2011/793/EU: Commission Implementing Decision of 19 October 2011 on the position to be taken by the European Union within the Joint Committee on Agriculture set up by the Agreement between the European Community and the Swiss Confederation on trade in agricultural products, as regards the amendment of Annex 9 to the Agreement

The European Union position within the Joint Committee on Agriculture set up by Article 6 of the Agreement between the European Community and the Swiss Confederation on trade in agricultural products is based on the draft Decision of the Joint Committee on Agriculture annexed to this Decision.

The Decision of the Joint Committee on Agriculture shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union after its adoption.

1 The Parties shall do their utmost to ensure that the import arrangements applicable to organically produced products from third countries are equivalent.

2 With a view to ensuring equivalence in practice as regards recognition in the case of third countries and inspection bodies in third countries, the Parties shall establish appropriate collaboration in order to make use of their experience and shall consult each other before they recognise and include any third country or inspection body in the lists drawn up to that end in their laws and regulations.’;

1 Under Article 8 of the Agreement, the Parties and Member States shall send each other the following information and documents in particular: a list of the competent authorities and inspection bodies and their code numbers and reports on surveillance by the authorities charged with this task, a list of the administrative decisions authorising imports of organically produced products from third countries, details of irregularities or infringements of the laws and regulations listed in Appendix 1 altering the organic character of a product; the level of communication shall depend on the severity and the extent of the irregularity or infringement found in accordance with the Appendix.

2 The Parties shall guarantee the confidential treatment of the information referred to in the third indent of paragraph 1.’;

This Decision shall enter into force on 1 December 2011.