Orth, E.

Archive of European Integration

3 November 1975 
English Edition 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 
Working Documents 
1975-1976 
UBRARY 
DOCUMENT 3 2 7/7 S 
Report 
drawn up on behalf of the Committee on Public Health and the Environment 
on the proposal from the Commission of the European Communities to the 
Council (Doe. 185/75/1) for a directive fixing thi~aximum level of erucic acid in 
fats and oils and margarine for food 
'• 
Rapporteur : Mrs E. ORTH 
PE 42.020/fin. 

By letter of 4 July 1975 the President of the Council of the European 
Communities requested the European Parliament, pursuant to Article 43 of the 
EEC Treaty, to deliver an opinion on the proposal from the Commission of the 
European Communities to the Council for a directive fixing the maximum level 
of erucic acid in fats and oils and margarine for food. 
The President of the European Parliament referred this proposal to the 
Committee on Public Health and the Environment as the committee responsible. 
On 1 October 1975 it appointed Mrs Orth rapporteur. 
It considered this proposal at its meetings of 1 and 21 October 1975. 
At its maeting of 21 October 1975 the committee unanimously adopted 
the motion for a resolution and explanatory statement 
Present: Mr Della Briotta, chairman: Mrs Orth, rapporteur: Lord Bethell, 
Mr Duval, Mr Didier, Mr Evans, Lady Fisher of Redna1, Mr Marras (deputizing 
for Mr Hartog), Mr Willi MUller, Mr Noe', Mr Rosati, Mr Springorum and 
Mr vandewiele (deputizing for Mr Martens) 
- 3 - PE 42.020 /fin. 
C 0 N T E N T S 
Pag~ 
A. MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION.................... 5 
Proposal for a directive 
B. EXPLANATORY STATEMENT...................... 8 
I. General considerations 8 
II. Detailed consideration of the proposal 
for a directive........................ 10 
- 4 - PE 42.020/fin 
' • 
A 
The Committee on Public Health and the Environment hereby submits to the 
European Parliament the following motion for a resolution, together with 
explanatory statement: 
MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION 
embodying the opinion of the European Parliament on the proposal from the 
commission of the European Communities to the council for a directive fixing 
the maximum level of erucic acid in fats and oils and margarine for food 
The European Parliament, 
- having regard to the proposal from the Commission of the European Communities 
to the Council1 ; 
- having been consulted by the Council pursuant to Article 43 of the EEC 
Treaty (Doe. 185/75, Part I); 
- having regard to the report by the Committee on Public Health and the 
Environment (Doe. 327175); 
1. Approves in principle the commission's proposal for a directive, partly 
on the basis of the recommendations of the Scientific Committee for Food 
consulted by the Commission; 
2. Calls on the Commission, nevertheless, to undertake further research on 
oils and fats containing long-chain fatty acids, other than rapeseed oil, 
and in particular to carry on vigorously with investigations into the 
effects of the consumption of these oils and fats on human health; 
3. Considers it advisable, in the light of scientific findings on the one 
hand and technological possibilities on the other, to reduce the maximum 
permitted erucic acid content in oil and fats used in food to 5% in the 
foreseeable future; 
4. Requests the Commission to incorporate, pursuant to the second paragraph 
of Article 149 of the EEC Treaty, the following amendments into its pro-
posal; 
5. Requests the committee responsible to ascertain whether the Commission of 
the European Communities changes its proposal in accordance with the 
European Parliament's amendments, and in such event to report back to it. 
1 OJ No. C 150, 5 .7.1975, p. 5 
- 5 -
PE 42.020/fin. 
TEX I PROPOSED BY THE CO\ I MISSION OF 
THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 1 
AMENDED TEXT 
Proposal for 
Council directive fixing the maximum 
level of erucic acid in fats and oils 
and margarine for food 
Preamble and recitals unchanged 
Articles 1 and 2 unchanged 
Article 3 
The sampling procedures and 
methods of analysis for the determina-
tion of the level of erucic acid of 
the products referred to in Article 1 
shall be determined in accordance with 
the procedure laid down in Article 4. 
Article 3 
The sampling procedures and 
methods of analysis for the determi-
nation of the level of erucic acid 
of the products referred to in 
Article 1 shall be determined, not 
later than the date of entry into 
force of the directive, in accordance 
with the procedure laid down in 
Article 4. 
1 see OJ No. c 150 of 5. 7.1975, page 5 for full text 
- 6 -
PE 42.020 /fin. 
TEXT PROPOSED BY TilL CmiMISSION Of 
fHL EUROPEAN COMMlJNlTIES 
Article 4 
AMENDED TEXT 
Article 4 
Paras. 1 and 2 unchanged 
3.~) Where the measures envisaged are 
in accordance with the opinion 
of the committee, the Comm1ssion 
shall adopt them. 
(b) Where the measures envisaged are 
not in accordance with the opinion 
of the committee, or if no opinion 
is delivered, the Commission 
shall, without delay, submit to 
the Council a proposal on the 
measures to be taken. The Council 
shall act by a qualified majority. 
(c) If, within three months of the 
proposal being submitted to it, 
the Council has not acted, the 
proposed measures shall be adopted 
by the Commission. 
Article 5 
3. The commission shall adopt 
measures which shall be implemen-
ted at once. 
Where, however, they are not 1n 
accordance with the opinion of 
the committee, the Commission 
shall immediately notify them to 
the Council. In that case, the 
Commission may delay the applica-
. tion of the measures it has 
adopted for up to one month after 
the Council has been notified. 
The Council, acting by a qualified 
majority, may adopt a different 
decision within one month. 
Article 5 
Para. 1 unchanged 
2. The laws thus amended shall apply 
in accordance with the dates laid 
down in Article 2. 
However, Member States may permit, 
up to 31 December 1976, the sale at 
retail stage of products which do not 
comply with the provisions of this 
directive if it is established that 
these products had been manufactured 
before 1 July 1976. 
2. The laws thus amended shall apply 
in accordance with the dates laid 
down in Article 2. 
However, Member States may permit, 
up to 31 December 1976, the sale 
at retail stage of products which 
do not comply with the provisions 
of this directive if it is estab-
lished that these products had 
been manufactured before 1 April 
1976. 
Article 6 unchanged 
- 7 - PE 42.020/fin. 
B 
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT 
I. General considerations 
1. The important problem of the effects on human health of the processing 
of fats and oils containing erucic acid and used in foodstuffs was first 
raised in Written Questlon No. 40/72 by Mr VREDELING of 18 April 19721 
Euro-Coop, the organization for the cooperation of Community consumer coopera-
tives, had made an urgent appeal to the Commission at that time to adopt no 
measures encouraging the production of rapeseed oil until it had been definitely 
established that its consumption was not hazardous to human health. Euro-Coop 
entertained doubts about erucic acid, the long-chain (22 or more atoms) fatty 
acid which had been found in the oils of the seed of cruciferous plants, i.e. 
in rapeseed, colza and mustardseed (brown mustard) oils. 
2. Mr VREDELING asked, among other things, whether 
the Commission felt that the investigation of the effects of the processing 
of rapeseed oils in food should be intensified as a matter of priority; 
- the Commission considered 6.5% erucic acid represented a maximum safe 
level; 
- there were good prospects for the cultivation of rapeseed varieties 
virtually free from erucic acid. 
The Commission replied that 
- further studies were being carried out in different countries on the effects 
of the processing of rapeseed oils in food; 
- it was not in a position to comment on the question of the fixing of a 
maximum level of erucic acid on the basis of the then available scientific 
knowledge; 
- it would soon be possible, thanks to the work carried out by one of the 
Member States, to make available varieties of rapeseed virtually free from 
erucic acid. 
3. Three years after the Commission made this reply, Parliament was consulted 
on this proposal for a directive, intended to fix the maximum level of erucic 
acid in edible fats. In the explanatory note to this proposal, the Commission 
1 OJ No. C 73, 7 .7.1972, p. 4 
- 8 - PE 42.020/fin. 
points out that the Scientific Committee for Food, from which it had asked 
an expert opinion, recommended that, when rapeseed oils were used for human 
consumption, preference should be given to the varieties with low levels of 
long-chain fatty acids. The committee also recommended that, as the effects 
reported for rapeseed may not be unique to this type of oil, furLher research 
on long-chain fatty acids and on oils and fats used in food was necessary. 
4. With this proposal for a directive, the Commission has drawn the practical 
conclusions from this expert opinion. It has thus met the Council's request 
of 11 February 1975 to submit to it as soon as possible 'proposals along the 
lines of the opinion of the Scientific Committee for Food to the effect 
that, where rapeseed oil is used in food, preference should be given to 
varieties with a low erucic acid content'. The Commission states that it 
has proposed these measures 'as a matter of prudence' uhtil the further 
research it has already put into operation in this field has been completed. 
It is pointed out in the recitals to the proposal for a directive that the 
intake of large quantities of rapeseed oil by experimental animals ~ 
produced undesirable effects. It has not yet been finally demonstrated, 
however, that these effects apply to man1 . 
The Committee on Public Health and the Environment supports the 
commission's initiative, which it describes as a precautionary measure. It 
has always been of the opinion, when considering Commission proposals 
relating to food, that the onus of proof rests with the producer or manufac-
turer. This implies in this case that it must be proven,that the undesirable 
effects observed in experimental animals do not occur in man. The fixing of 
a maximum level of erucic acid in edible fats therefore seems necessary in 
the interests of human health. 
5. In the second sentence of paragraph 4 of the explanatory note, it is 
'envisaged' that the Scientific Committee for Food will be requested to examine 
the results of the Commission's research and any other data which become 
available in the meantime on other oils and fats which may contain long-chain 
fatty acids possibly giving rise to the same kind of effect. Such additional 
research was recommended by the Scientific Committee for Food. 
The committee calls on the Commission, in view of the urgency of the 
matter, to assign this task to the Scientific Committee for Food without 
delay. It hopes that the final results of research in this sector will be 
available in the foreseeable future. 
1The Dutch text should read as follows: ' ... , maar dat niet volledig is 
aangetoond dat deze effecten ook bij de mens kunnen optreden'. 
- 9 - PE 42.020/fin. 
II. Detailed consideration of the proposal for a directive 
6. Article 1 lays down the field of application of the direcLive. It applies 
to fats and oils and their mixtures and to margarine, which 
- are either intended to be consumed directly by man as finished products 
- or, without being submitted previously to other preparations or transforma-
tions, are to be used as such in the fabrication of compound foods. 
Your committee felt that the words 'and to margarine' were superfluous, 
since margarine must be classified as a fat (vegetable or animal 
fats or a mixture of the two). It therefore considered that 
these three words should be deleted. 
The representative of the Commission stated that margarine was not 
a pure fat but a mixture of fat and other substances. It must therefore 
be mentioned specifically in order to define the precise field of 
application of the directive. After this explanation, your committee voted 
in favour of retaining the Commission's text for Article 1. 
7. According to Article 2, the level of erucic acid in fats and oils, 
calculated on the total level of fatty acids in the fat component, shall not 
be greater than: 
15% during the period from 1 July 1976 until 30 June 1977, 
- 10% from 1 July 1977. 
Your committee wondered why the Commission confined itsell to reducing 
the maximum permissible level of erucic acid to only 10%. The report of the 
Scientific Committee for Food, on which the Commission bases its proposal 
for a directive, does not state that oils and fats which contain 10% erucic 
acid (calculated on the total level of fatty acids in the fat component) 
are not farmful to human health. In point of fact, the investigations con-
ducted by the Scientific Committee for Food were concerned with rapeseed oil 
with a high erucic acid content on the one hand and rapeseed oil with an 
erucic acid content of 5% or less on the other. Only in the latter case 
does the report of the Scientific Committee for Food state that rapeseed 
oils 'have no inhibiting effect on animal growth, and their effects on the 
heart would appear to be less than in the case of rapeseed oil having a 
high erucic acid content'. 
It should also be noted in this connection that, three years ago - as 
can be seen from the written question by Mr VREDELING referred to in paras. 
1 and 2 of this explanatory statement - the fixing of a maximum erucic acid 
level of 6.5% was under consideration. 
- 10 - Pe 42.020/fin. 
Your committee points out that the conversion of rapeseed cultivation 
to varieties having a very low erucic acid content (5% or less) presents no 
technological difficulties. Conversions of this kind have already largely 
taken pJace in France, Germany and the United Kingdom. It appears advisable 
that 
these conversions should be financed out of Community funds for a limited 
period; 
- the maximum permissible level of erucic acid should, in the near future, 
be reduced further than laid down in the proposal for a directive, with 
the goal set at a maximum permissible erucic acid content of 5%. 
8. Article 3 lays down that the sampling procedures and methods of analysis 
for the determination of the level of erucic acid in oils and fats shall be 
determined in accordance with the procedure involving the Standing Committee 
on Foodstuffs set up in November 1969. 
Since these are technical implementing measures, your committee, with a 
view to simplifying and speeding up this procedure, approves the provision. 
Nevertheless, in line with its position on similar cases in the past, it 
urges that the sampling procedures and methods of analysis provided for should 
be determined not later than the date on which the proposal enters into force, 
i.e. 1 July 1976. 
It is after all essential that the application of the directive should 
from the outset be as effective and complete as possible. Article 3 should 
therefore be amplified as follows: 
shall be determined, not later than the date of entry into force of the 
directive, in accordance with 
9. Article 4 lays down the working procedures of the Standing committee on 
Foodstuffs. Your committee, in line with the positions adopted in the past 
by the European Parliament on the institutional aspect of this problem, calls 
for the usual modifications to the working procedure. 
10. Article 5(1) requires the Member States to amend their laws to conform 
with the provisions of the directive by 1 April 1976, and to inform the 
Commission immediately. 
Your committee considers this period reasonable and agrees to it. 
Article 5(2) begins by referring to the dates of application laid down 
in Article 2: 
- 15% maximum erucic acid content from 1 July 1976, 
- 10% maximum erucic acid content from 1 July 1977. 
- 11 -
PE 42.020/fin. 
r 
It also contains an exceptional provision under which the Member States 
may permit, up to 31 December 1976, the sale at retail stage of products 
having a higher erucic acid content where they were demonstrably manufactured 
before 1 July 1976. 
This exception does not appear logical. Manufacturers a~ already 
aware that the Community intends to limit the erucic acid content of edible 
oils and fats. They will learn of it whatever happens through the amended 
laws of the Member States by 1 April 1976 at the latest. 
There does not therefore appear to be any sense in permitting the manu-
facture of products which conflict with the provisions of the directive for 
a further three months after the entry into force of the amended directive. 
In saying this, the committee is not in principle opposing a transitional 
arrangement to permit manufacturers to market their old stocks of edible fats 
and oils under the previously applicable conditions. However, the priority 
which must be given to protecting consumer health requires that this transi-
tional arrangement, which may last until the end of 1976 should be applied 
only to products demonstrably manufactured before 1 April 1976. 
The second sentence of Article 5(2) should therefore be amended accordingly. 
0 
0 0 
- 12 - PE 42.020/fin. 


Report drawn up on behalf of the Committee on Public Health and the Environment on the proposal from the Commission of the European Communities to the Council (Doc. 185/75/I) for a directive fixing the maximum level of erucic acid in fats and oils and margarine for food. Working Documents 1975-1976, Document 327/75, 3 November 1975

3 November 1975 English Edition EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Working Documents 1975-1976 UBRARY DOCUMENT 3 2 7/7 S Report drawn up on behalf of the Committee on Public Health and the Environment on the proposal from the Commission of the European Communities to the Council (Doe. 185/75/1) for a directive fixing thi~aximum level of erucic acid in fats and oils and margarine for food '• Rapporteur : Mrs E. ORTH PE 42.020/fin. By letter of 4 July 1975 the President of the Council of the European Communities requested the European Parliament, pursuant to Article 43 of the EEC Treaty, to deliver an opinion on the proposal from the Commission of the European Communities to the Council for a directive fixing the maximum level of erucic acid in fats and oils and margarine for food. The President of the European Parliament referred this proposal to the Committee on Public Health and the Environment as the committee responsible. On 1 October 1975 it appointed Mrs Orth rapporteur. It considered this proposal at its meetings of 1 and 21 October 1975. At its maeting of 21 October 1975 the committee unanimously adopted the motion for a resolution and explanatory statement Present: Mr Della Briotta, chairman: Mrs Orth, rapporteur: Lord Bethell, Mr Duval, Mr Didier, Mr Evans, Lady Fisher of Redna1, Mr Marras (deputizing for Mr Hartog), Mr Willi MUller, Mr Noe', Mr Rosati, Mr Springorum and Mr vandewiele (deputizing for Mr Martens) - 3 - PE 42.020 /fin. C 0 N T E N T S Pag~ A. MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION.................... 5 Proposal for a directive B. EXPLANATORY STATEMENT...................... 8 I. General considerations 8 II. Detailed consideration of the proposal for a directive........................ 10 - 4 - PE 42.020/fin ' • A The Committee on Public Health and the Environment hereby submits to the European Parliament the following motion for a resolution, together with explanatory statement: MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION embodying the opinion of the European Parliament on the proposal from the commission of the European Communities to the council for a directive fixing the maximum level of erucic acid in fats and oils and margarine for food The European Parliament, - having regard to the proposal from the Commission of the European Communities to the Council1 ; - having been consulted by the Council pursuant to Article 43 of the EEC Treaty (Doe. 185/75, Part I); - having regard to the report by the Committee on Public Health and the Environment (Doe. 327175); 1. Approves in principle the commission's proposal for a directive, partly on the basis of the recommendations of the Scientific Committee for Food consulted by the Commission; 2. Calls on the Commission, nevertheless, to undertake further research on oils and fats containing long-chain fatty acids, other than rapeseed oil, and in particular to carry on vigorously with investigations into the effects of the consumption of these oils and fats on human health; 3. Considers it advisable, in the light of scientific findings on the one hand and technological possibilities on the other, to reduce the maximum permitted erucic acid content in oil and fats used in food to 5% in the foreseeable future; 4. Requests the Commission to incorporate, pursuant to the second paragraph of Article 149 of the EEC Treaty, the following amendments into its pro-posal; 5. Requests the committee responsible to ascertain whether the Commission of the European Communities changes its proposal in accordance with the European Parliament's amendments, and in such event to report back to it. 1 OJ No. C 150, 5 .7.1975, p. 5 - 5 -PE 42.020/fin. TEX I PROPOSED BY THE CO\ I MISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 1 AMENDED TEXT Proposal for Council directive fixing the maximum level of erucic acid in fats and oils and margarine for food Preamble and recitals unchanged Articles 1 and 2 unchanged Article 3 The sampling procedures and methods of analysis for the determina-tion of the level of erucic acid of the products referred to in Article 1 shall be determined in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4. Article 3 The sampling procedures and methods of analysis for the determi-nation of the level of erucic acid of the products referred to in Article 1 shall be determined, not later than the date of entry into force of the directive, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4. 1 see OJ No. c 150 of 5. 7.1975, page 5 for full text - 6 -PE 42.020 /fin. TEXT PROPOSED BY TilL CmiMISSION Of fHL EUROPEAN COMMlJNlTIES Article 4 AMENDED TEXT Article 4 Paras. 1 and 2 unchanged 3.~) Where the measures envisaged are in accordance with the opinion of the committee, the Comm1ssion shall adopt them. (b) Where the measures envisaged are not in accordance with the opinion of the committee, or if no opinion is delivered, the Commission shall, without delay, submit to the Council a proposal on the measures to be taken. The Council shall act by a qualified majority. (c) If, within three months of the proposal being submitted to it, the Council has not acted, the proposed measures shall be adopted by the Commission. Article 5 3. The commission shall adopt measures which shall be implemen-ted at once. Where, however, they are not 1n accordance with the opinion of the committee, the Commission shall immediately notify them to the Council. In that case, the Commission may delay the applica-. tion of the measures it has adopted for up to one month after the Council has been notified. The Council, acting by a qualified majority, may adopt a different decision within one month. Article 5 Para. 1 unchanged 2. The laws thus amended shall apply in accordance with the dates laid down in Article 2. However, Member States may permit, up to 31 December 1976, the sale at retail stage of products which do not comply with the provisions of this directive if it is established that these products had been manufactured before 1 July 1976. 2. The laws thus amended shall apply in accordance with the dates laid down in Article 2. However, Member States may permit, up to 31 December 1976, the sale at retail stage of products which do not comply with the provisions of this directive if it is estab-lished that these products had been manufactured before 1 April 1976. Article 6 unchanged - 7 - PE 42.020/fin. B EXPLANATORY STATEMENT I. General considerations 1. The important problem of the effects on human health of the processing of fats and oils containing erucic acid and used in foodstuffs was first raised in Written Questlon No. 40/72 by Mr VREDELING of 18 April 19721 Euro-Coop, the organization for the cooperation of Community consumer coopera-tives, had made an urgent appeal to the Commission at that time to adopt no measures encouraging the production of rapeseed oil until it had been definitely established that its consumption was not hazardous to human health. Euro-Coop entertained doubts about erucic acid, the long-chain (22 or more atoms) fatty acid which had been found in the oils of the seed of cruciferous plants, i.e. in rapeseed, colza and mustardseed (brown mustard) oils. 2. Mr VREDELING asked, among other things, whether the Commission felt that the investigation of the effects of the processing of rapeseed oils in food should be intensified as a matter of priority; - the Commission considered 6.5% erucic acid represented a maximum safe level; - there were good prospects for the cultivation of rapeseed varieties virtually free from erucic acid. The Commission replied that - further studies were being carried out in different countries on the effects of the processing of rapeseed oils in food; - it was not in a position to comment on the question of the fixing of a maximum level of erucic acid on the basis of the then available scientific knowledge; - it would soon be possible, thanks to the work carried out by one of the Member States, to make available varieties of rapeseed virtually free from erucic acid. 3. Three years after the Commission made this reply, Parliament was consulted on this proposal for a directive, intended to fix the maximum level of erucic acid in edible fats. In the explanatory note to this proposal, the Commission 1 OJ No. C 73, 7 .7.1972, p. 4 - 8 - PE 42.020/fin. points out that the Scientific Committee for Food, from which it had asked an expert opinion, recommended that, when rapeseed oils were used for human consumption, preference should be given to the varieties with low levels of long-chain fatty acids. The committee also recommended that, as the effects reported for rapeseed may not be unique to this type of oil, furLher research on long-chain fatty acids and on oils and fats used in food was necessary. 4. With this proposal for a directive, the Commission has drawn the practical conclusions from this expert opinion. It has thus met the Council's request of 11 February 1975 to submit to it as soon as possible 'proposals along the lines of the opinion of the Scientific Committee for Food to the effect that, where rapeseed oil is used in food, preference should be given to varieties with a low erucic acid content'. The Commission states that it has proposed these measures 'as a matter of prudence' uhtil the further research it has already put into operation in this field has been completed. It is pointed out in the recitals to the proposal for a directive that the intake of large quantities of rapeseed oil by experimental animals ~ produced undesirable effects. It has not yet been finally demonstrated, however, that these effects apply to man1 . The Committee on Public Health and the Environment supports the commission's initiative, which it describes as a precautionary measure. It has always been of the opinion, when considering Commission proposals relating to food, that the onus of proof rests with the producer or manufac-turer. This implies in this case that it must be proven,that the undesirable effects observed in experimental animals do not occur in man. The fixing of a maximum level of erucic acid in edible fats therefore seems necessary in the interests of human health. 5. In the second sentence of paragraph 4 of the explanatory note, it is 'envisaged' that the Scientific Committee for Food will be requested to examine the results of the Commission's research and any other data which become available in the meantime on other oils and fats which may contain long-chain fatty acids possibly giving rise to the same kind of effect. Such additional research was recommended by the Scientific Committee for Food. The committee calls on the Commission, in view of the urgency of the matter, to assign this task to the Scientific Committee for Food without delay. It hopes that the final results of research in this sector will be available in the foreseeable future. 1The Dutch text should read as follows: ' ... , maar dat niet volledig is aangetoond dat deze effecten ook bij de mens kunnen optreden'. - 9 - PE 42.020/fin. II. Detailed consideration of the proposal for a directive 6. Article 1 lays down the field of application of the direcLive. It applies to fats and oils and their mixtures and to margarine, which - are either intended to be consumed directly by man as finished products - or, without being submitted previously to other preparations or transforma-tions, are to be used as such in the fabrication of compound foods. Your committee felt that the words 'and to margarine' were superfluous, since margarine must be classified as a fat (vegetable or animal fats or a mixture of the two). It therefore considered that these three words should be deleted. The representative of the Commission stated that margarine was not a pure fat but a mixture of fat and other substances. It must therefore be mentioned specifically in order to define the precise field of application of the directive. After this explanation, your committee voted in favour of retaining the Commission's text for Article 1. 7. According to Article 2, the level of erucic acid in fats and oils, calculated on the total level of fatty acids in the fat component, shall not be greater than: 15% during the period from 1 July 1976 until 30 June 1977, - 10% from 1 July 1977. Your committee wondered why the Commission confined itsell to reducing the maximum permissible level of erucic acid to only 10%. The report of the Scientific Committee for Food, on which the Commission bases its proposal for a directive, does not state that oils and fats which contain 10% erucic acid (calculated on the total level of fatty acids in the fat component) are not farmful to human health. In point of fact, the investigations con-ducted by the Scientific Committee for Food were concerned with rapeseed oil with a high erucic acid content on the one hand and rapeseed oil with an erucic acid content of 5% or less on the other. Only in the latter case does the report of the Scientific Committee for Food state that rapeseed oils 'have no inhibiting effect on animal growth, and their effects on the heart would appear to be less than in the case of rapeseed oil having a high erucic acid content'. It should also be noted in this connection that, three years ago - as can be seen from the written question by Mr VREDELING referred to in paras. 1 and 2 of this explanatory statement - the fixing of a maximum erucic acid level of 6.5% was under consideration. - 10 - Pe 42.020/fin. Your committee points out that the conversion of rapeseed cultivation to varieties having a very low erucic acid content (5% or less) presents no technological difficulties. Conversions of this kind have already largely taken pJace in France, Germany and the United Kingdom. It appears advisable that these conversions should be financed out of Community funds for a limited period; - the maximum permissible level of erucic acid should, in the near future, be reduced further than laid down in the proposal for a directive, with the goal set at a maximum permissible erucic acid content of 5%. 8. Article 3 lays down that the sampling procedures and methods of analysis for the determination of the level of erucic acid in oils and fats shall be determined in accordance with the procedure involving the Standing Committee on Foodstuffs set up in November 1969. Since these are technical implementing measures, your committee, with a view to simplifying and speeding up this procedure, approves the provision. Nevertheless, in line with its position on similar cases in the past, it urges that the sampling procedures and methods of analysis provided for should be determined not later than the date on which the proposal enters into force, i.e. 1 July 1976. It is after all essential that the application of the directive should from the outset be as effective and complete as possible. Article 3 should therefore be amplified as follows: shall be determined, not later than the date of entry into force of the directive, in accordance with 9. Article 4 lays down the working procedures of the Standing committee on Foodstuffs. Your committee, in line with the positions adopted in the past by the European Parliament on the institutional aspect of this problem, calls for the usual modifications to the working procedure. 10. Article 5(1) requires the Member States to amend their laws to conform with the provisions of the directive by 1 April 1976, and to inform the Commission immediately. Your committee considers this period reasonable and agrees to it. Article 5(2) begins by referring to the dates of application laid down in Article 2: - 15% maximum erucic acid content from 1 July 1976, - 10% maximum erucic acid content from 1 July 1977. - 11 -PE 42.020/fin. r It also contains an exceptional provision under which the Member States may permit, up to 31 December 1976, the sale at retail stage of products having a higher erucic acid content where they were demonstrably manufactured before 1 July 1976. This exception does not appear logical. Manufacturers a~ already aware that the Community intends to limit the erucic acid content of edible oils and fats. They will learn of it whatever happens through the amended laws of the Member States by 1 April 1976 at the latest. There does not therefore appear to be any sense in permitting the manu-facture of products which conflict with the provisions of the directive for a further three months after the entry into force of the amended directive. In saying this, the committee is not in principle opposing a transitional arrangement to permit manufacturers to market their old stocks of edible fats and oils under the previously applicable conditions. However, the priority which must be given to protecting consumer health requires that this transi-tional arrangement, which may last until the end of 1976 should be applied only to products demonstrably manufactured before 1 April 1976. The second sentence of Article 5(2) should therefore be amended accordingly. 0 0 0 - 12 - PE 42.020/fin. 

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