QWAYS

New legislation  (834/ 2007)

On 1 January 2009 new EU regulations went into effect for the production, control and labelling of organic products. However, some of the new provisions on labelling do not take effect until 1 July 2010.

In June 2007 the European Council of Agricultural Ministers agreed to a new Council Regulation (834/ 2007)  on organic production and labelling of organic products. This new Council Regulation contains clearly defined goals, principles and general rules for organic production.

Specifics of EU organic legislation

In addition to a new Council Regulation, two new Commission Regulations were adopted in 2008 regulating organic production, the import and distribution of organic products as well as their labelling.

Council Regulation

Council Regulation (EC) No. 834/2007 of 28 June 2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products and repealing Regulation (EEC) No. 2092/91

This regulation establishes the legal framework for all levels of production, distribution, control and labelling of organic products which may be offered and traded in the EU. It determines the continued development of organic production through the provision of clearly defined goals and principles. General production, control and labelling guidelines were established by the Council Regulation and can therefore only be changed by the European Council of Agricultural Ministers. The previous Regulation (EEC) No. 2092/91 is simultaneously repealed.

The new labelling regulations in connection with the obligatory use of the EU organic logo were postponed until 1 July 2010 by an amendment to the Council Regulation.

Area of applicability

The Council Regulation applies to the following agricultural products, including aquaculture and yeast:

    * Living or unprocessed products
    * Processed foods
    * Animal feed
    * Seeds and propagating material

Collection of wild plants and seaweed is also included in the scope of this Regulation

Not included in its scope:

    * Products from hunting and fishing of wild animals.

Commission Regulations

The following Commission Regulations have been adopted thus far:

    * Commission Regulation (EC) No. 889/2008 of 5 September 2008 with detailed rules on production, labelling and control including its first amendment on production rules for organic yeast First amending Regulation, establishing new production rules for the production of organic yeast.
    * Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1235/2008 of 8 December 2008 with detailed rules concerning import of organic products from third countries

In Commission Regulation (EC) No. 889/2008 all levels of plant and animal production are regulated, from the cultivation of land and keeping of animals to the processing and distribution of organic foods and their control. They go into great technical detail and are, for the most part, an extension of the original organic Regulation, except where this was regulated differently in the Council Regulation.

Multiple Annexes are attached to the Commission Regulation. Within these one can find the following:

    * Products permitted in organic farming, such as fertilisers, soil ameliorants and pesticides
    * Minimum requirements on the size of housing and exercise areas including pastures for organic livestock, depending on animal species and development stage.
    * Non-organic animal feed, feed additives and processing aids for the production of compound feed and premixtures permitted in organic farming.
    * Non-organic ingredients, additives and processing aids permitted in organic food production (including yeast production).
    * Requirements on the Community logo.

These Annexes and other parts of this Commission Regulation can be supplemented by the Commission so as to keep them up to date in regard to continuing developments in technology, science and the organic market.

New import regulations
The usual bilateral recognition of third countries by the Commission in cooperation with the Member States shall be maintained. In doing so, the Commission, with the support of the Member States, supervises the production and control of organic products which must be aligned with the goals and principles of organic legislation, but do not have to be exactly the same. A list of recognised third countries can be found in Annex III of the Import Regulation.

The new import regulations ensure that organic products can be imported from third countries which have not yet attained bilateral recognition.

Products that are produced and controlled in precisely the same manner as in the EU should in future also have free access to the common market. Control bodies that intend to undertake such controls must apply to the EU Commission and be authorised by the Commission and the Member States for this purpose. Their supervision is directly incumbent on the Commission in cooperation with the Member States.

However, since production conditions in third countries are usually very different from those in Europe, it is often not possible to apply exactly the same rules for production or control . Therefore it must also be possible to allow similar rules that conform in principle with the goals and principles of the organic legislation.

Previously this had to be checked by the Member States for each individual product in an import authorisation procedure. This complicated system will now be replaced by a simpler system. In future, control bodies approved for this purpose will be able to carry out this inspection in situ. These control bodies must also be directly approved for this purpose by the EU Commission and the Member States and remain under their direct supervision.

Guidelines have been published that explain how control bodies can apply to get approved, how they should be supervised and which other measures are necessary in relation to imports of organic products and their control.

In future, the new import regulations will facilitate organic imports into the EU on the whole whilst at the same time promoting better monitoring, thus counteracting deception and fraud.

Logo

All products that bear the EU organic logo have been produced in accordance with the EU Regulation on organic farming. They therefore promote the trust of consumers regarding the origin and quality of their foods and beverages.

It is currently optional for organic producers to label their products with the EU organic logo. Starting on 1 July 2010, however, use of the logo is mandatory. An advantage of the EU organic logo is the fact that consumers in all Member States can more easily recognise organic products, regardless of their origin.

The logo can be downloaded in all image formats.

Greek versions of the new regulations and theis  are available: Here