CELEX: C2004/228/08
Language: en
Date: 2004-09-11 00:00:00
Title: Judgment of the Court (Second Chamber) 15 July 2004 in Case C-239/02 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Rechtbank van Koophandel, Hasselt): Douwe Egberts NV v Westrom Pharma NV and Others (Approximation of laws — Interpretation of Article 28 EC and of Directives 1999/4/EC and 2000/13/EC — Validity of Directive 1999/4/EC — Labelling and advertising of foodstuffs — Prohibitions of references to health)

11.9.2004   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 228/4
            
         
      JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
   
   (Second Chamber)
   15 July 2004
   in Case C-239/02 (reference for a preliminary ruling from the Rechtbank van Koophandel, Hasselt): Douwe Egberts NV v Westrom Pharma NV and Others (1)
   
   (Approximation of laws - Interpretation of Article 28 EC and of Directives 1999/4/EC and 2000/13/EC - Validity of Directive 1999/4/EC - Labelling and advertising of foodstuffs - Prohibitions of references to health)
   (2004/C 228/08)
   Language of the case: Dutch
   In Case C-239/02: reference to the Court under Article 234 EC from the Rechtbank van Koophandel, Hasselt (Belgium) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending before that court between Douwe Egberts NV and Westrom Pharma NV, Christophe Souranis, carrying on business under the commerical name of ‘Etablissements FICS’, and between Douwe Egberts NV and FICS-World BVBA — on the interpretation of Article 28 EC, on the interpretation and validity of Article 2 of Directive 1999/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 February 1999 relating to coffee extracts and chicory extracts (OJ 1999 L 66, p. 26), and on the interpretation of Article 18 of Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 March 2000 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs (OJ 2000 L 109, p. 29) — the Court (Second Chamber), composed of: C.W.A. Timmermans, President of the Second Chamber, J-.P. Puissochet, J.N. Cunha Rodrigues (Rapporteur), R. Schintgen and N. Colneric, Judges; L.A. Geelhoed, Advocate General; M.-F. Contet, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment on 15 July 2004, in which it has ruled:
   
               1)
            
            
               Article 2 of Directive 1999/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 February 1999 relating to coffee extracts and chicory extracts must be interpreted as meaning that, when products mentioned in the annex to that directive are marketed, other names, such as invented or trade names, are not precluded from being used alongside the product names.
            
         
               2)
            
            
               Article 18(1) and (2) of Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 March 2000 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs must be interpreted as precluding national legislation, such as that at issue, which prohibits references to ‘slimming’ and to ‘medical recommendations, attestations, declarations or statements of approval’ in the labelling and presentation of foodstuffs.
            
         
               3)
            
            
               Articles 28 EC and 30 EC must be interpreted as precluding national legislation which prohibits references in the advertising of foodstuffs imported from other Member States to ‘slimming’ and to ‘medical recommendations, attestations, declarations or statements of approval’.
            
         
      (1)  OJ C 202 of 24.8.2002.