Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the "Protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs"
Date: 2001-11-14
Institutions: European Committee of the Regions
Subjects: agricultural product, designation of origin, foodstuff, location of production

3.5.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 107/19

Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on the ‘Protection of geographical indications and
designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs’

(2002/C 107/07)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS,

having regard to the decision of its bureau of 13 February 2001, under the fifth paragraph of Article 265
of the Treaty establishing the European Community, to instruct Commission 2 for Agriculture, Rural
Development and Fisheries to draw up an own-initiative opinion on the Protection of geographical
indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs;

having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 (1) of 14 July 1992 on the protection of
geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs;

having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2082/92 (2) of 14 July 1992 on certificates of specific
character for agricultural products and foodstuffs;

having regard to the existence of a proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) amending Council Regulation
(EEC) No 2081/92 of 14 July 1992 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of
origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs, which includes adjustments in line with World Trade
Organisation (WTO) agreements (this point will depend on whether we can obtain the Commission
proposal in time);

having regard to the draft opinion (CdR 58/2001 rev. 2), adopted by Commission 2 on 9 October 2001
on the Protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and
foodstuffs (rapporteurs: Mr Sanz Alonso, President of the Autonomous Community of La Rioja, E/EPP,
and Mr Rumpf, former State Secretary for European Affairs of the Land of Rhine-Palatinate, D/ELDR);

having regard to the draft Community guidelines for state aids for the promotion and advertising of
agricultural products listed in Annex I of the Treaty;

whereas

— the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 continues to be a valid means of
implementing the Common Agricultural Policy, principally in the less advantaged areas, enabling
farmers’ incomes to be enhanced and rural populations to remain in place;

— the application of WTO agreements obliges the European Union and all countries coming under the

WTO to adjust their legislation in order to permit such agreements to be implemented;

— small farmers form the backbone of production and marketing activities in less advantaged areas,
selling their produce on the regional or national market, thereby meeting the objectives of Regulation
(EEC) No 2081/92, which include the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs);

— regional economies must be strengthened, since they have a strong ecological influence and a
powerful effect on the regional structure, environment and consumers; SMEs which meet these
objectives should also be supported, even if they sell their products on the regional or national
market;

— Article 5 of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92, which replaces national arrangements for protecting
designations of origin (PDOs) and geographical indications (PGIs), restricts entitlement to apply for
registration of a PDO or PGI to groups working with the same product, it is proposed to amend the
text so that applications for registration may be made by groups made up of other groups and/or
those working with different agricultural products or foodstuffs within the meaning of Article 2(2)
(a) or (b);

(1) OJ L 208, 24.7.1992, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 208, 24.7.1992, p. 9.

C 107/20

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

3.5.2002

— the less advantaged areas, where development must be reinforced in accordance with Regulation
(EEC) No 2081/92, contain small-scale operators who cannot easily bear the costs of implementing
the regulation;

— such operators must be provided with economic means and instruments so that they can optimise
their products while ensuring that consumers are protected against unfair practices, Regulation (EEC)
No 2081/92 must allow those working with different agricultural products or foodstuffs to form
single groups, which would reduce costs and facilitate marketing of their products;

— in addition to products which are produced in line with Regulations (EEC) Nos 2081 and 2082,
other products must be taken into consideration which do not come under these regulations but
which are equally important for rural development and for improving the income of small farms.

These products also require marketing support, provided that all aspects of production, processing
and marketing comply with the case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Communities and
Community laws.

It is a recognised fact that most of these products are also sold in the regions in which they are
produced. Steps must therefore be taken to ensure that such products can be promoted in these
cases as well, if necessary with public financial support. Only in this way will small farms have a
chance to make people aware of their products;

adopted the following opinion at its 41st plenary session of 14 and 15 November 2001 (meeting of
14 November).

Recommendations

The Committee of the Regions

calls upon the European Commission, in the light of the
1.
above, to revise Council Regulations (EEC) No 2081/92 and
No 2082/92 and, if necessary, to incorporate the recommen-
dations of the present opinion into the proposal for a Council
regulation amending Regulation 2081/92 on the protection
indications and designations of origin for
of geographical
agricultural products and foodstuffs;

2.
believes that the proposal to amend the regulation should
make it possible for groups of producers and/or processors, or
processors alone, to form groups, even if they work with
different agricultural products and foodstuffs covered by
Regulations (EEC) No 2081/92 and No 2082/92;

proposes that the Commission introduce the possibility
3.
of also using origin marking for marketing different types of

Brussels, 14 November 2001.

agricultural products or foodstuffs — but only of proven high
quality — covered by Article 2(2) (a) or (b) of the regulation,
produced in a Member State and/or in a specific region;

4.
urges that the possibility of registering this geographical
indication be introduced, offering protection under Articles 13
and 13 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92;

5.
calls upon the Commission to withdraw the proposed
basic ban on aid for advertising in the region or Member State
to which the business concerned belongs for all agri-foodstuff
products which comply with Community legislation and the
case-law of the European Communities; this ban is set out in
paragraph 4.1, point 38, of the Community guidelines for
state aids for the promotion and advertising of agricultural
products listed in Annex I of the Treaty;

recommends that the costs of preparatory work to
6.
recognise the protection of geographical
indications and
designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs,
particularly in areas coming under the cohesion policies, be
funded from rural development programmes.

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Jos CHABERT