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Official Journal of the European Communities DIRECTIVE 1999/4/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE
of 22 February 1999
relating to coffee extracts and chicory extracts
Whereas Directive 77/436/EEC should be brought into line with general Community legislation on foodstuffs, particularly legislation on labelling and methods of Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 100a thereof, Whereas the Commission is planning to propose, as soon as possible and at all events before 1 July 2000, the Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1), inclusion in Directive 80/232/EEC (5) of a range of nominal weights for the products defined by this Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Whereas the general food-labelling rules set out in Council Directive 79/112/EEC of 18 December 1978 on Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in the approximation of the laws of the Member States Article 189b of the Treaty (3), in the light of the joint text relating to the labelling, presentation and advertising of approved by the Conciliation Committee on 8 December foodstuffs for sale to the ultimate consumer (6) should Whereas certain vertical Directives relating to foods Whereas, pursuant to the principle of proportionality, this should be simplified in order to take account only of the Directive does not go beyond what is necessary in order essential requirements to be met by the products they to achieve the objectives pursued, in accordance with the cover in order that those products may move freely within third paragraph of Article 3b of the Treaty; the internal market, in accordance with the conclusions of the European Council held in Edinburgh on 11 and 12 Whereas, when this Directive is adapted in the future to December 1992, confirmed by those of the European general Community provisions on foodstuffs, the Council in Brussels on 10 and 11 December 1993; Commission will be assisted by the Standing Committee on Foodstuffs, set up by Decision 69/414/EEC (7); Whereas Council Directive 77/436/EEC of 27 June 1977 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States Whereas, to avoid creating new barriers to free movement, relating to coffee extracts and chicory extracts (4) was justi- Member States should refrain from adopting, for the prod- fied by the fact that differences between national laws on ucts in question, national provisions not provided for by coffee extracts and chicory extracts could result in condi- tions of unfair competition likely to mislead consumers, and thereby have a direct effect on the establishment and Whereas the aforesaid Directive was consequently designed to define coffee extracts and chicory extracts, to determine which substances may be added during their manufacture, to lay down common rules concerning the packaging and labelling of such extracts and to specify the conditions under which particular designations may be used for some of these products, in order to ensure their free movement within the Community; This Directive concerns coffee extracts and chicory This Directive does not apply to ‘café torrefacto soluble'.
(3) Opinion of the European Parliament of 23 October 1997 (OJ C 339, 10. 11. 1997, p. 129), Council Common Position of 30 April 1998 (OJ C 204, 30. 6. 1998, p. 25) and Decision of the (5) OJ L 51, 25. 2. 1980, p. 1. Directive as last amended by European Parliament of 16 September 1998 (OJ C 313, 12.
Directive 87/356/EEC (OJ L 192, 11. 7. 1987, p. 48).
10. 1998, p. 90). Council Decision of 25 January 1999. De- (6) OJ L 33, 8. 2. 1979, p. 1. Directive as last amended by Dir- cision of the European Parliament of 11 February 1999.
ective 97/4/EC of the European Parliament and of the Coun- (4) OJ L 172, 12. 7. 1977, p. 20. Directive as last amended by Official Journal of the European Communities The decision to bring this Directive into line with the Directive 79/112/EEC shall apply to the products defined general Community provisions applicable to foodstuffs in the Annex subject to the following conditions: shall be made in accordance with the procedure laid (a) the product names listed in the Annex shall apply only to the products referred to therein and must be used in trade to designate them. Those names shall be The Commission shall be assisted by the Standing Committee on Foodstuffs, hereinafter referred to as ‘the Committee', composed of representatives of the Member States and chaired by a representative of the Commission.
The representative of the Commission shall submit to the Committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The However, product names may be supplemented by the Committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft within a time limit which the chairman may lay down according to the urgency of the matter. The opinion shall be deliv- — in the case of the product defined in point 1(c) of ered by the majority laid down in Article 148(2) of the the Annex, provided that the coffee-based dry Treaty in the case of decisions which the Council is matter content is more than 25 % by weight, required to adopt on a proposal from the Commission.
The votes of the representatives of the Member States — in the case of the product defined in point 2(c) of within the Committee shall be weighted in the manner the Annex, provided that the chicory-based dry set out in that Article. The chairman shall not vote.
matter content is more than 45 % by weight; The Commission shall adopt the measures envisaged if (b) the labelling must include the term ‘decaffeinated' in they are in accordance with the opinion of the the case of the products defined in point 1 of the Annex, provided that the anhydrous caffeine content does not exceed 0,3 % by weight of the coffee-based dry matter. This information must be within the same If the measures envisaged are not in accordance with the field of vision as the sales description; opinion of the Committee, or if no opinion is delivered, the Commission shall forthwith submit to the Council a proposal relating to the measures to be taken. The (c) in the case of the products defined in points 1(c) and Council shall act by a qualified majority.
2(c) of the Annex, the label must include the terms ‘with . . .', ‘preserved with . . .', ‘with added . . .' or ‘roasted with . . .' followed by the name(s) of the types If, on the expiry of three months from the date on which the matter was referred to it, the Council has not acted, the proposed measures shall be adopted by the Commis- This information must be within the same field of (d) the labelling must indicate, in the case of the products defined in points 1(b) and (c) of the Annex, the minimum coffee-based dry matter content and, in the case of the products defined in points 2(b) and (c) of Directive 77/436/EEC is hereby repealed with effect from the Annex, the minimum chicory-based dry matter content. These contents shall be expressed as a percentage by weight of the finished product.
References to the repealed Directive shall be construed as Member States shall bring into force the laws, regu- For the products defined in the Annex, Member States lations and administrative provisions necessary to comply shall not adopt national provisions not provided for by with this Directive not later than 13 September 2000.
They shall immediately inform the Commission thereof.
Official Journal of the European Communities The laws, regulations and administrative provisions shall Member States shall communicate to the Commis- sion the text of the main provisions of domestic law which they adopt in the field governed by this Directive.
— authorise the marketing of the products defined in the Annex if they conform to the definitions and rules laid down in this Directive, with effect from 13 This Directive shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European — prohibit the marketing of products which fail to conform to this Directive, with effect from 13 September 2001. However, the marketing of products failing to comply with this Directive but labelled before 13 September 2001 in accordance with This Directive is addressed to the Member States.
Directive 77/436/EEC shall be permitted until stocks When Member States adopt these measures, the latter shall contain a reference to this Directive or shall be accompanied by such reference at the time of their offi- cial publication. The procedure for such reference shall be Official Journal of the European Communities PRODUCT DESCRIPTIONS, DEFINITIONS AND CHARACTERISTICS
1. ‘Coffee extract', ‘soluble coffee extract', ‘soluble coffee' or ‘instant coffee'
This means the concentrated product obtained by extraction from roasted coffee beans using only water as the medium of extraction and excluding any process of hydrolysis involving the addition of an acid or a base. Apart from those insoluble substances which it is technically impossible to remove, and insoluble oils derived from coffee, coffee extract must contain only the soluble and aromatic constituents of coffee.
Member States shall ensure that the methods used to determine the free and total carbohydrate content of soluble coffees are in conformity with paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Annex to Council Directive 85/591/EEC of 20 December 1985 concerning the introduction of Community methods of sampling and analysis for the monitoring of foodstuffs intended for human consumption (1) and that they are validated or stand- ardised, either already or as soon as possible.
The coffee-based dry matter content must be:(a) not less than 95 % by weight in the case of dried coffee extract;(b) from 70 % to 85 % by weight in the case of coffee extract paste;(c) from 15 % to 55 % by weight in the case of liquid coffee extract.
Coffee extract in solid or paste form must contain no substances other than those derived from the extraction of coffee. Liquid coffee extract may contain edible sugars, whether or not roasted, in a proportion 2. ‘Chicory extract', ‘soluble chicory' or ‘instant chicory'
This means the concentrated product obtained by extraction from roasted chicory using only water as the medium of extraction and excluding any process of hydrolysis involving the addition of an acid or a base.
‘Chicory' means the roots of Cichorium Intybus L., not used for the production of witloof chicory, usually used for the preparation of beverages, suitably cleaned to be dried and roasted.
The chicory-based dry matter content must be:(a) not less than 95 % by weight in the case of dried chicory extract;(b) from 70 % to 85 % by weight in the case of chicory extract paste;(c) from 25 % to 55 % by weight in the case of liquid chicory extract.
Chicory extract in solid or paste form may contain not more than 1 % by weight of substances not derived from chicory.
Liquid chicory extract may contain edible sugars, whether roasted or not, to a proportion not exceeding

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