The Marketing of Fresh Horticultural Produce Regulations 2009

PART 1 Introduction

Title, commencement, extent and application

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Marketing of Fresh Horticultural Produce Regulations 2009 and come into force on 1st July 2009.

(2) Regulations 1(1) and (2), 2(1) and (3), 3(1) and (2) extend to the United Kingdom.

(3) Otherwise, these Regulations apply in relation to England only.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“Commission Regulation 1580/2007” means Commission Regulation (EC) No 1580/2007 laying down implementing rules of Council Regulations (EC) No 2200/96, (EC) No 2201/96 and (EC) No 1182/2007 in the fruit and vegetable sector(1) as amended from time to time.

(2) In these Regulations—

“authorised officer” means an officer appointed by the Secretary of State in accordance with regulation 3(5) of these Regulations;

“Community marketing rules” means the general marketing standard and the specific marketing standards covering fresh fruit and vegetables listed in Part IX of Annex I to Council Regulation 1234/2007, and includes the rules relating to those standards contained in Articles 113 and 113a of Council Regulation 1234/2007 and Title II of Commission Regulation 1580/2007;

“container” includes any basket, pail, tray, package or receptacle of any kind, whether open or closed;

“controlled” in relation to horticultural produce, means that the power conferred by regulation 12(1) (stop notice) has been exercised in relation to it and that the stop notice is for the time being in force;

“Council Regulation 1234/2007” means Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 establishing a common organisation of agricultural markets and on specific provisions for certain agricultural products (Single CMO Regulation)(2) as amended from time to time;

“general marketing standard” means the requirements of Article 113a(1) of Regulation 1234/2007 as detailed in Article 2a(1) and Part A of Annex I to Commission Regulation 1580/2007;

“horticultural produce” means fruit and vegetables listed in Part IX of Annex I to Council Regulation 1234/2007 to which Community marketing rules apply;

“label” includes any device for conveying information by written characters or other symbols, and any characters or symbols stamped or otherwise placed directly on to any horticultural produce or container, and references to the affixing of a label are construed accordingly;

“labelling defect label” has the meaning given in regulation 11;

“out-graded label” has the meaning given in regulation 10;

“premises” includes any place, vehicle or trailer, stall, vessel, container, moveable structure, aircraft, or hovercraft;

“re-graded label” has the meaning given in regulation 9;

“specific marketing standards” means the marketing standards provided for under Article 113(1)(b) of Council Regulation 1234/2007 as detailed in Article 2a(2) and Part B of Annex I to Commission Regulation 1580/2007(3), and “specific marketing standard” means one of those specific marketing standards;

“stop notice label” has the meaning given in regulation 13.

(3) Unless otherwise provided in this regulation, terms used in these Regulations have the same meaning as they have in Council Regulation 1234/2007 and Commission Regulation 1580/2007.

Designations, provision of information, and appointment of authorised officers

3.—(1) The Secretary of State is designated as the coordinating authority for the United Kingdom under Article 8(1)(a) of Commission Regulation 1580/2007.

(2) In the capacity of coordinating authority for the United Kingdom, and for the purposes of fulfilling the obligations on coordinating authorities contained in the Community marketing rules, the Secretary of State may, without prejudice to disclosure pursuant to an order of a court or pursuant to a rule of law,—

(a) provide information to—

(i) the coordinating authorities of other member States designated under Article 8(1)(a) of Commission Regulation 1580/2007;

(ii) the inspection bodies in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales designated under Article 8(1)(b) of Commission Regulation 1580/2007;

(iii) the inspection bodies of other member States designated under Article 8(1)(b) of Commission Regulation 1580/2007;

(iv) the official authorities and inspection bodies of third countries;

(v) the European Commission;

(b) require the inspection bodies designated under Article 8(1)(b) of Commission Regulation 1580/2007 in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales—

(i) to provide any information which the Secretary of State has reasonable cause to believe those bodies are able to give including, but not limited to, information relating to the trader database required pursuant to Article 9 of Commission Regulation 1580/2007, information relating to the inspection and risk analysis systems referred to in Chapter II of Title II of that Regulation and information relating to the results of inspections made by the relevant inspection body;

(ii) to provide any requested information which is in computerised form in a legible form.

(3) The Secretary of State is designated as the inspection body for England under Article 8(1)(b) of Commission Regulation 1580/2007.

(4) In the capacity of inspection body for England and for the purposes of fulfilling the obligations on inspection bodies contained in the Community marketing rules and for the enforcement of these Regulations, the Secretary of State may provide information to those mentioned in paragraph (2)(a)(i) to (v).

(5) In the capacity of inspection body for England, the Secretary of State may appoint officers for the purposes of the enforcement of these Regulations, in these Regulations referred to as authorised officers.

(1)

OJ No L 350, 31.12.2007, p 1, last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 313/2009 (OJ No L 98, 17.4.2009, p 24).

(2)

OJ No L 299, 16.11.2007, p 1, last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 183/2009 (OJ No L 63, 7.3.2009, p 9).

(3)

Part B of Annex I to Commission Regulation 1580/2007 contains specific marketing standards for the following products: apples, citrus fruit, kiwifruit, lettuces, curled leaved and broad-leaved endives, peaches and nectarines, pears, strawberries, sweet peppers, table grapes and tomatoes.