Author: SME Chamber

Organisations representing the retail sector jointly announced their continued commitment to pursue dialogue and actions to bring a culture change and ensure the fairness in business relations in the supply chain.

At the Expert Platform on business-to-business contractual relations on 4 July, 10 European Trade Associations representing the various links in the food supply chain, including retail, presented the outcome of their discussions to establish a framework for the implementation and enforcement of principles of good practice in vertical relations in the food supply chain. These organisations worked hard, as a group and with their respective members, over the past 7 months to achieve a compromise that would bring a culture change in business-to-business relations along the entire food supply chain.

The scheme is based on the voluntary registration by companies in the food supply chain with specific commitments to respect and integrate the principles into their daily business practices. In particular, the framework foresees a procedure to handle disputes through a choice of options and taking into account the need to reassure the complainant that he will not be subject to commercial retaliation.

The four retail organisations believe that the proposed framework represents a robust and cost effective solution, which will bring a culture change ensuring the fairness of relationships in the food supply chain.

Background note

In November 2011, the High-Level Forum on a better functioning food supply chain warmly welcomed the set of principles of good practice for vertical relations in the food supply chain. The principles, agreed by all multistakeholders in the food supply chain, represent an understanding of fairness in business-to-business relations. The document also includes a list of examples of fair and unfair behaviour.

Subsequently, the High Level Forum has asked those organisations "to continue their dialogue in order to consider possible implementation and enforcement tools as well as the pros and cons of such tools with regard to effectiveness, costs, monitoring, transparency, credibility and any additional criteria that would be deemed of importance, with a view to agreeing on a preferred solution by June 2012 at the latest."

Since November, the 10 organisations met on a regular basis to establish a framework for the implementation and enforcement of the principles. Their European representatives have approved the framework that was presented today at the Expert Platform. The basic features of the voluntary framework are the following:

• It is a voluntary web-based registration system open to companies operating at all levels in the food supply chain
• When registering, companies carry out an internal assessment of their procedures and undertake a number of commitments on which they will have to report.
• The core commitments are to translate the principles into company culture, to train commercial teams (buyers and sellers), to follow a process for dispute resolution based on a specific choice of options, to communicate their registration to their commercial partners and to report on their activities as part of the framework through an annual survey.
• A governance body composed of representatives from the various links in the food supply chain would be responsible for overseeing the proper functioning of the system. It would not intervene in the adjudication of disputes so as to avoid conflicts of interests.
• The remedies, sanctions, and/or penalties for non-compliance with the principles of good practice would be determined by the dispute resolution bodies at national level according to the applicable law. Communication to the EU Institutions and the public is foreseen on an annual basis. A review clause would enable the governance body to review the principles and the operation of the framework as needed.

The labelling of egg and milk when used as fining agents in wine is currently not covered by a permanent exemption from the allergen labelling requirements under Article 6 of Directive 2000/13/EC (as amended).

Egg and milk based wine fining agents have received several temporary exemptions from allergen labelling; the current exemption under Directive 2007/68/EC as last amended by Regulation No. 1266/2010 will come to an end on 30 June 2012. From that day onwards when egg or milk based fining agents have been used to make wine, they will need to be declared on the labelling unless proven to be absent in the final product.

The Commission has agreed the proposed amendments to Regulation (EC) No. 607/2009 which will lay down detailed rules for labelling wine. The agreed Regulation will require wine to be labelled when egg and milk fining agents used in the production of wine and are detected in the finished product using an appropriate method of detection. The method of analysis would need to be capable of determining absence (below 0.25mg/litre) of egg or milk protein in the wine for the purposes of deciding whether or not the product needs allergen labelling in accordance with Article 6 of Directive 2000/13/EC.

The requirement to indicate allergenic ingredients on label will apply to wines that have used egg or milk in their manufacturing process and have detectable levels of egg or milk protein present and were placed on the market or labelled after 30 June 2012. This includes imports.

Harvests in 2011 and earlier

• All wine produced prior to the 2012 harvest is covered by the existing exemption as set out in Regulation No.1266/2010 if it has been placed on the EU market or labelled before 30 June 2012. This includes wines from harvests before 2012, wines which are in cask in the EU and are maturing prior to bottling, because such wines can be considered to have been placed on the market in the sense of being held for the purpose of sale.

2012 Harvests

• Southern Hemisphere wines will not need to be labelled with such information if placed on the market in the EU prior to 30 June 2012.
• Southern Hemisphere wines will need to be labelled with allergen information if placed on the EU market on or after 30 June 2012 and appropriate testing to determine the absence of egg or milk protein has not been performed or egg and milk are shown to be present.
• Northern Hemisphere wines will need to be labelled with allergen information if appropriate testing to determine absence of egg or milk protein has not been performed or egg and milk are shown to be present and the wine has been placed on the EU market on or after 30 June 2012.

Wine used as an ingredient in food

The exemption for allergen labelling for wine used as an ingredient in food would not be covered by the provisions of this Regulation. Therefore wine fined with egg or milk which is used in food would need to be declared on the labelling regardless of the level at which they are present.

The Regulation was published on Friday 29 June 2012 with the Commission issuing guidance on that day also. GRTU will provide another update once it has received further information from the Commission.

GRTU welcomes the announcement of the Fourteenth Call for Project Proposals under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) under Priority Axis 4-Climate Change and resource Efficiency- issued by PPCD and for which an information session was held today.
From feedback obtained so far about interest shown in the call, it is
clear that GRTU is right to believe that a €20M scheme by MRA targeting
domestic photovoltaic installations has a high probability of success,
although it heavily depends on the quality of the application submitted
by MRA.

Noel Gauci, president of the renewable energy section within GRTU, believes however that MRA is capable of submitting another excellent application because it has sufficient expertise and experience to do so, and therefore there is very high probability that their application will be accepted once again.

This is very good news for Malta as such a scheme would boost the chances of Malta reaching its 2020 targets, although it will be a little late for Malta to reach its target of 2% average by end of 2012. It is obviously also very good for the families who want to invest in photovoltaic panels as a measure to lower their energy bills, and for the Maltese renewable energy sector because it should ensure enough work for 2013 and first half of 2014.

Mr. Gauci takes this opportunity to thank the PPCD for the confidence they have always shown in the sector by investing millions, and MRA for the way it applied and achieved funding in the past years under previous PPCD calls. According to Mr. Gauci, the MRA has been exemplary in the way it managed the last domestic photovoltaic scheme. Mr. Gauci also encouraged the MRA to keep up the good work so that another €20M are secured for the sector as being proposed by GRTU and to manage the next scheme in the same way as it managed the last one. He also encouraged all stakeholders to come together to ensure that installations are of good quality and processes involved run smoothly. Amongst the stakeholders directly involved are MEPA, ARMS and Enemalta.

GRTU Gas distributors still in the dark – After nearly three years of design and construction, Gasco Energy New Gas Filling Plant will shortly come into full force. During a visit by the Prime Minister Dr Lawrence Gonzi and Minister George Pullicino last Thursday, the state of the art facility was brought to the fore of all those present including the media.

All is ready to go, except for a distribution system that is not on solid ground for any stakeholder in the sector.

It is however ironical that whilst a plan of such a size was designed and build from scratch in just under three years, the issue of Gas Distributors represented by the GRTU Malta Chamber of SMEs, remains unsolved. Whilst GRTU has worked for many long hours on this issue, there seems to be no solution in sight.

Gas Distribution has been in place in Malta for many years. For many years whoever wanted a service was provided with a service which is next to none within the European Community. Gas Distributors had and still have an obligation to serve every Tom, Dick and Harry, anywhere. They do this with the condition that each have their own operational social agreement with the public in general. And now we are told that because of the European Directives we had to liberalise importation and wholesale. Whilst that was acceptable, liberalizing distribution and retail was not obligatory. It was the Government's choice, one which was taken with the introduction of Legal Notice 249 of 2008 which completely forgot  the existing market distributors.

Time has lingered and Gas Distributors are now against a brick wall. The worst part is that we are not aware of the negotiations going on behind the scenes. We do not know when a decision will be taken. Time is against us, against the self employed who have over the last 40 years effected a distribution system for LPG cylinders which is the best in the Community. Of course not all was perfect but if by the word competition one means that our communities loose the service that is being provided today.

The Malta Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprises, GRTU, has waited long enough. It is a pity that the Government of the day continues to treat self employed like beggars. Beggars are never choosers. GRTU takes the opportunity to auger Gasco Energy and Liquigas a pleasant future in a  better state of the art facility. For the rest time is running out for everyone and we do hope that Government places this Gas Distributors issue as a priority matter. We expect a solution, and soon!

MCCAA is consulting stakeholders on a new legal notice which will amend Legal Notice 241 of 2009 on the Conformity Assessment of Marine Equipment. The proposed draft legal notice transposes Commission Directive 2011/75/EU amending Council Directive 96/98/EC on marine equipment.

Marine Equipment includes items such as life-saving products (lifebuoys, lifejackets, liferafts), fire protection equipment, navigation equipment and radio communication equipment. The legal amendments are highly technical in nature and relate to the testing procedures of the products. Importers are advised to ensure marine equipment they import in Malta comply to the latest regulations.

Background

A number of amendments to the international conventions and applicable testing standards have entered into force since the adoption of the last amending act to Directive 96/98/EC. Consequently, those amendments were incorporated into Directive 96/98/EC.

In the same period the International Maritime Organisation and the European standardisation organisations have also adopted standards, including detailed testing standards, for a number of items of equipment which are listed in Annex A.2 to Directive 96/98/EC or which, albeit not listed, are considered relevant for the purpose of that Directive. Therefore such items of equipment were also included in Annex A.1 or transferred from Annex A.2 to Annex A.1, as appropriate.

The above mentioned amendments made to Directive 96/98/EC need to be transposed into Maltese regulations and this will be done through the proposed Conformity Assessment of Marine Equipment (Amendment) Regulations, 2012.

Who does it effect?

Manufacturers, importers and distributors (sellers) of marine equipment.

Feedback

Feedback to be received by the 27th July 2012.

Comments to be sent to the Regulatory Affairs Directorate, Technical Regulations Division, Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority by e-mail –

GRTU meets Minister deMarco to discuss issues – GRTU has earlier this week met Minister Mario de Marco, MEPA Chairman Austin Walker and Chief Executive Officer Ian Stafrace  to discuss pending issues in the quarrying sector.
Mr Vincent Farrugia, GRTU Director General, opened the meeting by thanking the Minister and all other officials present for their time and outlined that the quarrying sector represented by GRTU is extremely worried over legislation which has curtailed their operation into one of the strictest ever operations.

Mr Farrugia pointed out that Malta would not be where it is today if it had not been for this sector, and although the resource has not been managed well, we are still in time to safeguard this precious material, be it aggregate or limestone emanating from these quarries.

He also outlined that many years back the quarries were isolated but through the evolution of time there are now many residences that are effected by these quarries. He continued to state that twenty years ago a Minerals Board existed within MEPA which is now defunct. Although this Board did not succeed to solve many issues, at least there were people who were hands-on on the issues that discussed and learned. This sector was however recently also further plagued by stricter than ever explosives regulations, noise pollution and the most recent dust pollution draft paper.

These issues are making life impossible for many owners and many are still in the business simply because they consider it a hobby. To add insult to injury the quarry owners are deemed to pay in all the fiscal regime when they have as yet not recuperated their monies as the credit being taken up for payment exceeds well over a year, if not two.  He continued to state that this negative attitude towards quarry owners exists across the board.

Minister de Marco reiterated that the quarrying sector was formally included in the National Environmental Plan and accordingly he can confirm that there are no hidden agendas vis a vis this sector. He continued to stress that it would be best if a stock of the situation is taken before we get to a phase where we want to use the resource and we cannot find it. The cost of the resource should also be included in the cost structure so as to continue to work towards sustain able operation.

The Minister recommended that GRTU sends a list of quarry owners who are now facing any problems in relation to planning permit, extension of quarries, vibration levels during explosions, so that a three day marathon meeting is set up for this sector individually in order for MEPA to have the whole holistic picture.

Additionally, there are a few issues are common for every operator. These include noise pollution and dust monitoring, which legislation is currently open for public consultation. Such issues will be discussed by GRTU on behalf of the members with their presence.

For this meeting GRTU officials were accompanied by three representatives from the Quarries sector Committee.

GRTU DG and EESC Employers' representative has participated in the ACP-EU Regional Seminar of Economic and Social Interest Groups, organised by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) in Santo Domingo, on 5-6 July.

The African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) is a group of countries in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific that was created by the Georgetown Agreement in 1975. The group's main objectives are sustainable development and poverty reduction within its member states, as well as their greater integration into the world's economy. All of the member states, except Cuba, are signatories to the Cotonou Agreement with the European Union.

The Cotonou Agreement (signed in Cotonou, Benin in June 2000) is the successor to the Lomé Conventions. One of the major differences from the Lomé Convention is that the partnership is extended to new actors such as civil society, private sector, trade unions and local authorities. These will be involved in consultations and planning of national development strategies, provided with access to financial resources and involved in the implementation of programmes.

During the meeting a commitment was made by Caribbean civil society organisations, together with the CARIFORUM Secretariat, a subgroup of ACP countries for economic dialogue with the EU. They made a commitment to define, before mid September 2012, the composition of the Caribbean side of the civil society Consultative Committee. The Caribbean civil society have said yes to more involvement in the EU-CARIFORUM Economic Partnership Agreement

Vincent Farrugia was active as a member of the EESC Anti-Poverty Committee and works on the EESC supportive mechanism for a more efficient and effective agenda for development cooperation and for the revision of the financing instruments and the review of the measurement of a country's progress in terms not only of GDP but also of improvements in human welfare and quality of life.

The Consultative Committee, encompassing economic, social and environmental aspects of relations between the EU and CARIFORUM is the only joint EU-CARIFORUM body in the EPA Agreement that has not yet been set up. The proposal on the composition will be presented to the EU-CARIFORUM Trade and Development Committee in September and will hopefully be adopted by the Joint EU-CARIFORUM Council in October 2012. This decision will make the Consultative Committee fully operational.

Discussions also addressed what the region can do to foster sustainable and inclusive growth. Ms Brenda King, President of the ACP-EU Follow-up Committee of the EESC, argued that "the transition to sustainable and inclusive growth needs the involvement of non-state-actors in order to be successful. This implies that democratic processes are in place and that a dialogue exists between non-state-actors and political decision makers".

GRTU has this week written to the Ministry for Infrastructure Transport and Communication (MITC) and the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA) following a just complaint GRTU has received from one of its members.

The MIA privatisation project was intended to give Malta a more efficient airport facilities centre. It was never intended to create unfair competition against private developers, retailers and service providers.

It now appears that no supervision whatsoever is being practiced on what exactly were the terms and conditions of the Privatisation Act. Already we have seen MIA using land obtained under the Privatisation Act to unfairly compete with developers that they themselves had to buy this acquired land from MIA at market prices to develop.

GRTU is now witnessing MIA utilising spaces in the departures lounge for normal shopping during the festive season in direct and unjust competition with high street retailers. GRTU considers this as highly unfair as MIA was granted these facilities to provide airport facilities and retailers could not have possibly competed with the current private owners of MIA to win these exceptional facilities. GRTU abided by the decision that MIA had the right to offer retail facilities in this restricted area of the departures lounge open only to passengers who have crossed passport control. MIA has an absolute dominant position, which it is now clearly abusing.

GRTU requested MCCAA and MITC as the public regulators responsible for competition and civil aviation to investigate this complaint. 

The GRTU Executive Council has this week met representatives of the Misrata Commercial Chamber and the Misrata Business Council. Following an introduction by the GRTU President Paul Abela on the work GRTU does it was explained how GRTU was on the forefront to give as much help as it could to Libyans when the trouble started.

GRTU worked especially hard to support the Maltese companies in Libya, that were going through a lot of hardship due to the war.

GRTU's Council Member and delegate on Malta-Libya affairs Mario Debono continued saying that GRTU's sections can be very instrumental in supporting Libya in its needs. GRTU has strong sectors of construction, food, renewable energy, waste management, tourism, etc… that are keen to work in Libya and cooperate with Libyan businesses.

There is plenty of room for cooperation and we want to start immediately sending delegations of Maltese businesses and receive delegations of Libyan businesses. We want Maltese businesses to get the experience and feel of the new Libya first hand and form partnerships. The Libyan and Maltese business associations have a lot of collaboration to do to help companies partner and set up in Libya.

The representatives from Misrata thanked the GRTU Council for the opportunity in meeting them. They emphasised that Malta and Libya have a long standing relationship and they are only too happy to collaborate with Maltese businesses associations and businessmen. They also stated that Libya is safe and it is safe for companies to go and explore opportunities in Libya. They need help in their facilities and experience to rebuild Libya from the most basic infrastructure and services. They also stated however that investment and work in Libya can be in any business but not in trade. Other than this, further restrictions are limited to the fact that it must respect the Libyan tradition.

Amongst the representatives were the biggest travel agency of Misrata, company of ceramics and materials for building and an ice-cream producing factory.

During their visit in Malta Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi also announces that Malta is planning to set up a consulate in Misrata, Libya's largest city.