The Organic Production (Organic Indications) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020

Statutory Instruments

2020 No. 1669

Exiting The European Union

Agriculture

The Organic Production (Organic Indications) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020

Approved by both Houses of Parliament

Made

at 11.07 p.m. on 31st December 2020

Laid before Parliament -

5th January 2021

Coming into force

1st January 2021

The Secretary of State makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 8(1) of, and paragraph 21 of Schedule 7 to, the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018(1).

The Secretary of State is of the opinion that, by reason of urgency, it is necessary to make these Regulations without a draft of the instrument being laid before, and approved by a resolution of, each House of Parliament.

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Organic Production (Organic Indications) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 and come into force on the day after the day on which they are made.

Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products

2.—(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products is amended as follows.

(2) In Article 24(1)—

(a) for points (b) and (c) substitute—

“(b) any UK organic logo as required by the appropriate authority in accordance with Article 25(3) must also appear on the packaging;

(c) an indication of the place where the agricultural raw materials of which the product is composed have been farmed must also appear on the packaging and must take one of the following forms, as appropriate—

(i) ‘UK Agriculture’, where the agricultural raw material has been farmed in the United Kingdom;

(ii) ‘non-UK Agriculture’, where the agricultural raw material has been farmed in third countries;

(iii) ‘UK/non-UK Agriculture’, where a part of the agricultural raw materials has been farmed in the United Kingdom and a part of it has been farmed in a third country.”;

(b) for “‘EU’ or ‘non-EU’”, in each place it appears, substitute “‘UK’ or ‘non-UK’”;

(c) for the final subparagraph substitute—

“The indication referred to in the first subparagraph is optional for products moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain and products imported from third countries.”.

(3) In Article 25—

(a) omit paragraph 1;

(b) for paragraph 2 substitute—

“2.   In addition to any UK organic logo which the appropriate authority may require to appear on the packaging of organic products in accordance with this Article and Article 24, private and national logos may be used in the labelling, presentation and advertising of products which satisfy the requirements set out in this Regulation.”.

Victoria Prentis

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

At 11.07 p.m. on 31st December 2020

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations are made in exercise of the powers conferred by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (c. 16) in order to address failures of retained EU law to operate effectively and other deficiencies (in particular under section 8(2)(a) and (g) of that Act) arising from the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union.

These Regulations make amendments to retained direct EU legislation relating to organic products.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private or voluntary sector is foreseen.

(1)

2018 c.16, amended by the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 (c.1).