L 146/48 Official Journal of the European Communities 11.6.1999 COMMISSION COMMISSION DECISION of 21 May 1999 authorising Member States to provide for derogations from certain provisions of Council Directive 77/93/EEC in respect of plants of strawberry (Fragaria L.), intended for planting, other than seeds, originating in the Republic of South Africa (notified under document number C(1999) 1336) (1999/383/EC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Directive 77/93/EEC of 21 December 1976 on protective measures against the intro- duction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products and against their spread within the Community ('), as last amended by Directive 98/2/EC (%), and in particular Article 14(1) thereof, Having regard to the request made by the United Kingdom, (1)  Whereas, under the provisions of Directive 77/ 93/EEC, plants of strawberry (Fragaria L., intended for planting, other than seeds, originating in non-European countries, other than Mediterra- nean countries, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the continental States of the USA, may in principle not be introduced into the Community; (2)  Whereas, there is interest in the multiplication, in the Republic of South Africa, of plants of Fragaria L., intended for planting, other than seeds, from plants supplied by a Member State, in order to prolong the producing season of the plants; whereas the plants produced are afterwards exported to the Community in order to have them planted for the production of fruits; () OJ L 26, 31.1.1977, p. 20. () OJ L 15, 21.1.1998, p. 34. @) ) () 0] 0J Whereas, by Decisions 97/488/EC(®) and 98/ 432/EC (*), Member States were authorised to provide, under certain conditions, for derogations from certain general rules of Directive 77/93/EEC for plants of strawberry (Fragaria L., intended for planting, other than seeds, originating in the Republic of South Africa; Whereas in the 1997 to 1998 import seasons there had been no confirmed findings of harmful organ- isms during import inspections on the plants imported pursuant to Decisions 97/488/EC and 98/ 432/EG; Whereas information supplied by the Republic of South Africa and collected in that country during a mission carried out in June 1998 by the Food and Veterinary Office, has shown that the strawberry plants supplied by a Member State, with a view to be multiplied for export afterwards to the Community, are grown under adequate health conditions in the Elliot district of the North Eastern Cape Region; Whereas, as a result of modified conditions after import of the South African plants, i.e. cold storage under official control before movement to the premises where the imported plants will be planted, it became apparent that certain technical conditions should be modified to improve plant health security in the Member States of the imported plants; L 208, 2.8.1997, p. 49. L 192, 8.7.1998, p. 16.