Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 9 June 2005 in Case C-270/03: Commission of the European Communities v Italian Republic (Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Environment — Management of waste — Directive 75/442/EEC as amended by Directive 91/156/EEC — Transport and collection of waste — Article 12)
Date: 2005-08-06
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: European Commission, Italy, action for failure to fulfil an obligation, hazardous waste, transport of dangerous goods, waste management

6.8.2005

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 193/5

6. The concept of ‘upper safe levels’ in Article 5(1)(a) of Directive
2002/46 is of no importance for the purposes of drawing a
distinction between medicinal products and foodstuffs.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

(Third Chamber)

of 9 June 2005

7. In the context of an evaluation by a Member State of the risks
that foodstuffs or food supplements may constitute for human
health, the criterion of the existence of a nutritional need in the
population of the Member State may be taken into consideration.
However, the absence of such a need does not in itself suffice to
justify, either under Article 30 EC or under Article 12 of Direc-
tive 2002/46, a complete ban on marketing foodstuffs or food
supplements lawfully manufactured or placed on the market in
another Member State.

in Case C-270/03: Commission of the European Commu-
nities v Italian Republic (1)

(Failure of a Member State to fulfil obligations — Environ-
ment — Management of waste — Directive 75/442/EEC as
amended by Directive 91/156/EEC — Transport and collec-
tion of waste — Article 12)

8. The fact that the discretion enjoyed by the national authorities as
regards the establishment of an absence of nutritional need is
subject to only limited review by the courts is compatible with
Community law, on condition that the national procedure for
judicial review of the decisions in that regard taken by those
authorities enables the court or tribunal seised of an application
for annulment of such a decision effectively to apply the relevant
principles and rules of Community law when reviewing its
legality.

foods and novel

9. Article 1(2) of Regulation (EC) No 258/97 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 1997 concerning
novel
food ingredients is to interpreted as
meaning that a food or a food ingredient has not been used for
human consumption to a significant degree within the Com-
munity if, when all the circumstances of the case are taken into
account, it is established that that food or that food ingredient
has not been consumed in a significant quantity by humans in
any of the Member States before the reference date. 15 May
1997 is the reference date for the purpose of determining the
extent of human consumption of that food or food ingredient.

10. A national court cannot refer questions on the classification of
products to the European Food Safety Authority. An opinion
delivered by that Authority, possibly in a matter forming the
subject-matter of a dispute pending before a national court, may
constitute evidence that that court should take into consideration
in the context of that dispute.

(2005/C 193/07)

(Language of the case: Italian)

In Case C-270/03, Commission of the European Communities
(Agents: L. Visaggio and R. Amorosi) v Italian Republic
(Agents: I.M. Braguglia and M. Fiorilli) brought on 23 June
2003 — failure to fulfil obligations under Article 226 EC —
the Court (Third Chamber), composed of A. Rosas, President of
the Chamber, J. P. Puissochet (Rapporteur), S. von Bahr, J. Male-
novský and U. Lõhmus,
Judges; C. Stix-Hackl, Advocate
General; L. Hewlett, Principal Administrator for the Registrar,
gave a judgment on 9 June 2005, in which it:

1. Declares that, by permitting undertakings,

in accordance with
Article 30(4) of Decree-Law No 22 of 5 February 1997 imple-
menting Directive 91/156/EEC on waste, Directive 91/689/EEC
on hazardous waste and Directive 94/62/EC on packaging and
packaging waste, as amended by Article 1(19) of Law No 426 of
9 December 1998:

— to collect and transport their own non-hazardous waste, as a
normal and regular activity, without being required to be
entered in the Albo nazionale delle imprese esercenti servizi di
smaltimento rifiuti (national register of undertakings carrying
out waste-disposal services) and

— to transport

their own hazardous waste in quantities not
exceeding 30 kg and 30 l per day, without being required to
be entered in that register,

the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article
12 of Council Directive 75/442/EEC of 15 July 1975 on waste,
as amended by Council Directive 91/156/EEC of 18 March
1991;

(1) OJ C 200 of 23.08.2003
OJ C 275 of 15.11.1003

2. Orders the Italian Republic to pay the costs.

(1) OJ C 200 of 23.08.2003.