Case C‑422/16

Verband Sozialer Wettbewerb eV

v

TofuTown.com GmbH

(Request for a preliminary ruling from the Landgericht Trier)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling — Common organisation of the markets in agricultural products — Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 — Article 78 and Annex VII, Part III — Decision 2010/791/EU — Definitions, designations and sales descriptions — ‘Milk’ and ‘milk products’ — Designations used for the promotion and marketing of purely plant-based products)

Summary — Judgment of the Court (Seventh Chamber), 14 June 2017

1.        Agriculture — Common organisation of the markets — Milk and milk products –Protection of designations — A priori exclusion of the designation (milk) and the designations reserved for milk products to designate purely plant based products — Breach of principle of proportionality —None

(Arts 40 TFEU to 43 TFEU; European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1308/2013, Art. 78(2) and Annex VII, part III)

2.        Agriculture — Common organisation of the markets — Milk and milk products –– Protection of designations — A priori exclusion of the designation (milk) and the designations reserved for milk products to designate purely plant based products — Absence of comparable restrictions applicable to vegetarian or vegan substitutes for meat or fish — Breach of the principle of equal treatment with regard to producers of vegetarian or vegan substitutes for milk or milk products — None

(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1308/2013, Art. 78(2) and Annex VII, part III)

3.        Agriculture — Common organisation of the markets — Milk and milk products — Protection of designations — Use of the designation (milk) or the designations reserved for milk products for the for the promotion and marketing of purely plant-based products — Not permissible — Addition of descriptive material — Irrelevant — Exceptions

(European Parliament and Council Regulation No 1308/2013, Art. 78(2) and Annex VII, part III; Commission Decision 2010/791, Annex I)

1.      See the text of the decision.

(see paras 45, 46, 48)

2.      See the text of the decision.

(see paras 49-51)

3.      Article 78(2) and Annex VII, Part III, to Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007 must be interpreted as precluding the term ‘milk’ and the designations reserved by that regulation exclusively for milk products from being used to designate a purely plant based product in marketing or advertising, even if those terms are expanded upon by clarifying or descriptive terms indicating the plant origin of the product at issue, unless that product is listed in Annex I to Commission Decision 2010/791/EU of 20 December 2010 listing the products referred to in the second subparagraph of point III(1) of Annex XII to Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007.

(see para. 52, operative part)