Commission Regulation (EC) No 417/2003 of 6 March 2003 derogating from Regulation (EC) No 2535/2001 laying down detailed rules for applying Council Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 as regards the import of milk and milk products and opening tariff quotas
Date: 2003-03-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: derogation from EU law, extra-EU trade, import licence, intra-EU trade, milk, milk product, quantitative restriction, tariff quota

7.3.2003

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 64/11

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 417/2003

of 6 March 2003

derogating from Regulation (EC) No 2535/2001 laying down detailed rules for applying Council
Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 as regards the import of milk and milk products and opening tariff
quotas

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

(3)

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 of 17
May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in milk
and milk products (1), as last amended by Commission Regula-
tion (EC) No 509/2002 (2), and in particular Article 29(4)
thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

Under quotas Nos 09.4086 and 09.4554 as provided for
in Council Regulation (EC) No 2475/2000 (3) and
Council Regulation (EC) No 1361/2002 (4) establishing
certain concessions in the form of Community tariff
quotas for certain agricultural products and providing
for an adjustment, as an autonomous and transitional
measure, of certain agricultural concessions provided for
in the Europe Agreements with Slovenia and Lithuania
respectively, the Slovene and Lithuanian authorities have
introduced veterinary checks ensuring that
the milk
powder for export to the Community complies with the
conditions laid down in Council Directive 92/46/EEC of
16 June 1992 laying down the health rules for the
production and placing on the market of raw milk, heat-
treated milk and milk-based products (5), as last amended
by Directive 94/71/EC (6), and in Council Directive 96/
23/EC of 29 April 1996 on measures to monitor certain
in live animals and
substances and residues thereof
animal products and repealing Directives 85/358/EEC
and 86/469/EEC and Decisions 89/187/EEC and 91/
664/EEC (7).

In view of the difficulties that these veterinary checks
have caused for importers holding licences issued during
in the case of imports
the first six months of 2002,
those
originating in Lithuania,
licences was extended to 30 September 2002 and 31
January 2003 respectively by Commission Regulations
(EC) No 1333/2002 (8) and (EC) No 1925/2002 (9), dero-
gating from Regulation (EC) No 2535/2001 (10), as last
amended by Regulation (EC) No 2302/2002 (11).

the validity period of

(1) OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 48.
(2) OJ L 79, 22.3.2002, p. 15.
(3) OJ L 286, 11.11.2000, p. 15.
(4) OJ L 198, 27.7.2002, p. 1.
(5) OJ L 268, 14.9.1992, p. 1.
(6) OJ L 368, 31.12.1994, p. 33.
(7) OJ L 125, 23.5.1996, p. 10.
(8) OJ L 195, 24.7.2002, p. 15.
(9) OJ L 293, 29.10.2002, p. 18.
(10) OJ L 341, 22.12.2001, p. 29.
(11) OJ L 348, 21.12.2002, p. 78.

Given that these difficulties persist and, furthermore, that
the veterinary checks carried out by the Lithuanian and
Slovene authorities have led to the temporary suspension
of certain operators from the possibility to export dairy
products, the validity of the import licences issued in
January and July 2002 under quota No 09.4554 in the
case of Lithuania, and the import licences issued in July
2002 under quota No 09.4086 in the case of Slovenia,
should be extended to 30 June 2003.

(4)

(5)

(6)

Prior to carrying out imports originating in Latvia under
quota No 09.4549 as provided for in Council Regulation
(EC) No 1362/2002 of 22 July 2002 establishing conces-
sions in the form of Community tariff quotas for certain
agricultural products and providing for an adjustment,
as an autonomous and transitional measure, of certain
agricultural concessions provided for
in the Europe
Agreement with Latvia (12),
importers holding licences
issued for the second six months of 2002 carried out
representative tests on the milk powder. It was discov-
ered that all available stocks of milk powder in that
country were contaminated with chloramphenicol and
that the exporting firms concerned were no longer able
to deliver the quantities for which contracts had been
concluded before the end of the period of validity of the
licences.

The validity of the import licences issued in July 2002
under quota No 09.4549 for imports originating in
Latvia should therefore be extended to 30 June 2003.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
accordance with the opinion of
the Management
Committee for Milk and Milk Products,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

1.
Notwithstanding Article 16(3) of Regulation (EC) No
2535/2001, the term of validity of the import licences issued
during the first and second six months of 2002 for imports
from Lithuania of products covered by quota No 09.4554,
listed in Annex I.B.9 to that Regulation, shall expire on 30 June
2003.

(12) OJ L 198, 27.7.2002, p. 13.

L 64/12

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

7.3.2003

Notwithstanding Article 16(3) of Regulation (EC) No
2.
2535/2001, the term of validity of the import licences issued
during the second six months of 2002 for imports from Latvia
of products covered by quota No 09.4549,
listed in Annex
I.B.8 to that Regulation, shall expire on 30 June 2003.

Slovenia of products covered by quota No 09.4086, listed in
Annex I.B.10 to that Regulation, shall expire on 30 June 2003.

Article 2

3.
Notwithstanding Article 16(3) of Regulation (EC) No
2535/2001, the term of validity of the import licences issued
during the second six months of 2002 for imports from

This Regulation shall enter
into force on the third day
following its publication in the Official Journal of the European
Union.

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

Done at Brussels, 6 March 2003.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission