ and as such do
not represent a danger to animal or human health or to
the environment. To this end, the scope of Direc-
tive 96/25/EC is extended in order to allow the Member
States, under the terms of Council Directive 95/53/EC,
to introduce official inspection procedures not only
for the circulation and use of feed materials for the
compound feedingstuffs industry, but also for distribu-
tors trading in these materials and livestock farmers
who produce feed materials and use them directly on
their farms.

1.1.2. L e g a l b a s i s

The legal basis for this proposal is Article 100a of the
Treaty.

2. Gist of the proposal

2.1.
The proposal amends Directives 79/373/EEC on
the marketing of compound feedingstuffs and Direc-
tive 96/25/EC on the circulation of feed materials.

2.1.1.
cover:

Directive 96/25/EC, once amended, will legally

— putting feed materials into circulation and also their
use. That is, it will cover producers, transporters

(1) OJ C 261, 19.8.1998, p. 3.

3. General comments

3.1.
The ESC approves of the proposed amendments
because they constitute another step towards achieving
the above-mentioned general objectives. It also feels that
the right conditions are being created to improve the
tracking of feed materials from origin right up to the
end user: this is particularly important for materials
which entail potential public health risks.

3.2.
The ESC nevertheless considers that there is an
urgent need in some areas to go further towards restoring
consumer confidence in products of animal origin,
particularly beef. In particular, it believes that technical,
objective and harmonized criteria must be established
between Member States to make it clear which feed
materials qualify as being ‘sound, genuine and of
merchantable quality’.

The ESC also thinks that the Member States
3.3.
should adopt supervisory measures ensuring full com-
pliance with the provisions of Directive 96/25/EC
concerning feed materials which may not be circulated
or used, thereby enhancing the image of livestock
production and boosting consumer confidence.

3.3.1.
To facilitate national controls, the Commission
must make it clear what it means when it says that feed
materials must not represent a threat to the environment.

C 101/90

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

12.4.1999

4. Specific comments

4.1. Directive 79/373/EEC

4.1.1. A r t i c l e 1 ( 1 )

Article 5(1) para. k) makes it mandatory for establish-
ments to have official approval or an allocated regis-
tration number. This requirement will enter into force
on 1 April 2001.

4.1.2. A r t i c l e 1 ( 4 )

This amendment makes it mandatory for Member States
to incorporate the definitive list drawn up by the
Commission into national legislation.

4.2. Directive 96/25/EC

4.2.1. A r t i c l e 2 ( 1 ) a n d ( 2 )

The title of the directive is amended to include the term
‘use’, so that it legally covers ‘the circulation and use of
feed materials’.

4.2.2. A r t i c l e 2 ( 3 )

This introduces legal cover for the use of feed materials,
so as to preclude any danger to the environment.

4.2.3. A r t i c l e 2 ( 4 ) ( g )

It is proposed to modify paragraph g) of Article 5(1) of
Directive 96/25/EC to make it mandatory for firms
producing or marketing meat meal to include labels or
other identifying marks on the packaging which refer to
the firm and feed materials used. These must specify the
name or business name and the address or registered
place of business of the producing establishment, the
approval number and the batch reference number or
any other particulars which ensure that the feed material
can be traced.

4.2.3.1. Article 2(4)(h)

This paragraph refers to those feedingstuff producers
not covered by paragraph g).

4.2.4. A r t i c l e 2 ( 5 )

a) Technical adjustment.

b) This point will be divided into paragraphs b) and c).

Brussels, 28 January 1999.

The aim is to adopt a list of feed materials of which
both circulation and use are prohibited.

c) This paragraph is designed to allow adoption of new
amendments to the annex and to the list referred to
in point b), in the light of advances in scientific and
technical knowledge.

4.2.5. A r t i c l e s 3 a n d 4

These adjustments require no comment.

5. Conclusions

5.1.
The ESC feels that the proposed changes to the
directives are essential in order to provide closer tracking
of feed materials from origin to end users, and to extend
quality requirements to feed materials produced and
directly used by producers on their own farms.

5.2.
The ESC, however, believes that the amendments
are insufficient to achieve the ultimate aim of strengthen-
ing human health protection and restoring consumer
confidence, particularly with regard to beef.

— For example,

the Committee would support a
universal ban on mammalian meat and bonemeal in
animal feedstuffs.

— Farmers should be provided with full labelling of

each ingredient in the feed they buy.

The Committee therefore feels that further initiatives
aiming,
in particular, to establish objective quality
criteria for feed materials which are technically sound
and apply in all Member States, are urgently needed.

5.3.
The ESC also thinks that the term ‘use’ must be
more precisely defined. Otherwise it is not clear what
control measures Member States are to carry out in
order to monitor use of feed materials on farms. This
matter should be clarified in the process of amending
the relevant directives.

The President

of the Economic and Social Committee

Beatrice RANGONI MACHIAVELLI