CELEX: C1997/318/58
Language: en
Date: 1997-10-18 00:00:00
Title: Action brought on 5 August 1997 by the Comité Européen des Fabricants de Sucre against the Council of the European Union (Case T-229/97)

C 318/30             EN                   Official Journal of the European Communities                                    18 . 10 . 97
infringements not duly found to exist. In the applicant's            applicant, or where there is no national representative
view, the length of the administrative proceeding, which             organization, challenges the Council decision, set out in
could be regarded as a lack of reasonable diligence, should          Regulation ( EC ) No 1188/97, to recognize Italy as a
be considered to be a mitigating factor.                             deficit area and to fix a derived intervention price for
                                                                     white sugar produced in Italy.
Finally, the applicant pleads misapplication of Article 3 ( 1 )
of Regulation No 17 which confers on the Commission                  Owing to the fact that the derived intervention price for
only the power to prohibit abuses found to exist. The                the marketing year 1997/98 should have been fixed before
Commission may order them not to continue, as it does,               1 August 1996 , whereas the contested regulation fixed the
and not to be repeated, as it likewise does . That Article           price on the 25 June 1997, the applicant submits that the
provides no legal basis, however, for prohibiting, by way            said Regulation was adopted with unreasonable delay.
of anticipation, abuses other than the ones formally found.          Sugar manufacturers have the right to be informed in
                                                                     good time of the price at which they may sell to the
                                                                     intervention agencies the sugar produced within the quota
                                                                     and the minimum price to be paid to beet producers .
                                                                     Furthermore, the Council did not state any reasons
Action brought on 5 August 1997 by the Comite                        justifying the decision to regard Italy as a deficit area and,
Europeen des Fabricants de Sucre against the Council of              consequently, the adoption of a derived intervention price .
                    the European Union
                       ( Case T-229/97 )
                                                                     Finally, the applicant claims that the treatment of Italy as
                         ( 97/C 318/58 )                             a deficit area, when it is not, has a negative impact on the
                                                                     European industry and on the common organization of
                                                                     the market in sugar and constitutes a breach of the
               (Language of the case: English)                       principles of non-discrimination and of Community
                                                                     preference .
An action against the Council of the European Union was
brought before the Court of First Instance of the European
Communities on 5 August 1997 by the Comite Europeen
des Fabricants de Sucre, represented by Bernard O'Connor
and Bonifacio Garcia Porras, with an address for service
in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Arsene Kronshagen,
22, Rue Marie Adelaide .                                             Action brought on 5 August 1997 by Comafrica SpA
                                                                     and Dole Fresh Fruit Europe Ltd & Co. against the
                                                                               Commission of the European Communities
The applicant claims that the Court should:                                                  ( Case T-230/97 )
                                                                                               ( 97/C 318/59 )
— pursuant to Articles 173 and 174 of the EC Treaty,
     declare void Article 1 ( f) of Regulation ( EC ) No 1188/
     97 of 25 June 1997 in so far as it affects the applicant                         (Language of the case: English)
     and the European sugar manufacturers; alternatively,
     declare the said provision of the regulation void erga
     omnes,
                                                                     An action against the Commission of the European
                                                                     Communities was brought before the Court of First
                                                                     Instance of the European Communities on 5 August 1997
— request the Council to hand over all impugned                       by Comafrica SpA and Dole Fresh Fruit Europe Ltd &c
     documents, information and methods at its disposal               Co ., represented by Bernard O'Connor, assisted by
     for the adoption of the Regulation, with regard to the           Bonifacio Garcia Porras, with an address for service in
     decision to consider Italy a deficit area;                       Luxembourg at the Chambers of Arsene Kronshagen, 22,
                                                                      rue Marie Adelaide .
 — make any additional orders which the Court considers
     necessary, and                                                   The applicants claim that the Court should :
 — order the Council to pay the costs of the proceedings .            — pursuant to Articles 173 and 174 EC, declare void
                                                                           Commission Regulation ( EC ) No 1155/97 in so far as
 Pleas in law and main arguments adduced in support:                       it affects the applicants, or, in the alternative declare
                                                                           the said Regulation void erga omnes, on the basis that
                                                                           the Commission has acted in breach of Article 40 ( 3 )
 The applicant, an international association made up of                    of the EC Treaty and contrary to the case-law of the
 national organizations of sugar manufacturers, as well as                 Court of Justice and denied the applicants their
 individual sugar companies, where their national                          fundamental rights to property and to pursue a
 representative organization is not a member of the                        professional trade or activity,