Council Directive 73/241/EEC of 24 July 1973 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to cocoa and chocolate products intended for human consumption
Official Journal L 228 , 16/08/1973 P. 0023 - 0035
Finnish special edition: Chapter 13 Volume 3 P. 0153
Greek special edition: Chapter 03 Volume 9 P. 0224
Swedish special edition: Chapter 13 Volume 3 P. 0153
Spanish special edition: Chapter 13 Volume 3 P. 0026
Portuguese special edition Chapter 13 Volume 3 P. 0026
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COUNCIL DIRECTIVE
OF 24 JULY 1973
ON THE APPROXIMATION OF THE LAWS OF THE MEMBER STATES RELATING TO COCOA AND CHOCOLATE PRODUCTS INTENDED FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION
( 73/241/EEC )
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES ,
HAVING REGARD TO THE TREATY ESTABLISHING THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY , AND IN PARTICULAR ARTICLES 100 AND 227 THEREOF ;
HAVING REGARD TO THE PROPOSAL FROM THE COMMISSION ;
HAVING REGARD TO THE OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ;
HAVING REGARD TO THE OPINION OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE ;
WHEREAS NATIONAL LAWS RESERVE CERTAIN NAMES FOR VARIOUS PRODUCTS DERIVED FROM COCOA AND DEFINE THEIR COMPOSITION AND MANUFACTURING SPECIFICATIONS , AND WHEREAS THEY PRESCRIBE THE USE OF THESE NAMES IN THE MARKETING OF THESE PRODUCTS ;
WHEREAS PACKAGING IS ALSO SUBJECT TO MANDATORY PROVISIONS IN CERTAIN MEMBER STATES ;
WHEREAS THE EXISTING DIFFERENCES BETWEEN NATIONAL LAWS HINDER THE FREE MOVEMENT OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF COCOA AND CHOCOLATE PRODUCTS AND MAY IMPOSE CONDITIONS OF UNFAIR COMPETITION ON UNDERTAKINGS , THEREBY DIRECTLY AFFECTING THE ESTABLISHMENT OR FUNCTIONING OF THE COMMON MARKET ;
WHEREAS , THEREFORE , IT IS NECESSARY TO APPROXIMATE THE PROVISIONS RELATING TO THESE PRODUCTS AND TO LAY DOWN DEFINITIONS AND COMMON RULES IN RESPECT OF THE COMPOSITION , MANUFACTURING SPECIFICATIONS , PACKAGING AND LABELLING OF THESE PRODUCTS IN ORDER TO ENSURE THEIR FREE MOVEMENT ;
WHEREAS , HOWEVER , IT IS NOT POSSIBLE IN THIS DIRECTIVE TO HARMONIZE ALL THOSE PROVISIONS APPLYING TO FOODSTUFFS WHICH MAY IMPEDE TRADE IN COCOA AND CHOCOLATE PRODUCTS , ALTHOUGH OBSTACLES THAT PERSIST BECAUSE OF THIS ARE BOUND TO DECREASE AS NATIONAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO FOODSTUFFS ARE INCREASINGLY HARMONIZED ;
WHEREAS IN ORDER TO PROTECT CONSUMERS IN CERTAIN MEMBER STATES , THE DESCRIPTION " HALBBITTER " IS APPLIED TO CHOCOLATE CHARACTERIZED BY A HIGH MINIMUM CONTENT OF CERTAIN INGREDIENTS ; WHEREAS THIS DESCRIPTION IS NOT SUITABLE FOR USE IN THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE ; WHEREAS THEREFORE IT SEEMS THAT PROVISION SHOULD BE MADE THAT THIS DESCRIPTION BE RESERVED FOR A PERIOD OF THREE YEARS FOR CHOCOLATE HAVING A PARTICULARLY HIGH MINIMUM CONTENT OF DRY COCOA SOLIDS ;
WHEREAS THE USE OF VEGETABLE FATS OTHER THAN COCOA-BUTTER IN CHOCOLATE PRODUCTS IS PERMITTED IN CERTAIN MEMBER STATES , AND EXTENSIVE USE IS MADE OF THIS FACILITY ; WHEREAS , HOWEVER , A DECISION RELATING TO THE POSSIBILITIES AND FORMS OF ANY EXTENSION OF THE USE OF THESE FATS IN THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE CANNOT BE TAKEN AT THE PRESENT TIME , AS THE ECONOMIC