S.I. No. 252/1975 - European Communities (Seeds) Regulations, 1975.

I, MARK CLINTON, Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 3 of the European Communities Act, 1972 (No. 27 of 1972), hereby make the following regulations:

1 Short title and commencement.

1. These Regulations may be cited as the European Communities (Seeds) Regulations, 1975, and shall come into operation on the 1st day of November, 1975.

2 Interpretation.

2. (1) In these Regulations—

"cereal seeds" means seed oats, barley or wheat;

"certified seed of the first generation" means cereal seeds which comply with the requirements of Article 2.1.F. of the Directive;

"derogation" means a derogation from the Directive duly authorised by the Minister pursuant to the Directive;

"the Directive" means Council Directive No. 66/402/EEC of 14 June, 1966,¹ as amended by Council Directive No. 69/60/EEC of 18 February, 1969², Council Directive No. 71/162/EEC of 30 March, 1971³, Council Directive No. 72/274/EEC of 20 July, 1972,⁴ Council Directive No. 72/418/EEC of 6 December, 1972,⁵ and Council Directive No. 73/438/EEC of 11 December, 1973;⁶

¹ O.J. No. 125/2309 11 July, 1966.

² O.J. No. L. 48/1 26 February, 1969.

³ O.J. No. L. 87/24 17 April, 1971.

⁴ O.J. No. L. 171/37 29 July, 1972.

⁵ O.J. No. L. 287/22 26 December, 1972.

⁶ O.J. No. L. 356/79 27 December, 1973.

"the Minister" means the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries.

(2) Any reference to market includes a reference to barter, offer or expose for sale and invite to buy, and cognate words shall be construed accordingly;

(3) A word or expression that is used in these Regulations and is also used in the Directive has, unless the contrary intention appears, the meaning in these Regulations that it has in the Directive.

3 Application.

3. These Regulations apply to seeds other than seeds which are shown to the satisfaction of the Minister to be intended for export to a country or territory which is not a Member State.

4 Marketing and Sale.

4. (1) Cereal seeds shall not be marketed as certified seeds of the first generation unless—

( a ) (i) in the case of seeds produced in any of the Member States,

(A) they have been officially certified as certified seeds of the first generation, and

(B) they comply with the conditions prescribed for such seeds in the Directive, or, where pursuant to the Directive the Minister so specifies, with conditions specified by the Minister for such seeds,

(ii) in the case of seeds imported from a third country, they are of a kind accepted by the Minister or the Council of the European Economic Community as being equivalent to certified seeds of the first generation produced in the Community,

and

( b ) (i) they are marketed in homogeneous lots in accordance with the Directive, and in packages which are sealed officially, marked and labelled in accordance with the Directive and which contain, where required by the Directive, a document specified in the Directive,

or

(ii) subject to paragraph (3) (c) of this Regulation, they are marketed in accordance with conditions specified in a derogation.

(2) Cereal seeds shall not be sold as certified seeds of the first generation if the moisture content of the seeds exceeds 16 per cent.

(3) ( a ) The requirements of paragraph (1) of this Regulation as to packaging, sealing and marking shall not apply to cereal seeds which are marketed as certified seeds of the first generation in small quantities to the final consumer in accordance with a derogation.

( b ) The requirements of the said paragraph (1) as to labelling shall not apply to cereal seeds which are marketed as certified seeds of the first generation in small packages in accordance with a derogation.

( c ) The requirements of the said paragraph (1) shall not apply to the following cereal seeds of the first generation which are marketed as such seeds in accordance with a derogation, namely;

(i) cereal seeds intended for tests, scientific purposes or selection work,

and

(ii) cereal seeds whose identity is ensured and which are grown under contract and marketed for processing.

(4) A person who contravenes this Regulation shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £200 or, at the discretion of the Court, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months.

5 Certification

5. (1) The Minister shall be the official authority for the State for the certification of cereal seeds as certified seeds of the first generation.

(2) Cereal seeds which are produced in the State shall be certified pursuant to this Regulation, if, and only if, they comply with both the requirements of the Directive and the requirements specified in paragraph (a) of Regulation 6 of the European Communities (Seeds) Regulations, 1974 ( S.I. No. 200 of 1974 ).

6 Prosecution of offences

6. An offence under these Regulations may be prosecuted by the Minister.

7 Amendment ( S.I. No. 19 of 1973 )

7. The European Communities (Seeds of Perennial Ryegrass and Cereals) Regulations, 1973 ( S.I. No. 19 of 1973 ), are hereby amended by—

( a ) the insertion of ", whether mixed with other seeds or unmixed," after "Perennial ryegrass seeds" in paragraph (1) of Regulation 3, and the said paragraph (1), as so amended, is set out in the Table to this paragraph;

TABLE

"Perennial ryegrass seeds, whether mixed with other seeds or unmixed, shall not be sold unless—

( a ) either—

(i) in the case of seeds produced in a Member State, they have been certified in accordance with the scheduled directives by the Minister or any other official certifying authority of a Member State as pre-basic seeds, basic seeds, certified seeds or commercial seeds and fulfil the conditions specified for such seeds in the scheduled directives, or

(ii) in the case of seeds produced in third countries, they are of a kind accepted by the Minister or the Council of the European Communities as being equivalent to certified pre-basic, basic or certified seeds of Community origin, and

( b ) they are sold—

(i) in homogeneous batches in accordance with the scheduled directives, and

(ii) in packages which are sealed, marked and labelled in accordance with the scheduled directives and which contain on the inside, where required by the directive, an official notice containing markings specified in the directives, and

( c ) they are seeds of—

(i) a variety registered in the National Catalogue of Agricultural Plant Varieties,

(ii) a variety of which a determination under Regulation 3 (4) of the European Communities (National Catalogue of Agricultural Plant Varieties) Regulations, 1972, relates, or

(iii) a variety registered in the Common Catalogue in respect of which no marketing restriction exists under article 15 of the scheduled directive mentioned at reference number 6 in the Schedule to those Regulations".

( b ) the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (1) of Regulation 4 (inserted by Regulation 14 of the European Communities (Seeds) Regulations, 1974 ( S.I. No. 200 of 1974 )):

"(1) Cereal seeds, other than—

( a ) certified basic seeds of wheat, oats, rye, barley or maize, and

( b ) certified seeds of the first generation of wheat, barley or oats,

shall not be sold unless they comply with the requirements indicated in the Schedule to these Regulations.";

and

( c ) the deletion at reference No. 1 of the Schedule, as amended by the said Regulation 14, of the words "(B) Certified Seed, 1st Generation" together with all the entries, other than the entry in the first column, in the Schedule opposite those words.

8 Amendment (S.I. No. 19 of 1973)

8. The powers conferred by Regulation 7 (1) of the European Communities (Seeds of Perennial Ryegrass and Cereals) Regulations, 1973 ( S.I. No. 19 of 1973 ), on an authorised officer within the meaning of those Regulations shall apply with respect to Italian ryegrass seeds and for the purposes of giving effect to the foregoing the reference in the said Regulation 7 (1) to perennial ryegrass seeds shall be construed as including a reference to Italian ryegrass seeds.

9 Amendment (S.I. No. 113 of 1974)

9. The European Communities (Italian Ryegrass Seeds) Regulations, 1974 ( S.I. No. 113 of 1974 ), are hereby amended by the addition of ", whether mixed with other seeds or unmixed" to paragraph (1) of Regulation 3, and the said paragraph (1), as so amended, is set out in the Table to this Regulation.

TABLE

"The like restrictions as, by virtue of the relevant sub-paragraphs, apply with respect to a sale of perennial ryegrass seeds shall apply with respect to a sale of Italian ryegrass seeds, whether mixed with other seeds or unmixed."

10 Amendment (S.I. No. 200 of 1974)

10. The European Communities (Seeds) Regulations, 1974 ( S.I. No. 200 of 1974 .) are hereby amended by the insertion of "or any other premises in which he so believes seeds to be kept, being seeds which he so believes to have been landed or otherwise brought into the State," after "carried on," in paragraph (1) of Regulation 10, and the said paragraph (1), as so amended, is set out in the Table to this Regulation.

TABLE

"An authorised officer may at any reasonable time enter and inspect any premises in which he has reasonable grounds for believing that the business of marketing, or of importing or exporting, seeds which are subject to a scheduled directive is carried on, or any other premises in which he so believes seeds to be kept, being seeds which he so believes to have been landed or otherwise brought into the State, or any railway wagon, vehicle, ship, vessel or aircraft in which he so believes such seeds to be kept, and may examine and take samples and stock of any such seeds which he finds in the course of his inspection."

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 27th day of October, 1975.

MARK CLINTON,

Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

The Regulations—

(1) provide that seeds of the first generation of wheat, barley and oats may not be marketed unless they have been certified, sealed, marked and labelled in accordance with the requirements of the EEC Directives on the marketing of cereal seeds;

(2) provide that seeds of perennial ryegrass and of Italian ryegrass included in mixtures with other seeds may not be sold unless they are certified seeds;

(3) continue existing standards for the sale of cereal seeds other than certified basic seed and seed of the first generation.

(4) provide for amendments consequential to (1) and (2) and other amendments of certain statutory instruments made under the European Communities Act, 1972 , viz. S.I.s No. 19 of 1973, 113 of 1974 and 200 of 1974.