Jaap Delleman

RUCIP was established back in 1956 to professionalise the European potato trade. The system provides standardised rules for contracts, quality assessment, and dispute resolution. Where the original version consisted of printed documents, RUCIP 2025 fully reflects today’s digital practice. According to the European RUCIP delegate Christina Pohlmann, this modernisation was long overdue. “The text is now easier to read, procedures are faster and all communication can now take place digitally,” she explaines.
The rules are managed by Europatat, the European Potato Trade Association, and the EUPPA, the European Potato Processors’ Association. Together they form the RUCIP European Committee in Brussels, which works with the national secretariats – such as the Dutch Potato Organisation (NAO) – to ensure implementation across member states. In the Netherlands, the NAO cooperates with the Institute for Agricultural Law in Wageningen.

Three pillars of RUCIP

The RUCIP system is structured around three pillars. The Rules and Practices define the general trading rules; the Rules for Expert Assessment establish how accredited experts assess potato quality, and the Rules for Arbitration lay down the relevant rules for arbitrations. The arbitration system prevents disputes from escalating to civil courts. A key update is that all appendices, such as tolerance tables, definitions and standard forms, are now fully integrated into the document and available online at www.rucip.eu. The authoritative version for disputes is the English language version of RUCIP, reflecting the international nature of the potato trade, where English is primarily the working language. Terminology has also been modernised, for example, the term ‘new potatoes’ has been replaced by ‘early potatoes’, and provisions on packaging, temperature control and transport have been clarified.

Timeliness and diligence are crucial

Applying RUCIP is straightforward but requires discipline. Once the sentence ‘under RUCIP’ is included in a contract, both buyer and seller agree to the RUCIP trading conditions and the associated expert assessment and arbitration rules. In the event of a dispute, a party may request arbitration, avoiding the need for civil proceedings. According to Domenico Citterio, chair of the Europatat RUCIP commission, the strength of the system lies in clarity and speed. “RUCIP only works if everyone respects the agreed deadlines,” he stressed. “A claim concerning the quality of potatoes must be reported before unloading, or at the latest within one working day after arrival, provided the batch is still identifiable. Every step, from notification to expert assessment, has strict deadlines. Anyone who misses them loses their rights. That is how we keep trade smooth and avoid endless disputes.”
That principle is now also explicitly included in the text: “Failure to respect time = loss of rights.” Citterio calls this the backbone of RUCIP. “Without clear deadlines, the speed of the system would be lost. Timeliness is not just a formality; it is a guarantee of mutual trust.” Citterio also emphasised that all communication must be documented in writing, which can now also be done by email or messaging apps. “A phone call is fine to highlight something, but then that must be recorded in writing. That proof is essential for experts and arbitrators to make their assessment.”

Expert assessment and arbitration by industry professionals

In the event of a quality dispute, either party may request an expert assessment. A certified RUCIP expert inspects the batch of potatoes and produces an official report. The expert does not provide an opinion about blame or damages, but records factual findings. If disagreement persists between the parties, arbitration follows at the national secretariat or, where absent, at the European Delegate level. A key advantage of RUCIP is that arbitration is carried out by industry professionals. This is where the system differs from civil proceedings, where judges generally lack practical knowledge of potatoes or trading practices. “Under RUCIP, you know the arbitrators understand the market reality,” says Citterio. “They understand normal tolerances, what impact weather can have and how contracts work in practice.” This expertise makes proceedings not only fairer, but also faster. While legal proceedings may take two to three years, RUCIP arbitration typically provides clarity within six to twelve months. Costs are also predictable: the website rucip.eu outlines fixed fee structures depending on the value of a claim. Disputes up to Euro 25,000 are dealt with by just one arbitrator. Higher value cases are decided by a panel of three arbitrators. Decisions are binding and confidential, preventing reputational damage. Citterio cites this as one of the greatest strengths of the system. “It is by the sector, for the sector. The rules are legally solid but remain practical. You get a clear answer quickly, without being trapped in lengthy litigation or costly legal proceedings.”

Clear rules on force majeure

A key part of the revision concerns the chapter on force majeure, or events beyond the control of parties. Article 26 defines this as circumstances beyond the control of the parties which a diligent party could not have avoided and whose consequences they could not reasonably have prevented, when such circumstances arise after the conclusion of the contract, and make its performance wholly or partially impossible. Examples include war, revolution, strikes, blockades, import or export bans, significant legislative changes, natural disasters, or extreme weather conditions that make loading impossible. An accident involving the truck is explicitly not considered to be force majeure.
The party invoking force majeure must inform the other party in writing as soon as possible, and no later than within thirty days, including a substantiation of the reason. If this is not done in time, the right to invoke force majeure lapses, unless there are compelling circum­stances. For as long as the force majeure situation persists, deliveries are suspended and deadlines are extended by the duration of the impediment. Only in the case of early potatoes must the parties make new arrangements. If the situation lasts longer than thirty days, either party may terminate the contract without a penalty being incurred, provided they were not in default when the force majeure began. When weather conditions make the harvesting of early potatoes impossible, the seller is not obliged to deliver, provided that the buyer is informed immediately in writing.
Notably, potatoes for the processing industry are now also covered by the force majeure clause. In the previous version, an exception applied, but this has been removed. This places processors on an equal footing with other segments in the supply chain, creating greater consis­tency in European trading practice.

Certainty for the sector

The new RUCIP rules bring not only legal innovation, but also greater transparency. Every lot of potatoes is assigned a unique number, allowing its origin and identity to be established at all times. The tolerance tables for seed potatoes, early potatoes, and table potatoes have been moved to separate appendices, making them easier to apply in day-to-day practice.
According to Jan Gottschall, secretary of the Dutch Potato Organisation (NAO), the new rules primarily provide greater clarity. “RUCIP provides a common basis for European trade,” he writes in his column on our website. “Given the international nature of the potato market and increasing digitalisation, and the resulting acceleration in transaction processing, that basis is indispensable. RUCIP prevents misunderstandings and strengthens trust between parties.”
During the webinar, the RUCIP Committee also emphasised that the strength of the system lies not only in the rules themselves, but also in the people who apply them. For this reason, new training programmes for arbitrators, experts and national secretariats will be introduced in the coming years, ensuring that RUCIP is applied uniformly across all member states. This ensures the system remains not only legally robust, but also future-oriented and firmly grounded in real-world practice within the potato sector.

Modern standard

With the 2025 revision, RUCIP has evolved into a modern standard that connects the entire European potato supply chain. The rules are legally sound, can be applied digitally and aligned with today’s reality. According to the chair, anyone trading potatoes internationally cannot operate without these rules. RUCIP has become the language of the trade, a language that, thanks to the 2025 edition, is clearer,
fairer, and more future-proof than ever. ●