Centres Regulations, 2021

L.N. 506 of 2021

SUPPLIES AND SERVICES ACT

(CAP. 117)

Marketing of Agricultural Produce and Agricultural Marketing

Centres Regulations, 2021

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred by article 3 of the

Supplies and Services Act, the Minister for the Economy and Industry

after consultation with the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Food

and Animal Rights, has made the following regulations:-

(1) The title of these regulations is Marketing of

commencement.

Agricultural Produce and Agricultural Marketing Centres Regulations,

2021. (2) These regulations shall come into force within two months

from their publication in the Gazette.

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires

"Agency" means the Malta Food Agency established by the

Malta Food Agency (Establishment) Order and which shall deliver a

public service in relation to food from farming and fisheries;

"agricultural retailer" means a person who sells agricultural

produce by retail from a shop or by hawking;

"farmer" means a natural or legal person, or a group of natural or

legal persons responsible for a holding and who exercises an

agricultural activity;

"local agricultural produce"

means any produce which is

cultivated or grown locally by a farmer or is derived from local animal

husbandry;

"marketing centres" means the agricultural marketing centres

established by these regulations;

"person" means a natural person, body of persons whether

corporate or unincorporate, or an association;

"place of business" means any shop or other premises, truck or

other vehicle, and any other place or device in or from which sales of

agricultural produce is effected;

"purchase" means the acquisition, by any onerous title, of any

local agricultural produce;

"sale" means any disposal under any onerous title whatsoever of

local agricultural produce, and "sell" shall be construed accordingly;

"sales agent" means a person, including a body corporate,

whether corporate, unincorporate or association, who has been

authorised to sell local agricultural produce at the marketing centres by

the Agency;

"society" means a co-operative society among farmers, duly

registered under the Co-operative Societies Act;

"trader" means any person who deals or is concerned in, or

performs any act of trade relating to the importation, sale by retail

from a shop or hawking, exchange or disposal of agricultural produce,

but does not include a farmer or livestock breeder.

The Agency may, in writing, authorise any public officer Power to

or public service employee to exercise any or all of the powers of the delegate.

Agency under these regulations either concurrently with the Agency or

in its absence, subject to such conditions as the Agency may stipulate

in the authorisation.

(1) The Agency may, in matters dealing with agriculture Appointment

and from time to time, appoint officers for the purposes of these and

officers.

regulations, or of any orders made thereunder.

(2)

In order to ensure compliance with these regulations,

officers appointed in terms of sub-regulation (1), shall have the power,

at reasonable times, but without giving prior notice and upon

production of proof of their identity

(a)

to enter and inspect any stall located at an agricultural

marketing centre where trade in local agricultural produce, is

carried out;

(b) to inspect and copy any documents, records or any

other information to which these regulations may apply, in

whatever form they are held, and remove them to enable them to

be copied or require computer records to be produced in a form

in which they may be easily accessed and taken away by the

officer or, and seize any article, commodity connected with or

which may be used as evidence that an offence has been

committed.

PART II

Agricultural Marketing Centres: Administration, Commercial Activity

and Restrictions

There shall be a marketing centre for the collection and sale

of local agricultural produce, to be known as the Agricultural

Marketing Centre at Ta’ Qali, in the limits of Attard.

(1) Any marketing centre shall be kept open on any day

during such hours as the Agency may fix from time to time by virtue of

a notice in the Gazette.

(2) The Agency may also determine the hours during which

farmers may take their local agricultural produce to any of the

marketing centres, as well as the hours during which such local

agricultural produce may be sold.

(1) No person may enter the marketing centre unless he is

provided with a pass issued by the Agency.

(2) Any person who is within the marketing centre shall

produce, on being so requested by authorised officials, the said pass.

No person other than a sales agent, a farmer, or a society

authorised by the Agency shall sell or otherwise dispose of local

agricultural produce to an agricultural retailer within the marketing

centres.

No farmer shall deliver for sale in the marketing centre,

local agricultural produce unless the produce exhibited at the top is a

fair sample of the entire contents delivered.

(1) No person shall purchase or sell local agricultural

produce from the marketing centre otherwise than by a sales method as

approved by the Agency.

(2)

No person purchasing local agricultural produce from the

marketing centre shall remove such produce or cause it to be removed

from the place at which the sale is held before he has obtained the

relative purchase delivery note issued through a system authorised by

the Agency.

(3) No person shall sell or keep for sale within the limits of any

marketing centre any imported fruits or vegetables or any other product

not related to local production.

(4)

The Agency may issue standards and shall also determine

(a) which standardised containers have been approved

for use in the marketing centre;

(b) which local agricultural produce entering or leaving

the marketing centre shall be carried in the said standardised

containers;

(c)

the weights and measures to be used; and

(d) the exact times when sales of local agricultural

produce may be held which shall be notified by the Agency

periodically.

(5) The Agency may impose a service fee on farmers who

deliver produce which fee shall be deducted from the payment due to

him and as published by virtue of a notice in the Gazette.

No agricultural retailer shall sell to a sales agent, a farmer Restriction of

or society agricultural produce other than local agricultural produce commercial

activities of

produced by the agricultural retailer himself.

agricultural

retailers.

The provisions of regulation 11 shall apply to local eggs in Applicability of

these

the same manner as they apply to local agricultural produce.

regulations to

local eggs.

Every sales agent, society or farmer shall keep a record of Sales records

all sales transactions in the form and media, as directed and approved that

kept by a sales

by the Agency. Such records shall be made available to the Agency as agent,

farmer.

required.

No live animals of any kind shall be allowed into or be kept Animals.

within the marketing centres.

PART III

Trade Matters

In this Part

''agricultural produce'' shall also mean imported fruit, imported

vegetables and fodder;

''Director'' means the Director of Trade.

(1) The Director may from time to time, by order in the

Gazette, fix the minimum and maximum price at which any

agricultural produce may be sold.

(2) Prices may be so fixed by the Director by using one or

more of the following methods

(a)

fixing stated maximum prices;

(b)

fixing maximum margins of profit;

(c)

fixing maximum percentages of profit.

(3) Any trader shall, if so required by the Director or by any

member of the Executive Police or by any person appointed under

article 4 of the Supplies and Services Act, or by any member of a body

of persons so appointed, produce on demand for examination any book

and document in his possession and to furnish him with all such

information in such form and within such time as may be specified in

the request.

(4) The Director may, in respect of any agricultural produce,

impose any such condition as he may deem fit with regards to its sale,

prohibition of sale or limitation of sale.

(1) Every trader shall conspicuously exhibit in his place

of business, every kind of agricultural produce held by him

Provided that, he may, in respect of one or more kinds,

exhibit only a sample thereof.

(2) The agricultural produce or sample thereof which shall be

exhibited shall bear a label showing the price at which that kind of

agricultural produce is being offered for sale and the unit of weight or

quantity to which the price refers.

(3) Where any kind of agricultural produce is kept in baskets or

other containers, the label shall be placed on each such basket or

container.

(4) The Director may, at his discretion, exempt one or more

traders or one or more classes of traders generally or in respect of one

or more kinds of agricultural produce specified by him, from the

obligations imposed by sub-regulations (1) and (2).

When a maximum selling price has been fixed under Prices marked

regulation 17, the price shown on the label mentioned in regulation 18 shall

maximum prices

shall not exceed the price so fixed.

fixed.

A trader in possession of stocks of any agricultural produce Hoarding of

which he does not expose for sale in his place of business or does not agricultural

produce.

store therein in sufficient quantities to meet daily demands, shall be

deemed to be hoarding or refusing to sell, and shall be guilty of an

offence.

No trader shall purchase any agricultural produce from any Prohibition of

purchasing from

unknown person.

unknown

person.

No trader selling agricultural produce by wholesale shall, Prohibition of

without reasonable cause, refuse to sell in reasonable quantities, to any refusal

without

person trading by retail any agricultural produce required in reasonable

cause.

connection with his business, and no person trading in retail shall

without reasonable cause refuse to sell to any consumer any

agricultural produce in quantities reasonably required for the normal

use and consumption of the consumer or his household or his

establishment

Provided that nothing in this regulation shall prevent any

consumer from making direct purchases from a trader selling by

wholesale.

No trader shall, in selling or in offering for sale any Prohibition of

agricultural produce, impose any conditions in connection with such conditions

additional to

sale other than the charging of the proper price.

(1) No person shall mark, offer for sale or sell or attempt Sale at

to sell any agricultural produce at an unreasonable price where no unreasonable

prices.

maximum price is fixed or above the maximum price fixed in respect

of such agricultural produce.

(2) Any profit exceeding the margin or percentage of profit

allowed under or for the purposes of these regulations shall be

conclusively deemed to make the price charged excessive.

PART IV

Offences and Penalties

Any decision of the Agency shall be subject to review by

the Administrative Review Tribunal established under article 5(1) of

the Administrative Justice Act.

(1) Any person who contravenes or fails to comply with

any of the provisions of these regulations shall be guilty of an offence

and shall be liable

(a) on a first conviction, to a fine (multa) of not less than

five hundred euro (€500) but not exceeding one thousand and

two hundred euro (€1,200);

(b) on a second or subsequent conviction, to a fine

(multa) of not less than one thousand and two hundred euro

(€1,200) but not exceeding two thousand and three hundred and

twenty-nine euro and thirty-seven cents (€2,329.37) or a fine

(multa) calculated on the profit made by the offender in

connection with the transaction in contravention to these

regulations, whichever is the higher

Provided that when the fine (multa) is so calculated, it may

not exceed five times the profit made by the offender.

(2) In addition to the penalties laid down in sub-regulation (1),

the court shall on the demand of the prosecution, order

(a) the suspension of the offender’s permit, pass, or

licence, for a period of not less than one (1) month but not

exceeding six (6) months, or the cancellation of any licence held

by the offender and relating to any trade or business to which the

offence relates, and shall order that any such cancelled licence

may not be re-issued in respect of the convicted offender;

(b) the forfeiture of the articles to which the offence

relates, and such articles shall be forfeited to the Government;

(c) the offender to a sentence of imprisonment for a term

of not less than thirty (30) days but not exceeding two (2) years.

(3) Offences against these regulations shall be deemed to be a

contraventions but proceedings in respect thereof may be commenced

at any time within one (1) year of the commission of the offence.

(4) The suspension of any licence ordered by the Court shall

have effect as from such date within twelve (12) days from the

judgment as the Director may specify in writing to the Registrar of

Courts or orally during the proceedings

Provided that in the case of an appeal against the judgment

of the Court of first instance, where the Court of Appeal orders or

confirms the suspension of a licence, such suspension shall have effect

as from such date as the Court of Appeal may determine.

(5) Proceedings in respect of an offence against these

regulations shall be taken before the Courts of Magistrates (Malta) or

the Court of Magistrates (Gozo), and the provisions of the Criminal Cap. 9.

Code relating to criminal proceedings before such court shall, subject

to the preceding sub-regulations of this regulation, apply in respect of

proceedings for offences against these regulations.

Any licence, permit or pass granted for the purpose of these Suspension or

regulations may be suspended or revoked at any time by the authority revocation

any licence,

or person empowered to grant it.

permit or pass.

The provisions of the Probation Act shall not be applicable Probation Act

shall not be

in respect of any offence against the provisions of these regulations.

applicable.

The court, by which a person is found guilty of selling Refunds.

agricultural produce at an unreasonable price or at a price higher than

the maximum price of such agricultural produce, may order the

offender to refund to the person to whom such agricultural produce

was sold either the overcharged portion of the price or such amount as

was in excess of the maximum price fixed by the Director

Provided that the refund shall be given within one (1)

month from the court’s order;

Provided further that a daily penalty of not less than four

euro and sixty-six cents (€4.66) shall be incurred for each day of

default from the court’s order

Provided further that the person to whom the refund is due may

recover the amount through civil proceedings before the competent

Civil Court and without prejudice to any right of appeal, any order by

the court to refund such amount shall constitute an executive title and

may be enforced by the creditor after two (2) days of service on the

debtor of a demand for payment made by a judicial act.

When an offence against these regulations is committed by

an individual acting in the name, or on behalf or in the interest of a

partnership or an association or other body or group of persons, or

when action is taken against an individual by virtue of his liability as a

director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of such body,

association or group as provided in article 13 of the Interpretation Act,

or by virtue of any liability under article 10 of the Supplies and

Services Act, and it results that an act or omission amounting to an

offence against these regulations has occurred, the provisions of

regulation 26 relating to the suspension or revocation of any licence

held by the offender or other person as aforesaid shall apply also to any

licence held by or in the name, or on behalf or in the interest of the

partnership, association or other body or group of persons of which the

offender or other person as aforesaid is a director, manager, secretary

or other officer or in whose name or interest or on whose behalf such

person was acting, and such licence shall equally be suspended or

cancelled accordingly.

Every trader as referred to in Part III shall take all such

steps as are required to ensure full compliance with all the provisions

of these regulations, and even when any offence against or non-

compliance with any provision of these regulations may be attributed

to any person in the employment of such trader or in the exercise of

any act or function authorised or permitted by the trader, such trader

shall also be guilty of that offence unless he proves that he took all

reasonable steps to prevent the commission of the offence.

The Marketing of Agricultural Produce Regulations and the

Agricultural Marketing Centres Regulations are hereby repealed and

any references in any law to the repealed regulations shall be

construed as references to these regulations

Provided that any orders and measures taken by virtue of

the repealed regulations shall remain in force as if made under these

regulations.

€0.81