1.8.2008 Official Journal of the European Union L 205/3 COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 753/2008 of 31 July 2008 amending Regulation (EC) No 1299/2007 on the recognition of producer groups for hops THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 of 22 October 2007 establishing a common organisation of agri- cultural markets and on specific provisions for certain agri- cultural products (Single CMO Regulation) ('), and in particular Article 127 in conjunction with Article 4 thereof, Whereas: (1) ) ) ) O] L 299, 16.11.2007, p. Council Regulation (EC) No 1952/2005 of 23 November 2005 concerning the common organisation of the market in hops (?) is to be repealed from 1 July 2008 under  Article  201(1)(c) of  Regulation  (EC) No 1234/2007 (Single CMO Regulation). Certain provisions relating to the producer groups laid down in Regulation (EC) No 1952/2005 have not been incorporated in the Single CMO Regulation. In order to enable the hops sector to continue to function properly, it is necessary to lay down those provisions in Commission Regulation (EC) No 1299/2007 of 6 November 2007 on the recognition of producer groups for hops (?). The Single CMO Regulation has laid down in Article 122 the general conditions for the recognition of producer organisations by the Member States. Those conditions should be specified for the hops sector. For sake of consistency, the term ‘producer groups’ should continue to be used in that sector. To avoid any discrimination between producers and to ensure the unity and effectiveness of any action undertaken, conditions should be laid down, for the whole of the Community, with which producer groups must comply in order to be recognised by the Member States. To achieve an effective centralisation of supply, it is necessary in particular that the groups should be of an economically viable size and that the entire output of producers should be marketed either directly by the group or by the producers, according to common rules. 1. Regulation as last amended by Commission Regulation (EC) No 510/2008 (O] L 149, 7.6.2008, p. 61). OJ L 314, 30.11.2005, p. 1. OJ L 289, 7.11.2007, p. 4. ©) Regulation (EC) No 1299/2007 should be amended accordingly. The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for the Common Organisation of Agricultural Markets, HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: Article 1 Regulation (EC) No 1299/2007 is amended as follows: 1. Article 1 is replaced by the following: ‘Article 1 1. The authority competent to recognise producer organ- isations as provided for in Article 122 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 (), hereinafter referred to as “producer groups”, shall be the Member State within whose territory the producer group has its registered office. 2. Member States shall recognise producer groups which request recognition and fulfil the following general conditions: (a) they have legal personality or sufficient legal capacity to be subject, under national legislation, to rights and obli- gations; (b) they apply common rules for production and the first marketing stage within the meaning of the second sub- paragraph; (c) their statutes include an obligation for producers who are members of groups to: (i) comply with the common rules on production and decisions on the varieties to be grown; (i) market all their produce through the group;