343. Regulation of the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management on mergers in the dairy sector (dairy sector-mergers-regulation-MZV)

On the basis of Section 7 (1) and (2) of the Law on the Market Order 2007 (MOG 2007), BGBl. I n ° 55/2007, as last amended by the Federal Law BGBl. I No 21/2012, shall be arranged:

General provisions

§ 1. This Regulation shall be used for

1.		of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 establishing a common organisation of agricultural markets and on specific provisions for certain agricultural products (Single CMO Regulation), OJ L 327, 31.12.2007, p. No. OJ L 299, 16.11.2007, p. 1 as regards producer organisations, their associations and interbranch organisations in the dairy sector, and
2.		Regulation (EU) No 511/2012 on notifications relating to producer organisations and inter-branch organisations, as well as to contractual negotiations and relations in accordance with Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 in the milk and milk products sector, OJ L 299, 16.11.2007, p. No. OJ L 156, 16.6.2012, p. 39.

Responsibility

§ 2. (1) The "Agrarmarkt Austria" (AMA) shall be responsible for the enforcement of this Regulation and of the acts referred to in § 1, unless other powers are laid down in paragraph 2.

(2) The Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management is responsible for

1.		the recognition of producer organisations and their associations in the dairy sector in accordance with Article 126a of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007,
2.		the definition of the minimum number of members and the minimum volume of marketable production of producer organisations and their associations in the dairy sector,
3.		the recognition of interbranch organisations in the dairy sector in accordance with Article 126b of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007,
4.		the definition of the minimum level of economic activity of interbranch organisations in the dairy sector,
5.		the withdrawal of recognition in accordance with Z 1 and 3,
6.		the establishment of binding provisions for the management of the offer in the case of cheese with a protected designation of origin or a protected geographical indication in accordance with Article 126d of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 and
7.		the perception of all reporting and notification obligations to the European Commission in relation to producer organisations, their associations and industry associations in the dairy sector.

Recognition of producer organisations in the dairy sector

§ 3. (1) The recognition as a producer organisation in accordance with Article 126a of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 is only possible on request. Such a request shall be:

1.		the statutes of the producer organisation,
2.		all contracts relating to the establishment and activities of the producer organisation, such as social contracts and contracts with producers and marketers,
3.		the rules laid down by the producer organisation in respect of production and marketing,
4.		a list of members of the producer organisation, where appropriate separately by Member State, specifying the names and registered offices of the members, and the date of the start of membership, and
5.		detailed documentation relating to the annual turnover and the total quantity of the marketable production of the producer organisation, broken down by Member State where appropriate,
.

(2) A producer organisation shall be informed if:

1.		in the case of the producer organisation
a)			a legal person,
b)			a clearly defined part of a legal person (e.g. a company's own business location or branch of production), or
c)			an association of persons with a legal personality which carries out an economic, profit-making activity,
		,
2.		the conditions laid down in the acts referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article are met;
3.		the producer organisation
a)			is made up of at least 20 producers, or
b)			shall market at least 3 000 tonnes of raw milk or raw milk equivalent per calendar year,
		and
4.		the producer organisation shall show that it has the staff and the infrastructure necessary for the performance of its essential tasks, such as:
a)			knowledge of the production of its members,
b)			the commercial and technical processing as well as
c)			central bookkeeping and accounting.

(3) Where a producer organisation is wholly or partly made up of producers who are themselves legal persons or clearly defined parts of a legal person consisting of producers, the minimum number in the meaning of paragraph 2 (3) shall be 3 lit. a is calculated on the basis of the number of producers connected to each of the legal persons or clearly defined parts of a legal person.

(4) The Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management may, in duly substantiated exceptional cases, also recognise a producer organisation, taking into account the regional production and market conditions given, if the conditions set out in paragraph 2 (3) are not met.

(5) The provisions of paragraphs 1 to 4 shall also apply to producer organisations with registered offices in Austria.

Recognition of associations of producer organisations in the dairy sector

§ 4. (1) The recognition as an association of recognised producer organisations in accordance with Article 126a of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 is only possible on request. Such a request shall be:

1.		the Statute of the Association,
2.		all contracts relating to the establishment and activities of the association, such as social contracts,
3.		the rules of association with regard to production and marketing;
4.		a list of members of the association, separated, if appropriate, by Member State, specifying the names and registered offices of the members and the date of commencement of membership, and
5.		detailed documentation relating to the annual turnover and the total quantity of the marketable production of the association, broken down by Member State where appropriate,
.

(2) An association shall be recognised if:

1.		it is the association of
a)			a legal person,
b)			a clearly defined part of a legal person (e.g. a company's own business location or branch of production), or
c)			an association of persons with a legal personality which carries out an economic, profit-making activity,
		,
2.		the conditions laid down in the acts referred to in Article 1 are met; and
3.		the association consists of at least three recognised producer organisations.

(3) The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall also apply to transnational associations based in Austria.

Recognition of industry associations in the dairy sector

§ 5. (1) The recognition as an interbranch organisation in accordance with Art. 126b of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 is only possible upon request. Such a request shall be:

1.		the Articles of Association of the Industry Association,
2.		all contracts relating to the establishment and operation of the sectoral association, such as company contracts,
3.		a list of members of the sectoral association, indicating the names and registered offices of the members, and the date on which the members are to begin; and
4.		detailed documentation concerning the annual turnover and the total quantity of the marketable production of the members of the industry association
.

(2) An industry association shall be recognised if:

1.		the conditions laid down in the acts referred to in Article 1 are met; and
2.		the economic activity of the members of the industry association in the milk and milk products sector accounts for half of the annual turnover of Austrian production, processing or marketing of Austrian products, expressed in euro, exceeds.

(3) Prior to recognition, the Federal Competition Authority may be given the opportunity to deliver an opinion within a reasonable period of time. In any case, the decision on the application for recognition is to be communicated to the Federal Competition Authority in a news-related way.

(4) In order to carry out one or more activities, regional or product-group-specific sub-associations may be set up within an industry association recognised in accordance with paragraph 2 of this Article. These sub-associations shall be accepted if the conditions set out in paragraph 2 for the relevant sub-organisation are met with regard to the regional or product-group-specific component.

Control of the offer in the case of certain cheese

§ 6. Recognised producer organisations, interbranch organisations or groups of producers and processors in accordance with Article 5 (1) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006, OJ L 327, 30.12.2006, p. No. 12., a question pursuant to Article 126d of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 establishing mandatory rules for the management of the offer in the case of cheese with a protected designation of origin or a protected geographical indication with the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management. At the same time, the documents must be submitted for proof of compliance with the requirements.

Notice of duty, reporting obligations, reporting obligations, duty to pay

§ 7. (1) Co-operative, reporting, reporting and duty duties shall apply to recognised producer organisations, associations of producer organisations and interbranch organisations and their members, or Producers (hereinafter referred to as 'associations').

(2) The institutions and the representatives of the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management, the AMA, the Court of Auditors, the European Union and the European Court of Auditors (hereinafter referred to as 'the') are together with the institutions and representatives of the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water (b) to allow the entering of the business, operating and storage rooms during business or operating hours without prior notice. Mergers also have to be included in the bookkeeping. In the case of automated accounting, they shall, at their expense, print out lists of the necessary information and, in so far as it is possible, the relevant books, special records, supporting documents and other documents relating to: To provide information, provide information and provide the necessary assistance.

(3) The Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management shall notify the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management of any changes in facts which have resulted in recognition of the recognition requirements in writing without delay.

(4) Each year, recognised producer organisations shall submit a report to the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management, which shall illustrate the way in which they work. This annual report shall be submitted by 28 February at the latest. It shall contain in particular:

1.		a production statistic from which the total quantity of raw milk produced and marketable in the preceding calendar year by the producers belonging to the producer organisation and products for which the producer organisation is recognised, broken down by Member State, broken down by Member State, and by Member State in the case of transnational producer organisations,
2.		a price statistics showing the average gross sales revenue for each product in the previous calendar year and average prices paid to producers,
3.		in the case of changes in relation to the previous year, a current list of members and
4.		the presentation of any changes relating to the conditions referred to in § 3.

(5) Each year, recognised associations of producer organisations shall submit a report to the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management, which shall illustrate the way in which they work. This annual report shall be submitted by 28 February at the latest. It shall contain in particular:

1.		a production statistic from which the total quantity of raw milk produced and marketable in the previous calendar year by the producers belonging to the association, and products for which the association is recognised, is broken down by the individual products and, in the case of transnational associations of producer organisations, broken down by Member State,
2.		a price statistics showing the average gross sales revenue for each product in the previous calendar year and average prices paid to producers,
3.		in the case of changes in relation to the previous year, a current list of members and
4.		the presentation of any changes relating to the conditions referred to in § 4.

(6) Each year, recognised interbranch organisations shall submit a report to the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Forestry, the Environment and Water Management, which shall illustrate their working methods. This annual report shall be submitted by 28 February at the latest. It shall contain in particular:

1.		a presentation of the measures taken in respect of the products for which the trade association has been recognised, broken down by product,
2.		in the case of changes in relation to the previous year, a current list of members,
3.		the presentation of any changes relating to the conditions referred to in § 5 and
4.		the turnover in each case separately for all stages of the milk chain for the milk concerned and the milk quantities concerned.

Withdrawal and suspension of recognition

§ 8. Recognition must be withdrawn from a recognised producer organisation, an association of producer organisations and an inter-branch organisation if the conditions for recognition are no longer met or if there are serious violations of the principles the legal order has been established. Instead of the withdrawal of recognition, it may be suspended for a certain period of time in order to allow the organization to recapt the conditions for recognition.

Final destination

§ 9. This Regulation shall enter into force with the day following its presentation in the Federal Law Gazans. By way of derogation, § 6 shall enter into force 3. October 2012, in force.

Berlakovich