Central Marketing Society of the German Agricultural Industry

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CMA Centrale Marketing-Gesellschaft der deutschen Agrarwirtschaft mbH iL

logo
legal form Company with limited liability
founding 1970
resolution March 5, 2009
Reason for dissolution Shareholder resolution
Seat Bonn
management Friedrich Wolf, liquidator
Number of employees 21 (2010)
Branch Agricultural marketing
Website cma.de

The CMA Centrale Marketing-Gesellschaft der deutschen Agrarwirtschaft mbH (CMA) was a German agricultural marketing organization. She advertised agricultural products and provided information about the production and use of food . She intended to create and promote awareness of the value of these products.

Companies

The CMA was founded in 1970 as the successor to the working group Agrarexport, which was founded in 1958 to promote the export of the German agriculture, forestry and food industry and was based in Bonn - Bad Godesberg . It was organized under private law in the legal form of a GmbH . The shareholders were 41 leading associations of the German agriculture and food industry , including

The CMA had around 150 employees and thirteen foreign offices.

On March 5, 2009 - as a result of the judgment of the Federal Constitutional Court on the sales fund of February 3, 2009 - the liquidation of the CMA was decided in an extraordinary shareholders' meeting ( Section 60 (1) No. 2 GmbHG ), as the financing is now due to the fact that compulsory levies are no longer applicable was at risk. The liquidation is over. Society is erased.

financing

The CMA was financed to 90% by the sales fund founded on June 26, 1969 as an institution under public law . This raised the CMA contributions from farms in the agriculture and food industry , which averaged 0.4% of the value of the goods. In addition, the CMA received grants from EU funds . Income was also generated from collaborations with third parties - for example training events or trade fair appearances . The CMA is said to have considerable reserves at its disposal; members of the Bundestag said they were 400 million euros in 2005.

After complaints from contributors who complained about the lack of equivalent value for their contributions, the Federal Constitutional Court dealt with the compulsory levy to the sales fund. The supervisory board of the sales fund decided on September 27, 2006 to drastically reduce expenditure. The CMA had to cut its budget by 50% to 50 million euros. This has challenged several campaigns , including a. the continuation of the sponsorship of the ARD - Sportschau at the end of the 2006/07 season.

On February 3, 2009 the Federal Constitutional Court declared the compulsory contributions to finance the sales fund and its two implementing companies , the CMA and the ZMP , to be unconstitutional. According to media reports, there were significant problems with the liquidation of the CMA. In Rostock alone, 2,500 euro pallets with advertising material were stored in a warehouse, which had to be cleared by December 31, 2009.

tasks and goals

"Much Pig for the Mark" , a special campaign for the marketing of pork (1974)

The CMA was supposed to promote agricultural products from German production through community marketing. According to its own information, it tried to promote the sale of meat , milk , poultry , eggs , fruit and vegetables and had the goal of strengthening the position of German agriculture at home and abroad .

In order to pursue these goals, the CMA cooperated, for example, with public broadcasters , created information materials for consumers and multipliers such as teachers , journalists and nutritionists , participated in trade fairs and events and supported regional initiatives of the German agriculture and food industry .

The CMA has been involved in quality testing and control since 1972 . In addition, agricultural products received the CMA seal of approval. This used to be called “brand quality from Germany”, but was changed to “tested brand quality” due to a ruling by the European Court of Justice , according to which the state-regional origin of agricultural products could no longer be advertised. Designations such as “good things from Germany” were also banned by the ECJ, provided this advertising was financed with state funds.

The CMA participated in the QS certification mark , which was introduced in 2001 as the seal of the food industry; The production control is carried out by QS Qualität und Sicherheit GmbH , an association of food industry associations and companies. In addition to three other u. a. the German Farmers' Association (DBV) and the German Raiffeisen Association (DRV).

The CMA was also one of the founding shareholders of the companies Orgainvent (meat labeling ) and Agrizert ( quality management : training , certification ), which are also active in quality assurance .

criticism

The advertising measures of the CMA were repeatedly criticized by parts of the industry as ineffective and unsuccessful.

The award of conventional quality with a special seal , the QS certification mark , was criticized by critics such as Foodwatch as misleading consumers about the actual quality.

Since a ruling by the European Court of Justice in 2002 (ECJ, Case C-325/00), the CMA was also no longer allowed to specifically advertise German products, as, as a quasi-state body, it was not allowed to discriminate against the products of other European manufacturers. The advertising slogan brand quality from Germany was then no longer allowed to be used. The aim of promoting German agriculture was thus impaired. This was ultimately the reason for the liquidation of the CMA; because the unconstitutionality of the financing of the CMA apparently lacked the voluntary willingness of the compulsory contribution payers to transfer money to the CMA.

In addition, vegans and vegetarians in particular criticized the CMA for the fact that many of the products it advertises are linked to the exploitation of animals.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Günter Wilitzki: Functional export promotion: Significance, tasks and working method, illustrated using the example of the Berlin Sales Organization GmbH , print Ernst-Reuter-Gesellschaft, 1963, p. 52. (also dissertation Freie Universität Berlin, 1962)
  2. ↑ Hans Otzen: The agricultural export of the Federal Republic of Germany (= agricultural policy and market system , no . 14). Parey, 1974, ISBN 3-490-13615-2 , p. 26.
  3. ↑ bundesverfassungsgericht.de
  4. ↑ https://www.online-handelsregister.de/handelsregisterauszug/nw/Bonn/C/CMA+Centrale+Marketing-Gesellschaft+der+deutschen+Agrarwirtschaft+mbH/633028
  5. ↑ a b Hanna Gersmann , Steffen Grimberg: And meat beckons forever. In: the daily newspaper. January 21, 2005, accessed September 17, 2009 .
  6. ↑ Michael Lohse: CMA and ZMP are indispensable - sales funds - considerate reactions required. German Farmers' Association, October 10, 2006, accessed on September 17, 2009 .
  7. ↑ Federal Constitutional Court - Press Office - Press Release No. 10/2009: Transfer to the sales fund of the agriculture and food industry is not compatible with the Basic Law. Retrieved February 3, 2009 .
  8. ↑ Federal Constitutional Court: Transfer to the sales fund of the agriculture and food industry is not compatible with the Basic Law - full text of the judgment Az. 2 BvL 54/06. Retrieved February 4, 2009 .
  9. ↑ Jochen Schuster: Leftovers from the farmer. In: Focus Online. March 8, 2009, accessed March 10, 2010 .
  10. ↑ Burkhard Riering: Agricultural marketing company loses half of its budget. In: Die Welt Online. October 9, 2006, accessed September 17, 2009 .
  11. ↑ Susanne Amann: Farmer Heitlinger fights the system. In: Spiegel Online. Retrieved February 3, 2009 .
  12. ↑ Judgment of the European Court of Justice on the free movement of goods - measures equivalent effect - quality and origin marks , November 5, 2002
  13. ↑ CMA milk campaigns  ( page can no longer be accessed , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. berlinvegan, accessed May 15, 2010@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.berlin-vegan.de