THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to 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(1), and in particular Article 33(2) and Article 38(d) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) Commission Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008(2) has set out a relatively short period for the control bodies and control authorities to send their application for recognition for the purpose of compliance in accordance with Article 32 of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007. As there is no experience with the direct application of Union rules on organic production and labeling of organic products outside the territory of the Union, more time should be given to control bodies and control authorities wishing to request their inclusion in the list for the purpose of compliance.
(2) In accordance with Article 33(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007, Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 has established a list of third countries whose system of production and control measures for organic production of agricultural products are recognised as equivalent to those laid down in Regulation (EC) No 834/2007. In the light of a new application and information received by the Commission from third countries since the last publication of the list, certain modifications should be taken into consideration and the list should be adapted accordingly.
(3) Certain agricultural products imported from Canada are currently marketed in the Union pursuant to the transitional rules provided for in Article 19 of Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008. Canada submitted a request to the Commission to be included in the list provided for in Annex III to that Regulation. It submitted the information required pursuant to Articles 7 and 8 of that Regulation. The examination of this information and consequent discussion with the Canadian authorities have led to the conclusion that in that country the rules governing production and controls of agricultural products are equivalent to those laid down in Regulation (EC) No 834/2007. The Commission has carried out an on-the-spot check of the rules of production and the control measures actually applied in Canada, as provided for in Article 33(2) of Regulation (EC) No 834/2007.
(4) The Costa Rican, Indian, Israeli, Japanese and Tunisian authorities have asked the Commission to include new control and certification bodies and have provided the Commission with the necessary guarantees that they meet the preconditions laid down in Article 8(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008.
(5) The duration of inclusion of Costa Rica and New Zealand in the list provided for in Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 expires on 30 June 2011. In order to avoid trade disruption, there is a need to prolong the inclusion of Costa Rica and New Zealand. In the light of the experience, the inclusion should be prolonged for an unlimited period.
(6) New Zealand transmitted editorial amendments to the relevant specifications provided in Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 following the recent amalgamation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the New Zealand Food Safety Authority.
(7) Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 should therefore be amended accordingly.
(8) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the regulatory Committee on organic production,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 is amended as follows:
in Article 4, ‘31 October 2011’ is replaced by ‘31 October 2014’;
Annex III is amended in accordance with the Annex to this Regulation.
This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 20 June 2011.
For the Commission
The President
José Manuel Barroso
Annex III to Regulation (EC) No 1235/2008 is amended as follows:
after the text relating to Australia, the following text is inserted:
:
live or unprocessed agricultural products and vegetative propagating material and seeds for cultivation;
processed agricultural products for use as food;
feed.
:
products of category 1(a) and organically grown ingredients in products of category 1(b) that have been grown in Canada.
:
Organic Products Regulation.
:
Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), www.inspection.gc.ca
:
Atlantic Certified Organic Cooperative Limited (ACO), www.atlanticcertifiedorganic.ca
British Columbia Association for Regenerative Agriculture (BCARA), www.centifiedorganic.bc.ca
Certification Services Limited Liability Company (CCOF), www.ccof.org
Centre for Systems Integration (CSI), www.csi-ics.com
Consorzio per il Controllo dei Prodotti Biologici Società a responsabilità limitata (CCPB SRL), www.ccpb.it
Control Union Certifications (CUC), www.controlunion.com
Ecocert Canada, www.ecocertcanada.com
Fraser Valley Organic Producers Association (FVOPA), www.fvopa.ca
Global Organic Alliance, www.goa-online.org
International Certification Services Incorporated (ICS), www.ics-intl.com
LETIS SA, www.letis.com.ar
Oregon Tilth Incorporated (OTCO), http://tilth.org
Organic Certifiers, www.organiccertifiers.com
Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA), www.ocia.org/
Organic Producers Association of Manitoba Cooperative Incorporated (OPAM), www.opam-mb.com
Pacific Agricultural Certification Society (PACS), www.pacscertifiedorganic.ca
Pro-Cert Organic Systems Ltd (Pro-Cert), www.ocpro.ca/
Quality Assurance International Incorporated (QAI), www.qai-inc.com
Quality Certification Services (QCS), www.qcsinfo.org
Organisme de Certification Québec Vrai (OCQV), www.quebecvrai.org
SAI Global Certification Services Limited, www.saiglobal.com
:
as at point 5
:
30 June 2014.’;
in point 5 of the text relating to Costa Rica, the following indent is added:
‘Mayacert, www.mayacert.com’;
point 7 of the text relating to Costa Rica is replaced by the following:
:
unspecified.’;
in point 5 of the text relating to India, the following indents are added:
‘Chhattisgarh Certification Society (CGCERT), www.cgcert.com
Tamil Nadu Organic Certification Department (TNOCD), www.tnocd.net
TUV India Pvt. Ltd, www.tuvindia.co.in/0_mngmt_sys_cert/orgcert.htm
Intertek India Pvt. Ltd, www.intertek.com’;
in point 5 of the text relating to Israel, the following indent is added:
‘LAB-PATH Ltd, www.lab-path.co.il’;
in point 5 of the text relating to Japan, the following indents are added:
‘AINOU, www.ainou.or.jp/ainohtm/disclosure/nintei-kouhyou.htm
SGS Japan Incorporation, www.jp.sgs.com/ja/home_jp_v2.htm
Ehime Organic Agricultural Association, www12.ocn.ne.jp/~aiyuken/ninntei20110201.html
Center for Eco-design Certification Co. Ltd, http://www.eco-de.co.jp/list.html
Organic Certification Association, www.yuukinin.jimdo.com
Japan Eco-system Farming Association, www.npo-jefa.com
Hiroshima Environment and Health Association, www.kanhokyo.or.jp/jigyo/jigyo_05A.html
Assistant Center of Certification and Inspection for Sustainability, www.accis.jp
Organic Certification Organization Co. Ltd, www.oco45.net’;
in point 5 of the text relating to Tunisia, the following indent is added:
‘Instituto per la certificazione etica e ambientale (ICEA), www.icea.info’;
in point 2 of the text relating to New Zealand, ‘MAF Food Official Organic Assurance Programme’ is replaced by ‘MAF Official Organic Assurance Programme Technical Rules for Organic Production’;
points 3 to 7 of the text relating to New Zealand are replaced by the following:
:
MAF Official Organic Assurance Programme Technical Rules for Organic Production.
:
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), http://www.foodsafety.govt.nz/industry/sectors/organics/
:
AsureQuality Limited, www.organiccertification.co.nz
BioGro New Zealand, www.biogro.co.nz
:
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF)
:
unspecified.’.