Commission Regulation (EC) No 1831/2004 of 21 October 2004 amending Commission Regulation (EC) No 930/2000 establishing implementing rules as to the suitability of the denomination of varieties of agricultural plant species and vegetable species
Date: 2004-10-21
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: crop production, designation of origin, intellectual property, plant variety right, product designation

22.10.2004

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Official Journal of the European Union

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COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1831/2004

of 21 October 2004

amending Commission Regulation (EC) No 930/2000 establishing implementing rules as to the
suitability of the denomination of varieties of agricultural plant species and vegetable species

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

(5)

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Council Directive 2002/53/EC of 13 June
2002 on the common catalogue of varieties of agricultural
plant species (1), and in particular Article 9(6) thereof,

Having regard to Council Directive 2002/55/EC of 13 June
2002 on the marketing of vegetable seed (2), and in particular
Article 9(6) thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

Directives 2002/53/EC and 2002/55/EC lay down
general rules in relation to the suitability of variety
denominations, by means of a reference to Article 63
of Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 of 27 July
1994 on Community plant variety rights (3).

Commission Regulation (EC) No 930/2000 (4) established
detailed rules for the application of certain criteria set out
in
by Article 63 of Regulation (EC) No 2100/94,
particular in respect of the impediments to the desig-
nation of a variety denomination.

Due to developments in the area of protection of geogra-
phical
indications and designation of origin for agri-
culture products, as laid down in Council Regulation
(EEC) No 2081/92 (5), and to changes in the proceedings
before the Community Plant Variety Office as laid down
in Commission Regulation (EC) No 1239/95 (6),
the
detailed rules
established by Regulation (EC) No
930/2000 should be updated accordingly.

(4)

Regulation (EC) No 930/2000 should therefore be
amended.

(1) OJ L 193, 20.7.2002, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Regulation
(EC) No 1829/2003 of the European Parliament and of the Council
(OJ L 268, 18.10.2003, p. 1).

(2) OJ L 193, 20.7.2002, p. 33. Directive as last amended by Regulation

(EC) No 1829/2003.

(3) OJ L 227, 1.9.1994, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation

(EC) No 1650/2003 (OJ L 245, 29.9.2003, p. 28).

(4) OJ L 108, 5.5.2000, p. 3.
(5) OJ L 208, 24.7.1992, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 806/2003 (OJ L 122, 16.5.2003, p. 1).

(6) OJ L 121, 1.6.1995, p. 37. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 2181/2002 (OJ L 331, 7.12.2002, p. 14).

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
accordance with
Standing
Committee on Seeds and Propagating Material for Agri-
culture, Horticulture and Forestry,

opinion

the

the

of

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Regulation (EC) No 930/2000 is amended as follows:

1. In Article 2, the following paragraphs are inserted:

In the case of a geographical

‘2.
indication or a desig-
nation of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs as
a prior right of a third party, a variety denomination in the
territory of
the Community shall be considered to be
precluded where the variety denomination would breach
Article 13 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 (*)
indication or the desig-
with respect to the geographical
nation of origin protected in a Member State or in the
Community under Articles 5(5), 6 or the former Article
17 of
that Regulation for goods which are identical or
comparable to the plant variety concerned.

3.
An impediment to the suitability of a denomination
due to a prior right referred to in paragraph 2 may be
the
removed where a written consent of
prior right to the use of the denomination in relation to
the variety has been obtained, provided that
such a
consent is not liable to mislead the public as to the true
origin of the product.

the holder of

___________
(*) OJ L 208, 27.7.1992, p. 1.’

2. In Article 2, point 2 becomes point 4.

3. Article 3(1) is amended as follows:

(a) Point (a) is replaced by the following:

‘(a) where it is in the form of a “fancy name”:

(i)

it consists of a single letter,

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Official Journal of the European Union

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(ii)

forming

series of

letters not

it consists of, or contains as a separate element,
a word
a
pronounceable in an official
the
Community; however, where this series is an
such an established
established abbreviation,
abbreviation shall be limited to a maximum of
two sets of up to three characters each, located
at each end of the denomination,

language of

(iii) it contains a number, except where this is an
integral part of the name, or where this indicates
that the variety is or will be one of a numbered
series of varieties related through their breeding
history,

(iv) it

consists of more
the

than three words or
the wording
flow of

elements, unless
makes it easily recognizable or reproducible,

regarded as confusing. Also, where the different letter
is prominent in a way that makes the denomination
clearly distinct from already registered variety denomi-
nations, it shall not be regarded as confusing. Differences
of two or more letters shall not be regarded as confusing
simply change places. A
except where two letters
difference of one digit between numbers
(where a
number is permissible in a fancy name) is not to be
regarded as confusing.

Without prejudice to Article 6, this provision shall not
apply to a variety denomination in the form of a code, if
the reference variety denomination is equally in the form
of a code. In the case of a code a difference of only one
character,
letter or number shall be deemed to enable
two codes to be satisfactorily distinguished. Blank spaces
are to be ignored when comparing denominations in
code form.’

5. In Article 5, point (b) is deleted.

(v)

it consists of or contains an excessively long
word or element,

6. Article 6 is amended as follows:

(vi) it contains a punctuation mark or other symbol,
an upper and lower case mixture (save where
the first letter is in upper case and the rest of
the denomination in lower case),
subscript,
superscript or a design.’

(a)

In point (e), point (ii) is replaced by the following:

‘(ii) the botanical or common names of species, within
the group either of agricultural plant species or of
vegetable plant species, to which the variety belongs.’

(b) In point (b), point (v) is replaced by the following:

(b) In point (e), point (iii) is deleted.

‘(v)

it contains a punctuation mark or other symbol,
subscript, superscript or a design.’

(c) The following point (f) is added:

4. In Article 4, point (a) is replaced by the following:

‘(f)

it includes a geographical name that would be likely
to deceive the public as to the characteristics or the
value of the variety’.

has

‘(a) “may be confused with” shall be considered to cover inter
alia a variety denomination, containing a difference of
only one letter, or of accents on letters, in relation to the
variety denomination of a variety of a closely related
species, which
for
marketing in the Community, the European Economic
Area or in a contracting party to the International
Convention for
the Protection of New Varieties of
Plants (UPOV), or is the subject of a plant variety right
in such territories. However, a difference of only one
in an established abbreviation as a separate
letter
the varieties denomination shall not be
entity of

accepted

officially

been

Article 2

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

It shall not apply to variety denominations which have been
proposed by the applicant to the competent authority for their
approval before the entry into force of this Regulation.

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

Done at Brussels, 21 October 2004.

For the Commission

David BYRNE
Member of the Commission