Cap. 427 Art. 2Definitions.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires -

"advertisement" includes any notice, device, circular, label, packaging, invoice, document, representation, broadcast or public announcement, visual or acoustic presentation or both, and "to advertise" shall be construed accordingly; "consumer" shall have the meaning assigned to it by article 2 of the Consumer Affairs Act and shall include any person who otherwise than in the course of a business, trade or profession, buys or otherwise purchases or otherwise acquires products;

"court" means the Court of Magistrates sitting as a court of criminal judicature; "Director General" means the Director General (Technical Regulations) as appointed by article 19 of the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority Act; "distributor" includes any person in the supply chain whose activity does not affect the safety properties of a product and shall include wholesalers, retailers, commission agents and other intermediaries; "foodstuff" means any substance or product, whether processed, partially processed or unprocessed, intended to be ingested by humans, with the exception of:

(a) medicinal products, that is any substance or combination of substances presented for treating or preventing disease in human beings or animals; it also includes any substance or combination of substances which may be administered to human beings or animals with a view to making a medical diagnosis or to restoring, correcting or modifying physiological functions in human beings or in animals;

(b) tobacco products, that is products for the purpose of smoking, sniffing, sucking or chewing, inasmuch as they are, even partly, made of tobacco;

(c) water intended for human consumption, that is all water used for that purpose, either in its original state or after treatment, regardless of origin, whether supplied for consumption, or whether used in a food production undertaking for the manufacture, processing, preservation or marketing of products or substances intended for human consumption and affecting the wholesomeness of the foodstuff in its finished form;

(d) natural mineral waters, that is microbiologically wholesome water, originating in an underground water table or deposit and emerging from a spring tapped at one or more natural or bore exits, and which can be clearly distinguished from ordinary drinking water by its nature and by its original state, both characteristics having been preserved intact because of the underground nature of such water;

(e) narcotic or psychotropic substances, as the term is defined in the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Pyschotropic Substances, adopted on the 19th December, 1988 in Vienna, to which Malta is a party; "licence" includes trading licences and any other commercial or operating licences; ''Malta" has the same meaning as is assigned to it by article 124 of the Constitution; "Minister" means the Minister responsible for consumer affairs and includes, to the extent of the authority given, any person or authority authorised by him to act in that behalf for any purpose of this Act;

"premises" includes any stall, stand, kiosk, vehicle, aircraft, seacraft and any other place other than premises used for dwelling purposes, where a trade or business is carried out or may take place, and shall also include vending machines, whether or not situated on business premises;

"producer" means:

(a) the manufacturer of the product, when he is established in Malta, and any other person presenting himself as the manufacturer by affixing to the product his name, trade mark or other distinctive mark, or

(b) the person who reconditions the product; or

(c) the manufacturer’s representative, when the manufacturer is not established in Malta or, if there is no representative established in Malta, the importer of the product; or

(d) others in the supply chain, in so far as their activities may affect the safety aspects of a product placed on the market;

"product" includes any manufactured article, item or substance which is intended or offered for use by consumers or is likely to be used by consumers, supplied whether for consideration or otherwise in the course of a trade or business and whether new, used or reconditioned, but excludes:

(a) used products supplied as antiques;

(b) products which are to be repaired or reconditioned prior to being used, provided that the supplier clearly informs the persons to whom he supplies the product to that effect;

(c) medicinal products as defined in this Act;

(d) foodstuffs as defined in this Act;

"proprietor", in relation to a manufacturing undertaking, means the person or persons by whom the trade or business is carried on, and includes owners and occupiers of premises where such undertaking is carried out and holders of licences in respect of any such undertaking or premises; "safe product" means any product which, under normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use, including duration, and, where applicable, putting into service, installation and maintenance requirements does not present any risk or only the minimum risks, compatible with the product’s use, which are considered as acceptable and consistent with a high level of protection for the safety and health of persons, taking into account in particular the following factors:

(a) the characteristics of the product, including its composition, packaging, instructions for assembly and maintenance;

(b) the effect on other products, where it is reasonably foreseeable that it will be used with other products;

(c) the presentation of the product, the labelling, any instructions for its use and disposal and any other indication or information provided by the producer;

(d) the categories of consumers at risk when using the product, in particular children, the disabled and the elderly: Provided that the possibility of obtaining higher levels of safety or the availability of other products presenting a lesser degree of risk shall not constitute grounds for considering a product to be an unsafe product; "sale" includes -

(a) the supply of products sold, hired or supplied or offered for sale or hire in the course of a trade or business, and any other activity concerning products which the Minister may, from time to time, specify by regulations made under this Act;

(b) the supply of any product which, for marketing or advertising purposes, is offered as a prize or reward or is otherwise given in connection with any public entertainment, whether such entertainment is provided against payment or gratuitously; and

(c) the supply of products in the course of the provision of a service to a consumer by a third party; "standard" shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority Act; "Technical Regulations Division" means the Technical Regulations Division, as established by article 19 of the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority; ''unsafe product'' means any product that does not conform to the definition of "safe product".