Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a Council Directive amending Directive 87/328/EEC as regards the storage of semen of bovine animals intended for intra-Community trade’(COM(2004) 563 final — 2004/0188 CNS)
Date: 2004-12-15
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: animal breeding, cattle, health control, intra-EU trade, storage

C 157/74

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

28.6.2005

Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a Council Directive
amending Directive 87/328/EEC as regards the storage of semen of bovine animals intended for
intra-Community trade’

(COM(2004) 563 final — 2004/0188 CNS)

(2005/C 157/12)

On 20 September 2004 the Council decided to consult the European Economic and Social Committee,
under Article 37 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the abovementioned 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 16 November 2004. The rapporteur was Mr
Leif E. Nielsen.

At its 413th plenary session, held on 15 and 16 December 2004 (meeting of 15 December), the European
Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion with 139 votes in favour and seven absten-
tions.

1. Gist of the Commission proposal

Council Directive 88/407/EEC lays down a series of
1.1
animal health requirements applicable to intra-Community
trade in and imports of bovine semen of pure-bred breeding
animals. In spite of the EESC opinion, which expressed grave
reservations on the subject, the directive was amended in 2003
to allow semen to be stored not only in ‘semen collection
centres’ with own production but also in ‘semen storage
centres’ without own production. (1)

1.2
‘In order to avoid any confusion with the scope and
definitions’, the Commission is now proposing to amend the
analogous rules laid down in Council Directive 87/328/EEC on
the acceptance for breeding purposes of pure-bred breeding
animals, to the effect that, with regard to the collection, proces-
sing and storage of bovine semen, semen storage centres are, in
future, to be placed on a par with semen collection centres.

2. General comments

The Commission should have been alert to the need for
2.1
a consequential change in Directive 87/328/EEC to match the
amendment to Council Directive 88/407/EEC — not least to
ensure the requisite consistency in EU legislation. That could

Brussels, 15 December 2004.

have avoided the present confusion and uncertainty about
scope and definitions and dispensed with the need for the
current additional legislative procedure.

2.2 Moreover,
the proposed re-wording of Article 4 of
Directive 87/328/EEC gives the impression that the scope of
the approved storage centres is to be further widened to
include the collection and processing of bovine semen, thereby
establishing a parallel system of semen collection centres along-
side those that exist at the moment. Given the circumstances,
that would make no sense. Nor is it, on closer reading, what is
actually meant. The amendment should therefore be worded in
a way that does not give rise to misunderstanding.

3. Conclusion

The Committee is aware that, despite its opposition
3.1
back in 2002, approval was given to storage centres for the
distribution of bovine
semen under Council Directive
2003/43/EEC, and accepts that the proposed change, which
should have been introduced at the same time as the 2003
decision,
is needed to secure consistency in EU legislation.
However, the wording may give rise to misunderstanding and
should therefore be clarified.

The President

of European Economic and Social Committee

Anne-Marie SIGMUND

(1) Directive 2003/43/EC, OJ L 143, 11.6.2003, p. 23