ProducentenOrganisatie als erkend kartel: Ruimte voor samenwerking in de landbouw

Producers in the agriculture are allowed to collaborate in a Producer Organisation (PO) based on the European Common Market Organisation (CMO)-regulation. This regulation implies rules according to the objectives of a PO and the structure of the organisation. The regulation indicates also the required recognition of a PO by a Member State. The European legislator provides agricultural producers hereby an opportunity to strengthen their market position.However, the CMO-regulation refers also to the rules of the ban on cartels with a prohibition of certain types of collaboration. Unfortunately, the regulation does not clarify the relationship between PO-rules and the ban on cartels. In practice this ambiguity leads to uncertainty and wrong legal application. This research is an analysis of relevant rules of the European Union, relevant national law in Germany, France and the Netherlands and implementation of the law in these countries. This analysis is a search for the correct interpretation of the rules.

On European level agricultural rules have priority over the ban on cartels. Embedding of the PO in CMO-regulation implies exclusion of internal practices of a PO from the scope of the cartel prohibition. Producers are allowed to all kind of common activities within (an Union of) PO’s, but on condition of strictly necessary in view of the objectives, as ruled by the European Court. Within a PO agreements on prices and quantities are allowed.This research results also in recommendations for simplification and clarification of the European rules.