Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 29 April 2004 in Case C-150/00: Commission of the European Communities v Republic of Austria (Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Articles 28 and 30 EC — Directive 65/65/EEC — Food preparations containing vitamins A, D or K or minerals in the chromate group or containing more than once the daily amount of other vitamins or minerals — Preparations lawfully marketed as food supplements in the Member State of exportation — Preparations classified as medicinal products in the Member State of importation — “Medicinal product” — Obstacle — Justification — Public health — Proportionality)
Date: 2004-04-30
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: Austria, European Commission, action for failure to fulfil an obligation, medicinal product, public health, vitamin

30.4.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 118/3

1. Dismisses the appeal;

2. Orders the Commission of the European Communities to pay the

costs of the appeal.

(1) OJ C 79 of 18.3.2000

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Sixth Chamber)

of 29 April 2004

in Case C-150/00: Commission of the European Commu-
nities v Republic of Austria (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Articles
28 and 30 EC — Directive 65/65/EEC — Food preparations
containing vitamins A, D or K or minerals in the chromate
group or containing more than once the daily amount of
other vitamins or minerals — Preparations lawfully marketed
as food supplements in the Member State of exportation —
Preparations classified as medicinal products in the Member
State of importation — “Medicinal product” — Obstacle —
Justification — Public health — Proportionality)

(2004/C 118/05)

(Language of the case: German)

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published in
the European Court Reports)

In Case C-150/00: Commission of the European Communities
(Agent: J. C. Schieferer), with an address for service in Luxem-
bourg v Republic of Austria (Agents:
initially H. Dossi and
subsequently C. Pesendorfer), with an address for service in
Luxembourg, supported by the Kingdom of Denmark (Agent: J.
Molde), with an address for service in Luxembourg, and by the
Republic of Finland (Agents: T. Pynnä and E. Bygglin), with an
address for service in Luxembourg — application for a declara-
tion that by classifying vitamin and mineral based preparations
as medicinal products where the quantity of vitamin compound
exceeds the simple daily amount, and, more generally, where
those preparations contain vitamins A, D or K or minerals in
the chromate group, without stating that the higher amount of
vitamins or their vitamin or mineral content poses a serious
health risk, the Republic of Austria has failed to fulfil its obliga-
tions under Article 28 EC — the Court
(Sixth Chamber),
composed of: V. Skouris, acting as President of the Chamber, C.
Gulmann, J.N. Cunha Rodrigues, F. Macken (Rapporteur) and
N. Colneric,
Judges; L.A. Geelhoed, Advocate General; M.-F.
Contet, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a
judgment on 29 April 2004, in which it:

1. Declares that, by automatically classifying as medicinal products
vitamin preparations or preparations containing minerals lawfully
manufactured or marketed as
food supplements in the other
Member States if they contain either more vitamins, other than
vitamins A, C, D or K, or minerals, other than those in the chro-
mate group, than the simple daily amount of those nutrients, or
vitamins A, D or K, regardless of content, the Republic of Austria
has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 28 EC;

2. Dismisses the remainder of the action;

3. Orders the Republic of Austria to pay the costs;

4. Orders the Kingdom of Denmark and the Republic of Finland to

bear their own costs.

(1) OJ C 163 of 10.6.2000.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Sixth Chamber)

of 29 April 2004

in Case C-277/00: Federal Republic of Germany v Commis-
sion of the European Communities (1)

for

annulment — State

aid — Decision
(Action
2000/567/EC — Aid granted by the Federal Republic of
Germany to System Microelectronic Innovation GmbH of
Frankfurt an der Oder (Brandenburg) — Article 88(2) EC —
Right to be heard — Compatibility with the common market
— Article 87(1) EC — Recovery of illegal aid — Recovery
from undertakings other than the original beneficiary)

(2004/C 118/06)

(Language of the case: German)

(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published in
the European Court Reports)

In Case C-277/00: Federal Republic of Germany (Agents: W.-D.
Plessing and M. Schütte) v Commission of
the European
Communities (Agents: K.-D. Borchardt and V. Di Bucci), with
an address for service in Luxembourg, – application for annul-
ment of Commission Decision 2000/567/EC of 11 April 2000
on State aid granted by Germany to System Microelectronic
Innovation GmbH of Frankfurt an der Oder (Brandenburg) (OJ
2000 L 238, p. 50) – the Court (Sixth Chamber), composed of:
V. Skouris (Rapporteur), acting as President of
the Sixth
Chamber, C. Gulmann, J.-P. Puissochet, R. Schintgen and N.
Colneric, Judges; A. Tizzano, Advocate General; M.-F. Contet,
Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, gave a judgment on
29 April 2004, the operative part of which is as follows: