1. Upon the request of a producer organisation recognised under Article 152(3), an interbranch organisation recognised under Article 157(3) or a group of operators referred to in Article 3(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012, Member States may lay down, for a limited period of time, binding rules for the regulation of the supply of cheese benefiting from a protected designation of origin or from a protected geographical indication under Article 5(1) and (2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012.
2. The rules referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be subject to the existence of a prior agreement between the parties in the geographical area referred to in point (c) of Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012. Such an agreement shall be concluded between at least two-thirds of the milk producers or their representatives representing at least two thirds of the raw milk used for the production of the cheese referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article and, where relevant, at least two-thirds of the producers of that cheese representing at least two thirds of the production of that cheese in the geographical area referred to in point (c) of Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012.
3. For the purpose of paragraph 1, concerning cheese benefiting from a protected geographical indication, the geographical area of origin of the raw milk, as set in the product specification for the cheese, shall be the same as the geographical area referred to in point (c) of Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 relating to that cheese.
4. The rules referred to in paragraph 1:
(a)
shall only cover the regulation of supply of the product concerned and shall have the aim of adapting the supply of that cheese to demand;
(b)
shall have effect only on the product concerned;
(c)
may be made binding for no more than three years and may be renewed after this period, following a new request, as referred to in paragraph 1;
(d)
shall not damage the trade in products other than those concerned by those rules;
(e)
shall not relate to any transaction after the first marketing of the cheese concerned;
(f)
shall not allow for price fixing, including where prices are set for guidance or recommendation;
(g)
shall not render unavailable an excessive proportion of the product concerned that would otherwise be available;
(h)
shall not create discrimination, constitute a barrier for new entrants in the market, or lead to small producers being adversely affected;
(i)
shall contribute to maintaining the quality and/or the development of the product concerned;
(j)
shall be without prejudice to Article 149.
5. The rules referred to in paragraph 1 shall be published in an official publication of the Member State concerned.
6. Member States shall carry out checks in order to ensure that the conditions laid down in paragraph 4 are complied with, and, where it has been found by the competent national authorities that such conditions have not been complied with, shall repeal the rules referred to in paragraph 1.
7. Member States shall notify the Commission forthwith of the rules referred to in paragraph 1 which they have adopted. The Commission shall inform other Member States of any notification of such rules.
8. The Commission may at any time adopt implementing acts requiring that a Member State repeal the rules laid down by that Member State pursuant to paragraph 1 if the Commission finds that those rules do not comply with the conditions laid down in paragraph 4, prevent or distort competition in a substantial part of the internal market or jeopardise free trade or the attainment of the objectives of Article 39 TFEU. Those implementing acts shall be adopted without applying the procedure referred to in Article 229(2) or (3) of this Regulation.