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Organic farming: organic production and labelling of the products

2010/0364(COD)

The European Parliament adopted by 629 votes to 25, with 34 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Regulation (EC) No 834/2007 on organic production and labelling of organic products.

Parliament’s position adopted at first reading, under the ordinary legislative procedure, amends the Commission proposal as follows:

Delegated and implementing powers of the Commission: the amendments introduced by the MEPs aim to take into account:

  • the "Common Understanding" on practical arrangements for the use of delegated acts (Article 290 TFUE) to be formally agreed on by the Council and the Parliament;
  • the "Regulation on implementing powers" (Regulation (EC) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and the Council laying down the rules and general principles concerning mechanisms for control by Member States of the Commission's exercise of implementing powers).

The power to adopt the delegated acts is conferred on the Commission subject to certain conditions. The delegation of power shall be conferred on the Commission for a period of five years from the date of entry into force of this Regulation. A delegated act shall enter into force only if no objection has been expressed either by the Parliament or the Council within a period of two months of notification of that act to the European Parliament and the Council. That period shall be extended by two months at the initiative of the European Parliament or the Council.

Implementing powers for urgent reasons: on duly justified imperative grounds of urgency, relating to the withdrawal of the recognition of the control authorities and control bodies in cases of irregularities or infringements of the provisions set out in this Regulation or relating to the withdrawal of the recognition of third countries whose system of production no longer complies with principles and production rules equivalent to those laid down in the Regulation or whose control measures are no longer of equivalent effectiveness to those laid down in the same Regulation, the Commission shall adopt immediately applicable implementing acts.

Administrative burden: the resolution stresses that the process of alignment to the Treaty of Lisbon should seek to achieve the aim of simplifying all Union legislation enacted for the sector, with a view to relieving organic farmers of the burden of unnecessary red tape.