Commission Regulation (EC) No 504/97 of 19 March 1997 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 as regards the system of production aid for products processed from fruit and vegetables

• Coming into Force: 15 June 1998,15 June 1997,27 March 1997
• End of Effective Date: 30 August 2001
• Celex Number: 31997R0504
• ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/1997/504/oj
• Published date: 20 March 1997
• Date: 19 March 1997
• Official Gazette Publication: Official Journal of the European Communities, L 78, 20 March 1997

|

Commission Regulation (EC) No 504/97 of 19 March 1997 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 as regards the system of production aid for products processed from fruit and vegetables

Official Journal L 078 , 20/03/1997 P. 0014 - 0023

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 504/97 of 19 March 1997 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 as regards the system of production aid for products processed from fruit and vegetables

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 of 28 October 1996 on the common organization of the markets in processed fruit and vegetable products (1), and in particular Articles 1 (3), 4 (9) and 6 (5), 25, 26 and 27 (1) thereof,

Whereas Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 introduces a system of production aid for the products listed in Annex I thereto and obtained from fruit and vegetables harvested in the Community;

Whereas the products on which the aid is payable, and their marketing years, should be defined with a view to ensuring a uniform application of the arrangements;

Whereas, with a view to facilitating the way the arrangements operate, the authorities should be apprised of each processor wishing to qualify under the system; whereas processors should also notify the authorities of the information needed to ensure that the system operates correctly;

Whereas the new system must be capable of operating from the outset with a sufficient number of producer organizations; whereas, in accordance and by analogy with Council Regulation (EC) No 2202/96 of 28 October 1996 introducing a Community aid scheme for producers of certain citrus fruits (2), the term 'producer organizations . . . provisionally authorized` in the first subparagraph of Article 2 (2) of Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 must be interpreted as covering not only producer organizations provisionally recognized by virtue of Article 14 of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 of 28 October 1996 on the common organization of the market in fruit and vegetables (3) but also producer organizations as referred to in Article 13 of that Regulation;

Whereas the production aid system is based on contracts between producer organizations recognized or provisionally recognized pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 or individual producers during the period referred to in the second subparagraph of Article 2 (2) of Regulation (EC) No 2201/96, on the one hand, and processors, on the other hand; whereas, producers and producer organizations may also act as processors in certain circumstances; whereas the types of contracts and the particulars to be included therein should be specified with a view to the application of the aid system;

Whereas, such contracts must be concluded before the beginning of each marketing year; whereas the parties thereto should nevertheless be authorized to increase, by way of amendments thereto and within a definite ceiling, the quantities originally stipulated therein, so that the system may be as efficient as possible;

Whereas the tomato harvest depends on the area planted during the year in question and may accordingly vary substantially from year to year; whereas the quantities available for processing are consequently subject to fluctuations; whereas, in order to encourage producers to take account of the real needs of the processing industry and to adjust their areas planted in consequence, provision should be made for a system of preliminary contracts; whereas such contracts should be concluded before the planting period, in such a way that any planted area will produce only such quantities as can later be disposed of for processing;

Whereas the number of aid applications to be submitted by processors must be determined in line with processing; whereas aid applications must include all particulars necessary for calculating the aid to be paid to processors;

Whereas, the system of production aid set up by Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 is based essentially on direct relations between producer organizations and processors and on the obligation as to the minimum price; whereas it should be provided that a price at least equal to the minimum price for the raw material is to be paid direct by the processor to the producer organization by bank or postal transfer; whereas, in order to administer the system rationally and to facilitate controls, that obligation should be deemed to have been discharged once the processor has made the abovementioned transfer;

Whereas, in return for the obligations imposed on processors of processed tomato products, provision should be made for the possibility of provisional payment of part of the production aid; whereas such provisional payments must be subject to the lodging of a security guaranteeing reimbursement in cases where the conditions for receiving provisional production aid are not observed;

Whereas the quota system for processed tomato products provided for in Article 6 (2), (3) and (4) of Regulation (EC) No 2201/96 stipulates that quantities produced in excess of the quotas for which at least the minimum price was paid should be taken into account when apportioning annual quotas among the Member States and among undertakings; whereas, as a consequence, such quantities, which do not qualify for production aid, should be subject to the same provisions mutatis mutandis as quantities covered by the quotas;

Whereas, with a view to the correct application of the production aid system, processors should be under an obligation to keep suitable updated records for the purposes of any inspections and checks deemed necessary;

Whereas experience gained in the administration of the production aid system calls, on the one hand, for the provisions on controls to be stepped up by providing for checks to be carried out on a sufficiently representative number of aid applications and, on the other hand, for certain penalties to be laid down for failure by processors to comply with the legislation and in particular for any false declarations;

Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are to replace those laid down in Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1558/91 of 7 June 1991 laying down detailed rules for the application of the system of production aid for products processed from fruit and vegetables (4), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2529/95 (5); whereas that Regulation should accordingly be repealed;

Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Products Processed from Fruit and Vegetables,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

TITLE I

General provisions

Article 1

1. For the purposes of this Regulation:

(a) producer means any natural or legal person who grows on his holding raw material intended for processing;

(b) individual producers means producers not affiliated to any collective body, as referred to in the second subparagraph of Article 2 (2) of Regulation (EC) No 2201/96;

(c) producer organizations means producer organizations as referred to in Articles 11 and 13 of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 and producer organizations recognized provisionally by virtue of Article 14 thereof;

(d) associations of producer organizations means associations as referred to in Article 16 (3) of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96;

(e) processor means a processing enterprise operating, for economic ends and under its own responsibility, one or more plants having facilities for manufacturing one or more of the products listed in Annex I to Regulation (EC) No 2201/96;

(f) association of processors means an association of processors recognized by a Member State.

2. For the purposes of the system of production aid:

(a) peaches in syrup and/or in natural fruit juice means whole peaches or pieces of peaches, without peel, having undergone a heat treatment, packed in hermetically sealed containers with a covering liquid of sugar syrup or natural fruit juice and covered by CN codes ex 2008 70 61, ex 2008 70 69, ex 2008 70 71, ex 2008 70 79, ex 2008 70 92, ex 2008 70 94 and ex 2008 70 99;

(b) Williams and Rocha pears in syrup and/or in natural fruit juice means pears of the Williams or Rocha varieties, whole or in pieces, without peel, having undergone a heat treatment, packed in hermetically sealed containers with a covering liquid of sugar syrup or natural fruit juice and covered by CN codes ex 2008 40 51, ex 2008 40 59, 2008 40 71, ex 2008 40 79, ex 2008 40 91 and ex 2008 40 99;

(c) prunes means prunes obtained from dried plums of the prunes d'Ente variety which have been suitably treated or processed and are packed in appropriate containers, covered by CN code ex 0813 20 00 and ready to be offered for human consumption;

(d) dried figs means dried figs, including fig paste, which have been suitably treated or processed and are packed in appropriate containers, covered by CN code ex 0804 20 90 and ready to be offered for human consumption;

(e) unprocessed dried figs means dried figs which have not been treated in such a way that they are ready to be offered for human consumption;

(f) whole peeled quick-frozen tomatoes means peeled tomatoes of the San Marzano, Roma or similar varieties, frozen, packed in appropriate containers and covered by CN code ex 0710 80 70, where not less than 90 % of the net weight of the tomatoes consists of whole tomatoes not showing any damage which substantially alters their appearance. That percentage shall be determined after the tomatoes have been thawed;

(g) non-whole quick-frozen tomatoes means pieces of peeled tomatoes of the San Marzano, Roma or similar varieties, or round varieties which are as easy to peel as the said varieties, preserved by freezing, packed in appropriate containers and covered by CN code ex 0710 80 70;

(h) whole peeled...