CHAPTER II

Without prejudice to Article 13, this Regulation shall not affect the use of terms that are generic in the Union, even if the generic term is part of a name that is protected under a quality scheme. To establish whether or not a term has become generic, account shall be taken of all relevant factors, in particular: the existing situation in areas of consumption; the relevant national or Union legal acts. In order to fully protect the rights of interested parties, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts, in accordance with Article 56, laying down additional rules for determining the generic status of terms referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article. This Regulation shall not prevent the placing on the market of products the labelling of which includes a name or term protected or reserved under a quality scheme described in Title II, Title III, or Title IV that contains or comprises the name of a plant variety or animal breed, provided that the following conditions are met: the product in question comprises or is derived from the variety or breed indicated; consumers are not misled; the usage of the name of the variety or breed name constitutes fair competition; the usage does not exploit the reputation of the protected term; and in the case of the quality scheme described in Title II, production and marketing of the product had spread beyond its area of origin prior to the date of application for registration of the geographical indication. In order to further clarify the extent of rights and freedoms of food business operators to use the name of a plant variety or of an animal breed referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts, in accordance with Article 56, concerning rules for determining the use of such names. The quality schemes described in Titles III and IV shall apply without prejudice to Union rules or to those of Member States governing intellectual property, and in particular to those concerning designations of origin and geographical indications and trade marks, and rights granted under those rules.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-08 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.