COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 562/2000
of 15 March 2000
laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 as regards the buying-in of beef
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in beef and veal(1), and in particular Article 27(4), Article 41 and Article 47(8) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) From 1 July 2002, after a transitional period during which the previous buying-in arrangements are to continue to apply, Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 introduces a single buying-in scheme to replace the buying-in arrangements provided for in Council Regulation (EEC) No 805/68(2), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1633/98(3). In view of that new scheme, Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2456/93 of 1 September 1993 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 805/68 as regards the general and special intervention measures for beef(4), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2304/98(5), must be amended. On the occasion of that amendment, for the sake of clarity, that Regulation should be recast. To ensure a smooth switchover to the new Regulation, the provisions now in force should be maintained until the second invitation to tender of March 2000. Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1627/89 of 9 June 1989 on the buying-in of beef by invitation to tender(6), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 34/2000(7), should also be repealed with effect from 1 July 2002.
(2) Furthermore, certain rules of application should be supplemented or spelt out more clearly to take account of experience gained and specific problems encountered previously in the way public intervention operated. Such essentially technical rules relate in particular to the presentation, take-over, inspection and storage of the products bought in.
(3) Since Article 47 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 provides for the current buying-in arrangements to continue to apply until 30 June 2002, transitional provisions setting out detailed rules of application specific to those arrangements must be laid down.
(4) Article 27(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 ties the opening of public intervention to the average market price in a Member State or region of a Member State. Rules must accordingly be laid down for calculating the market prices in the Member States, in particular as regards the qualities to be used and weighting, the coefficients to be used for converting them into the reference quality grade R3 and the mechanisms for opening and closing buying-in.
(5) The conditions for eligibility must rule out products that are not representative of national production of the Member State and that do not meet the health and veterinary rules in force and those over a weight normally sought after on the market. The eligibility of beef carcases of grade O3, which can be bought in in Ireland, should also be extended to Northern Ireland in order to prevent deflections of trade that might disturb the beef market in that part of the Community.
(6) Specific rules on identifying eligible carcases should be laid down requiring the slaughter number to be stamped on the inner side of each quarter. As regards presentation, carcases should be cut in a uniform manner to facilitate the disposal of the cuts, improve monitoring of boning operations and as a result ensure that the cuts meet the same definition throughout the Community. To that end, carcases should be straight cut and forequarters and hindquarters should be defined as five-rib and eight-rib respectively in order to reduce to the minimum the number of boneless cuts and trimmings and to make the best use of the products obtained.
(7) In order to prevent speculation that could distort the true market situation, interested parties should each be able to submit only one tender per category in response to each invitation to tender. In order to prevent the use of frontmen, "interested parties" should be defined as including only the category of operators who are traditionally involved in intervention by virtue of their economic activities.
(8) In view of experience gained in the area of tender submission, provision should also be made for interested parties to take part in invitations to tender, where appropriate, on the basis of contracts concluded with the intervention agencies in accordance with conditions to be stipulated in the specifications.
(9) More precise rules should be laid down on the lodging of securities in cash so that intervention agencies can accept cheque guarantees.
(10) Following the ban on the use of any specified risk material and in order to take into account the resulting increase in costs and fall in income in the beef and veal sector, the increase applicable to the average market price and used to determine the maximum buying-in price should be aligned as from 1 July 2002 on the highest amount at the time.
(11) As far as the delivery of the products is concerned, in the light of experience the intervention agencies should be authorised, where applicable, to reduce the time limit for delivery of the products in order to prevent deliveries relating to two successive invitations to tender from overlapping.
(12) The risks of irregularities are particularly high when carcases bought in are boned systematically. Intervention centres' refrigeration and cutting plants should therefore be required to be independent of the slaughterhouses and the successful tenderers concerned. To deal with any practical difficulties that may arise in certain Member States, derogations from that principle may be allowed, provided that the quantities boned are strictly limited and the checks conducted on take-over enable the boned meat to be traced and manipulations to be ruled out as far as possible. In the light of the latest investigations, greater emphasis must be laid on checks of residues of prohibited substances in meat, and in particular those substances having a hormonal action.
(13) Only products meeting the quality and presentation requirements laid down by Community regulations may be taken over by intervention agencies. Experience shows that certain detailed rules should be laid down on take-over and checks. Provision should be made in particular for a preliminary inspection to be carried out at the slaughterhouse to eliminate ineligible meat at an early stage. In order to improve the reliability of the procedure for the acceptance of products delivered, qualified officials whose impartiality is guaranteed by their independence from the interested parties concerned and by their periodic rotation should be employed. The points to be covered by inspections should also be specified.
(14) With a view to improving checks by intervention agencies on take-over of the products, the provisions on the procedure applied, in particular, for defining consignments, for preliminary inspections and for checking the weight of the products bought in should be made clearer. To that end, the provisions on the monitoring of boning of meat bought in and the rejection of products should be stricter. This also applies to inspections of products during storage.
(15) The provisions applicable to carcases must stipulate in particular the way they are to be hung and specify any damage or handling liable to affect the commercial quality of the products or to contaminate them that is to be avoided during processing.
(16) The freezing procedure has a direct effect on the quality and preservation of stored meat. Bone-in meat should accordingly be blastfrozen in the unwrapped state immediately after acceptance and should not be wrapped until immediately thereafter.
(17) In order to ensure that boning is carried out properly, cutting plants should have one or more blast freezers nearby. Derogations from this requirement should be keep to an absolute minimum. The conditions governing the constant and continuous physical monitoring of boning should be stipulated, in particular by requiring inspectors to be independent and laying down a minimum number of checks to be conducted.
(18) The rules on the storage of cuts must enable them to be identified easily. To that end, the competent national authorities must in particular take the necessary measures as regards traceability and storage with a view to facilitating the subsequent disposal of products bought in, by taking into account any requirements relating to the veterinary health status of the animals from which the products come. Furthermore, with a view to improving storage of cuts and simplifying identification, packing should be standardised and cuts should be designated by their full names or Community codes.
(19) The provisions on packing in cartons, pallets and cages should be tightened up to facilitate the identification and improve the preservation of products in storage, to step up the fight against fraud and to improve access to products with a view to their inspection and disposal.
(20) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Beef and Veal,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Scope
This Regulation lays down detailed rules for the buying-in of beef as provided for in Articles 27 and 47 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999.
CHAPTER I
BUYING-IN
Section 1
General rules
Article 2
Intervention regions in the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom shall consist of two intervention regions as follows:
- region I: Great Britain,
- region II: Northern Ireland.
Article 3
Opening and closure of buying-in by invitation to tender
Article 27 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 shall apply in accordance with the following rules:
(a) with a view to ascertaining that the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 of that Article are fulfilled:
- the average market price by eligible category in a Member State or in a region thereof shall take account of the prices for qualities U, R and O, expressed in quality R3 using the coefficients set out in Annex I, in the Member State or region concerned,
- the average market prices shall be recorded in accordance with the conditions and in respect of the qualities laid down in Commission Regulation. (EEC) No 295/96(8),
- the average market price by eligible category in a Member State or a region thereof shall be the average of the market prices for all the qualities referred to in the second indent, weighted by the proportion each represents of total slaughterings in that Member State or region;
(b) decisions to open buying-in shall be made by category and Member State or region thereof on the basis of the two most recent weekly market prices recorded;
(c) decisions to close buying-in shall be made by category and Member State or region thereof on the basis of the most recent weekly market prices recorded.
Article 4
Conditions for the eligibility of products
1. The products listed in Annex II and falling within the following categories defined in Article 3(1) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1208/81(9) may be bought in:
(a) meat of uncastrated young male animals of less than two years of age (category A);
(b) meat of castrated male animals (category C).
2. Carcases and half carcases may be bought in only where they:
(a) have obtained the health mark referred to in Chapter XI of Annex I to Council Directive 64/433/EEC(10);
(b) have no characteristics rendering them unfit for storage or subsequent use;
(c) do not come from animals slaughtered as a result of emergency measures;
(d) originate in the Community within the meaning of Article 39 of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2454/93(11);
(e) are derived from animals raised in accordance with the prevailing veterinary requirements;
(f) do not exceed the maximum radioactivity levels permitted under Community regulations. The level of radioactive contamination of the product shall be monitored only if the situation so requires and only for as long as is necessary. The duration and scope of any controls necessary shall be determined in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 43 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999;
(g) come from carcases not weighing more than 340 kg.
3. Carcases and half carcases may be bought in only where they are:
(a) presented, where appropriate after cutting into quarters at the expense of the party concerned, in accordance with Annex III; all parts of the carcase must be inspected to assess compliance with the requirements of point 2 of that Annex; failure to comply with any of those requirements shall result in rejection; where a quarter is rejected for failure to comply with such conditions of presentation and in particular where unsatisfactory presentation cannot be improved during the acceptance procedure, the other quarter of the same half carcase shall also be rejected;
(b) classified in accordance with the Community scale provided for in Regulation (EEC) No 1208/81; the intervention agencies shall reject any products which they do not deem to be classified in conformity with that scale after conducting a detailed inspection of all parts of the carcase;
(c) identified, first, by markings indicating the category, the conformation class and the degree of fat cover and, secondly, by an identification or slaughter number. Markings indicating the category, conformation class and fat cover must be perfectly legible and shall be stamped using non-toxic, fast, indelible ink in accordance with a procedure approved by the competent national authorities; the letters and figures must be at least 2 cm high. The markings shall be applied to the striploin at the level of the fourth lumbar vertebra on hindquarters and approximately 10 to 30 cm from the cut edge of the sternum on forequarters. The identification or slaughter number shall be marked in the middle of the inner side of each quarter using a stamp or indelible marker authorised by the intervention agency.
Article 5
Intervention centres
1. The intervention centres shall be selected by the Member States with a view to ensuring the effectiveness of intervention measures.
The facilities at these centres must permit:
(a) bone-in meat to be taken over;
(b) freezing of all meat to be preserved without further processing;
(c) storage of such meat for at least three months under technically satisfactory conditions.
2. Only intervention centres whose cutting plants and refrigeration plants are unconnected with the slaughterhouse and/or the successful tenderer and which are operated, managed and staffed independently of the latter may be selected for bone-in meat intended for boning.
In case of practical difficulties, Member States may derogate from the first subparagraph, provided that they tighten controls at the time of acceptance in accordance with Article 17(5); in that event, the intervention agencies shall, without prejudice to the veterinary requirements, be authorised to carry out boning of all or part of the beef bought in where the quantity bought in per week does not exceed 1000 tonnes per week, and of up to 50 % of any quantity bought in per week in excess of that amount.
Article 6
Blastfreezing of bone-in beef
1. Member States shall take all measures necessary to ensure the satisfactory preservation of the bone-in quarters stored and to limit weight losses. The internal temperature shall be reduced to or below -7 °C within 36 hours during blastfreezing.
2. With a view to freezing, bone-in quarters must be hung in blast freezers immediately after acceptance.
Article 7
Wrapping of bone-in beef
Immediately after blast freezing, bone-in meat shall be wrapped in polyethylene or polypropylene at least 0,05 mm thick, suitable for wrapping foodstuffs, and in stockinettes made of cotton or a sufficiently resistant synthetic material, in such a way that the meat (including the shank) is entirely covered by such wrappings.
Article 8
Storage of bone-in beef
1. The intervention agencies shall ensure that forequarters and hindquarters bought in are stored separately and are easily identifiable by invitation to tender and by month of storage.
2. The intervention agencies shall be authorised to store separately bone-in forequarters deemed to be of a quality and presentation suitable for industrial purposes.
In such cases, the quarters stored shall be easily identifiable and separate records shall be kept for them.
Section 2
Tendering and take-over
Article 9
Opening and closure of invitations to tender
1. Notices of invitation to tender, amendments thereto and closure thereof shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities no later than the Saturday before the closing date for the submission of tenders.
2. When invitations to tender are issued, a minimum price below which tenders shall not be admissible may be fixed.
Article 10
Submission and notification of tenders
During the period covered by the invitation to tender, the deadline for the submission of tenders shall be 12 noon (Brussels time) on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month, with the exception of the second Tuesday of August and the fourth Tuesday of December where no submission of tenders shall take place. If the Tuesday falls on a public holiday, the deadline shall be brought forward by 24 hours. Within 24 hours of the deadline for the submission of tenders, the intervention agencies shall notify the Commission of the tenders they have received.
Article 11
Conditions to be met for tendering
1. Only the following may submit tenders:
(a) slaughterhouses for bovine animals approved in accordance with Article 3(1)(A)(a) of Directive 64/433/EEC, whatever their legal status; and
(b) livestock or meat traders who have slaughtering undertaken therein on their own account and who are entered in a national VAT register.
2. In response to invitations to tender, interested parties shall submit their tenders to the intervention agencies of the Member States where they have been issued, either by lodging a written bid against a receipt or by any other written means of communication accepted by the intervention agency, with advice of receipt.
The submission of tenders may be the subject of contracts on terms laid down by the intervention agencies and in accordance with their specifications.
3. Interested parties may submit only one tender per category in response to each invitation to tender.
The Member States shall ensure that tenderers are independent of each other in the terms of their management, staffing and operations.
Where there are serious indications to the contrary or that tenders are not in line with economic facts, tenders shall be deemed admissible only where the tenderer presents suitable evidence of compliance with the second subparagraph.
Where it is established that a tenderer has submitted more than one tender, all the tenders from that tenderer shall be deemed inadmissible.
4. Tenders shall state:
(a) the name and address of the tenderer;
(b) the quantity tendered, expressed in tonnes, of the products of the categories specified in the notice of invitation to tender;
(c) the price quoted in accordance with Article 18(3), expressed per 100 kg of products of quality R3 in euro rounded off to not more than two decimal places.
5. Tenders shall be valid only if:
(a) they relate to at least 10 tonnes;
(b) they are accompanied by a written undertaking from the tenderer to comply with all the provisions relating to the invitation to tender concerned; and
(c) proof is furnished that by the closing date for the submission of tenders the tenderer has lodged a tendering security as provided for in Article 12 in respect of the invitation to tender concerned.
6. Tenders may not be withdrawn after the expiry of the deadline for submission specified in Article 10.
7. Tenders shall be confidential.
Article 12
Securities
1. The maintenance of tenders after the deadline for the submission of tenders and the delivery of the products to the store designated by the intervention agency within the timelimit laid down in Article 16(2) shall constitute primary requirements, the fulfilment of which shall be ensured by the lodging of a security of EUR 30 per 100 kg.
Securities shall be lodged with the intervention agency in the Member State in which the tender is submitted.
2. Securities shall be lodged only in the form of cash deposits as defined in Article 13 and Article 14(1) and (3) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85(12).
3. In the case of tenders which are not accepted, securities shall be released as soon as the outcome of the invitation to tender is published.
In the case of tenders which are accepted, securities shall be released on completion of take-over of the products, without prejudice to Article 17(7).
Article 13
Award
1. In the light of the tenders received in response to each invitation to tender and in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 43 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999, a maximum buying-in price relating to quality R3 shall be fixed per category; where the particular circumstances so require, a different price may be set by Member State or region thereof to reflect the average market prices recorded.
2. A decision may be taken to make no award.
3. If the total quantities offered at a price equal to or below the maximum price exceed the quantities to be bought in, the quantities awarded may be reduced for each category by applying reducing coefficients, to fall by an amount increasing progressively with the price differential and the quantities covered by the tenders.
Where the particular circumstances so require, such reducing coefficients may vary by Member State or region thereof with a view to ensuring that the intervention mechanisms function properly.
Article 14
Maximum buying-in price
1. Tenders shall not be considered if the price quoted is higher than the average market price recorded by category in each Member State or region thereof, converted into quality R3 using the coefficients set out in Annex I, plus EUR 10 per 100 kg carcase weight.
2. Without prejudice to paragraph 1, tenders shall be rejected if the price quoted is higher than the maximum price as referred to in Article 13 for the invitation to tender concerned.
3. Where the buying-in price awarded to tenderers is higher than the average market price as referred to in paragraph 1, the price awarded shall be adjusted by multiplying it by the coefficient obtained by applying formula A in Annex IV. However, that coefficient may not:
(a) be greater than 1;
(b) result in a reduction in the price awarded that is greater than the difference between that price and the average market price.
Should the Member State possess reliable data and have suitable means of verification, it may decide to calculate the coefficient for each tenderer using formula B in Annex IV.
4. Rights and obligations arising under invitations to tender shall not be transferable.
Article 15
Limitation of buying-in
Where the intervention agencies of the Member States are offered meat in quantities greater than they are able to take over forthwith, they may limit buying-in to the quantities they can take over in their territory or in one of their intervention regions.
The Member States shall ensure equality of access for all parties concerned in the event of such limitation.
Article 16
Notification of successful tenderers and delivery
1. The intervention agencies shall inform the individual tenderers immediately of the outcome of their tenders.
Intervention agencies shall issue numbered delivery orders forthwith to the successful tenderers, stating:
(a) the quantity to be delivered;
(b) the price at which the award is made;
(c) the timetable for delivery of the products;
(d) the intervention centre or centres where delivery is to be made.
2. Successful tenderers shall deliver the products not later than 17 calendar days after the first working day following publication of the regulation fixing the maximum buying-in price and the quantities of beef to be bought in.
However, the Commission may, depending on the quantities awarded, extend that period by one week. Deliveries may be split up into more than one consignment. In addition, intervention agencies may, when setting the timetable for deliveries of the products, reduce that period to not less than 14 calendar days.
Article 17
Take-over
1. The intervention agencies shall take over:
(a) bone-in meat intended for storage without further processing or for partial boning either at the entrance weighing point of the intervention centre's cold store or at the entrance weighing point of the intervention centre's cutting plant;
(b) bone-in meat intended for boning at the entrance weighing point at the intervention centre's cutting plant.
Products shall be delivered in consignments of a quantity between 10 and 20 tonnes. However, the quantity may be below 10 tonnes only if it is the final balance of the original offer or if the original offer has been scaled back below 10 tonnes.
Products delivered shall be accepted and taken over subject to verification by the intervention agency that they comply with the requirements laid down in this Regulation. Compliance with the requirements laid down in Article 4(2)(e) and in particular the absence of substances prohibited under Article 3 and Article 4(1) of Council Directive 96/22/EC(13) shall be verified by analysis of a sample, the size and sampling of which is laid down in the relevant veterinary legislation.
2. Where no preliminary inspection is conducted immediately before loading at the slaughterhouse loading bay and prior to transport to the intervention centre, half carcases shall be identified as follows:
(a) where they are simply marked, the markings must comply with Article 4(3)(c), and a document specifying the identification or slaughter number and the slaughter date relating to the half carcase shall be completed;
(b) where they are labelled in addition, the labels must comply with Article 1(2), (3) and (4) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 344/91(14).
Where half-carcases are cut into quarters, the quartering shall be carried out in accordance with Annex III. With a view to acceptance, quarters shall be grouped by carcase or half carcase at the time of take-over. Where half carcases are not cut into quarters prior to transport to the intervention centre, they shall be cut in accordance with Annex III on their arrival.
At the point of acceptance, each quarter shall be identified by a label complying with Article 1(2), (3) and (4) of Regulation (EEC) No 344/91. The labels shall also show the weight of the quarter and the contract number; the labels shall be affixed directly to shin/shank tendons on the forequarters and hindquarters or neckstrap tendon on the forequarter and hindquarter flank without using metal or plastic ties.
Without prejudice to Article 24(2), the labels must remain attached to the quarters throughout the whole storage period. As far as possible, any labels attached previously shall be removed.
The acceptance procedure shall entail a systematic check of the presentation, classification, weight and labelling of each quarter delivered. The temperature of one hindquarter of each carcase shall also be checked. In particular no carcase shall be accepted where it exceeds the maximum weight laid down in Article 4(2)(g).
3. A preliminary inspection may be conducted immediately before loading at the slaughterhouse loading bay and shall cover the weight, classification, presentation and temperature of half carcases. In particular no carcase shall be accepted where it exceeds the maximum weight laid down in Article 4(2)(g). Products rejected shall be marked as such and may not be presented again for preliminary inspection or acceptance.
Such inspections shall cover consignments of up to 20 tonnes of half carcases as laid down by the intervention agency. Where more than 20 % of the total number of half carcases in any consignment inspected is rejected, the whole consignment shall be rejected in accordance with paragraph 6.
Before half carcases are transported to the intervention centre, they shall be cut into quarters in accordance with Annex III. Each quarter shall be systematically weighed and identified by a label complying with Article 1(2), (3) and (4) of Regulation (EEC) No 344/91. The labels shall also show the weight of the quarter and the contract number; the labels shall be affixed directly to shin/shank tendons on the forequarters and hindquarters or neckstrap tendon on the forequarter and hindquarter flank without using metal or plastic ties.
Without prejudice to Article 24(2), the labels must remain attached to the quarters throughout the whole storage period. As far as possible, any labels attached previously shall be removed.
The quarters from each carcase shall then be grouped for the purposes of the acceptance procedure by carcase or half carcase at the time of take-over.
A checklist giving all details of the half-carcases or quarters, including the number of half-carcases or quarters presented and either accepted or rejected, shall accompany each consignment up to the point of acceptance. The checklist shall be handed over to the accepting officer.
A seal shall be affixed to the means of transport before it leaves the slaughterhouse; the number of the seal shall be shown on the health certificate or checklist.
The acceptance procedure shall include checks of the presentation, classification, weight, labelling and temperature of the quarters delivered.
4. Preliminary inspection and acceptance of the products offered for intervention shall be carried out by an official of the intervention agency or a person authorised by the latter who is a qualified classifier, is not involved in classification at the slaughterhouse and is totally independent of the successful tenderer. Such independence shall be ensured in particular by the periodic rotation of such officials between intervention centres.
At the time of take-over, the total weight of the quarters in each consignment shall be recorded and the record kept by the intervention agency.
Where the weight of meat to be stored bone-in differs to such an extent from that indicated on the checklist that the accuracy of the weight on the checklist is called into question, the weight of each quarter shall be checked systematically and, if necessary, a new label giving the actual weight accepted and any other information required shall be affixed by the accepting officer. As far as possible, any labels affixed previously shall be removed.
A document recording full details of the weight and the number of the products presented and either accepted or rejected must be completed by the accepting officer.
5. The requirements regarding identification, delivery and controls for the take-over of bone-in meat intended for boning in intervention centres which do not meet the requirements laid down in the first subparagraph of Article 5(2) shall include the following:
(a) at the time of take-over as referred to in paragraph 1, forequarters and hindquarters for boning must be identified by the letters "INT" marked on both inner and outer sides in accordance with the same rules as those laid down in Article 4(3)(c) for marking the category and the slaughter number and the places where such markings are to be made; however, the letters "INT" shall be marked on the inner side of each quarter at the level of the third or fourth rib of forequarters and of the seventh or eighth rib of hindquarters;
(b) the codfat must remain attached up to the time of take-over and must be removed before weighing;
(c) the products delivered shall be sorted into consignments as defined under paragraph 1.
Where carcases or quarters marked "INT" are found outside the areas reserved for them, the Member State shall conduct an enquiry, take suitable measures and inform the Commission thereof.
6. Where more than 20 % of a consignment presented is rejected, in terms of number of half carcases or quarters presented, the whole consignment shall be rejected and all the products shall be marked as such and may not be presented again for preliminary inspection or acceptance.
7. If the quantity actually delivered and accepted is less than the quantity awarded, the security shall:
(a) be released in full where the difference is not more than 5 % or 175 kg;
(b) except in cases of force majeure, be forfeited:
- in part, corresponding to the quantities not delivered or not accepted where the difference is not more than 15 %,
- in full in other cases, pursuant to Article 1 of Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85.
Article 18
Price to be paid to successful tenderers
1. From the 45th day after completion of take-over of the products to the 65th day thereafter, the intervention agency shall pay successful tenderers the price quoted in their tenders.
2. Only the quantity actually delivered and accepted shall be paid for. However, if the quantity actually delivered and accepted is greater than the quantity awarded, only the quantity awarded shall be paid for.
3. Where qualities other than quality R3 are taken over, the price to be paid to successful tenderers shall be adjusted by applying the coefficient for the quality bought in as set out in Annex I.
4. The buying-in price for bone-in meat shall be the price free at the entrance weighing point of the intervention centre's cold store. The buying-in price for meat all of which is intended for boning shall be the price free at the entrance weighing point of the intervention centre's cutting plant.
The costs of unloading shall be borne by the successful tenderer.
Article 19
Exchange rate
The rate to be applied to the amount referred to in Article 14 and the price at which the award was made shall be the exchange rate applicable on the day of entry into force of the regulation fixing the maximum buying-in price and the quantities of beef to be bought in under the invitation to tender concerned.
CHAPTER II
BONING OF MEAT BOUGHT IN BY INTERVENTION AGENCIES
Article 20
Authorisation for boning
The intervention agencies shall be authorised to bone all or part of the meat bought in.
Article 21
General conditions governing boning
1. Boning may only be carried out in cutting plants approved in accordance with Article 3(1)(B)(a) of Directive 64/433/EEC and with one or more adjoining blast freezers.
At the request of a Member State, the Commission may grant a derogation for a limited period from the obligations covered by the first subparagraph; when making its decision, the Commission shall take account of current developments in plant and equipment, health and control requirements and the objective of gradual harmonisation in this field.
2. Boned cuts must meet the conditions laid down in Directive 64/433/EEC and the requirements in Annex V to this Regulation.
3. Boning may not commence before take-over of the consignment concerned has been completed.
4. No other meat may be present in the cutting room when intervention beef is being boned, trimmed or packed.
However, pigmeat may be present in the cutting room at the same time as beef, provided that it is processed on a separate production line.
5. All boning activities shall take place between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m.; boning shall not take place on Saturdays, Sundays or public holidays. Those hours may be extended by up to two hours, provided that the inspection authorities are present.
If boning cannot be completed on the day of take-over, seals shall be affixed by the competent authorities to the refrigeration rooms where the products are stored and may only be broken by the same authorities when boning resumes.
Article 22
Contracts and specifications
1. Boning shall be carried out under contract on terms laid down by the intervention agencies and in accordance with their specifications.
2. The specifications of the intervention agencies shall lay down the requirements to be met by cutting plants, shall specify the plant and equipment required and shall ensure that the Community rules on the preparation of cuts are adhered to.
They shall in particular lay down detailed conditions covering boning, specifying the method of preparation, trimming, packing, freezing and preservation of cuts with a view to their take-over by the intervention agency.
The specifications of the intervention agencies may be obtained from the addresses in Annex VI.
Article 23
Monitoring of boning
1. The intervention agencies shall ensure that continuous physical monitoring is carried out of all boning operations.
Such monitoring may be delegated to bodies which are wholly independent of the traders, slaughterers and storeys in question. In such cases, the intervention agencies shall ensure that their officials conduct an unannounced inspection of boning of meat covered by each bid. During such inspections, random checks shall be carried out of cartons of cuts before and after freezing and the quantities used shall be compared with the quantities produced on the one hand and with the bones, fat and trimmings on the other hand. Such checks shall cover at least 5 % of cartons filled during the day with a particular cut and, where there are sufficient cartons, a minimum of five cartons per cut.
2. Forequarters and hindquarters must be boned separately. In respect of each day of boning:
(a) a comparison shall be made of the numbers of cuts and of cartons filled;
(b) a form shall be completed showing separately the yields for boning of forequarters and of hindquarters.
Article 24
Special conditions governing boning
1. During boning, trimming and packing prior to freezing, the internal temperature of the beef must at no time rise above + 7 °C. Cuts may not be transported before they have been blastfrozen, except under the derogations provided for in Article 21(1).
2. All labels and foreign matter must be totally removed immediately prior to boning.
3. All bones, tendons, cartilage, neckstrap and backstrap (paddy whack) (ligamentum nuchae) and coarse connective tissues must be cleanly removed. Trimming of cuts must be confined to the removal of fat, cartilage, tendons, joint capsules and other specified trim. All obvious nervous and lymphatic tissues must be removed.
4. Large blood vessels and clots and soiled areas must be removed carefully with as little trimming as possible.
Article 25
Packing of cuts
1. Cuts shall be packed immediately after boning in such a way that no part of the meat comes into direct contact with the carton, in accordance with the requirements laid down in Annex V.
2. Polyethylene used to line cartons and polyethylene sheet or bags used to wrap cuts must be at least 0,05 mm thick and suitable for wrapping foodstuffs.
3. Cartons, pallets and cages used must meet the conditions laid down in Annex VII.
Article 26
Storage of cuts
The intervention agencies shall ensure that all boneless beef bought in is stored separately and is easily identifiable by invitation to tender, cut and month of storage.
Cuts obtained shall be stored in cold stores located in the territory of the Member State exercising jurisdiction over the intervention agency.
Save for specific derogations provided for under the procedure laid down in Article 43 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999, such cold stores must be capable of holding all boned beef allocated by the intervention agency for at least three months under technically satisfactory conditions.
Article 27
Costs of boning
Contracts as referred to in Article 22(1) and payments made thereunder shall cover the operations and costs resulting from the application of this Regulation, and in particular:
(a) the costs of any transport of bone-in products to the cutting plant after acceptance;
(b) boning, trimming, packing and blastfreezing;
(c) the storage, loading and carriage of frozen cuts and their take-over by the intervention agencies at the cold stores designated by them;
(d) the costs of materials, in particular for packaging;
(e) the value of any bones, fat and trimmings left at cutting plants by the intervention agencies.
Article 28
Timelimits
Boning, trimming and packaging must be completed within 10 calendar days of slaughter. However, the Member States may set shorter timelimits.
Blastfreezing shall be carried out immediately after packing, commencing in any event on the same day; the quantity of meat boned may not exceed the daily capacity of the blast freezers.
The internal temperature of boned meat shall be reduced to or below - 7 °C within 36 hours during blastfreezing.
Article 29
Rejection of products
1. Where the checks specified in Article 23(1) show breaches by the boning plant of Articles 20 to 28 in respect of a particular cut, those checks shall be extended to cover a further 5 % of the cartons filled during the day in question. Where further breaches are discovered, additional samples amounting to 5 % of the total number of cartons of the relevant cut shall be checked. When, at the fourth 5 % check, at least 50 % of the cartons are found to be in breach of those articles, the whole day's production of that cut shall be checked. However, checking of the whole day's production shall not be required once at least 20 % of the cartons of a particular cut has been found to be in breach.
2. When, on the basis of paragraph 1, less than 20 % of the cartons of a particular cut are found to be in breach, the entire contents of those cartons shall be rejected and no payment shall be made in respect of them; the boning plant shall pay the intervention agency an amount equal to the price shown in Annex VIII for the cuts that have been rejected.
If at least 20 % of the cartons of a particular cut are found to be in breach, the whole day's production of that particular cut shall be rejected by the intervention agency and no payment shall be due; the boning plant shall pay the intervention agency an amount equal to the price shown in Annex VIII for the cuts that have been rejected.
If at least 20 % of the cartons of various cuts produced during the day are found to be in breach, the whole day's production shall be rejected by the intervention agency and no payment shall be due; the boning plant shall pay the intervention agency an amount equal to the price to be paid by the agency to the successful tenderer in accordance with Article 18 for the original bone-in products bought in and which, after boning, have been rejected, that price being increased by 20 %.
Where the third subparagraph is applicable, the first and second subparagraphs shall not apply.
3. By way of derogation from paragraphs 1 and 2, where as a result of serious negligence or fraud the boning plant fails to comply with Articles 20 to 28:
- all products obtained after boning during the day for which non-compliance with the above provisions is established shall be rejected by the intervention agency and no payment shall be due,
- the boning plant shall pay the intervention agency an amount equal to the price to be paid by the agency to the successful tenderer in accordance with Article 18 for the original bone-in products bought in and which, after boning, have been rejected in accordance with the first indent, that price being increased by 20 %.
CHAPTER III
CHECKS ON PRODUCTS AND NOTIFICATIONS.
Article 30
Storage of and checks on products
1. The intervention agencies shall ensure that meat covered by this Regulation is so placed and kept in storage as to be readily accessible and in conformity with the provisions of Article 8(1) and Article 26, first paragraph.
2. The storage temperature may not rise above - 17 °C.
3. The Member States shall take all measures necessary to ensure satisfactory preservation, in terms of quality and quantity, of the products stored and shall replace damaged packaging immediately. They shall provide for cover against the relevant risks by insurance in the form of either a contractual obligation on storers or comprehensive coverage of the liability borne by the intervention agency; the Member States may also act as their own insurers.
4. During storage, the competent authorities shall conduct regular checks on significant quantities of the products stored following awards under invitations to tender held during the month.
During such checks, any products found not to be in compliance with the requirements as laid down in this Regulation shall be rejected and marked as such. Without prejudice to the application of penalties, the competent authorities shall, if need be, recover payments from the responsible parties.
Such checks shall be conducted by officials who do not receive instructions from the department which buys in the meat.
5. The competent authorities shall take the necessary measures as regards traceability and storage to enable the products stored to be removed from storage and disposed of subsequently as efficiently as possible, having regard in particular to any requirements relating to the veterinary health status of the animals concerned.
Article 31
Notifications
1. The Member States shall notify the Commission without delay of any change in the list of intervention centres and, where possible, of their freezing and storage capacity.
2. Within 10 calendar days of completion of each take-over period, the Member States shall notify the Commission by telex or fax of the quantities delivered and accepted into intervention.
3. By the 21st day of each month at the latest, the Member States shall notify the Commission in respect of the preceding month of:
(a) the quantities bought in each week and each month, broken down by products and qualities in accordance with the Community scale for the classification of carcases established by Regulation (EEC) No 1208/81;
(b) the quantities of each boned and bone-in product covered by contracts of sale concluded in the month concerned;
(c) the quantities of each boned and bone-in product covered by withdrawal orders or similar documents issued in the month concerned;
(d) the uncommitted stocks and the physical stocks of each bone-in product at the end of the month concerned, with details of the length of time the uncommitted stocks have been in storage.
4. By the end of each month at the latest, the Member States shall notify the Commission in respect of the preceding month of:
(a) the quantities of each boned product obtained from bone-in beef bought in during the month concerned;
(b) the uncommitted stocks and the physical stocks of each boned product at the end of the month concerned, with details of the length of time the uncommitted stocks have been in storage.
5. For the purposes of this Article:
(a) "uncommitted stocks" means stocks not yet covered by a contract of sale;
(b) "physical stocks" means uncommitted stocks plus stocks covered by a contract of sale but not yet taken over.
CHAPTER IV
TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS
Article 32
Period of application
The provisions of this chapter shall apply until 30 June 2002 to buying-in by invitation to tender as referred to in Article 47 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999.
Article 33
Opening and suspension of buying-in by invitation to tender
1. In order to ascertain that the conditions laid down in Article 47(3) to (7) of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 for the various qualities or groups of qualities are fulfilled, the average market prices shall be recorded in accordance with the conditions laid down in Regulation (EC) No 295/96.
2. Where a group of qualities is concerned, the average Community market price shall be calculated in accordance with Article 5(1)(b) of Regulation (EC) No 295/96.
The average market or intervention price in a Member State or a region of a Member State shall be the average of the market or intervention prices for each of those qualities, weighted by the proportion each represents of total slaughterings in that Member State or region.
The average Community intervention price shall be the average of the intervention prices for each of those qualities, weighted by the proportion each represents of total Community slaughterings.
The market prices mentioned in the first and second subparagraphs shall be calculated for the qualities eligible for intervention, converted into quality R3 using the coefficients set out in Annex I.
3. The opening, suspension or reopening of buying-in shall be decided on the basis of the two most recent weekly market prices recorded in Member States, or regions of Member States, except for the suspension of the measure provided for in Article 47(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 where the last weekly price recorded is sufficient.
Article 34
Conditions to be met for tendering
In response to invitations to tender, interested parties shall submit their tenders to the intervention agencies of the Member States where they have been issued, either by lodging a written bid against a receipt or by any other written means of communication accepted by the intervention agency, with advice of receipt. The submission of tenders may be the subject of contracts on terms laid down by the intervention agencies and in accordance with their specifications.
Separate tenders shall be submitted for each type of invitation to tender.
Article 35
Securities
The maintenance of tenders after the expiry of the period for the submission of tenders and the delivery of the products to the store designated by the intervention agency within the period laid down in Article 16(2) shall constitute primary requirements, the fulfilment of which shall be ensured by the lodging of a security of EUR 36 per 100 kg.
Securities shall be lodged with the intervention agency in the Member State in which the tender is submitted.
Article 36
Maximum buying-in price
In the case of invitations to tender under Article 47(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999, tenders shall not be considered if the price quoted is higher than the average market price recorded in a Member State or regions of a Member State by quality, converted into quality R3 using the coefficients set out in Annex I, plus EUR 10 per 100 kg carcase weight. However, in the case of Member States or regions of a Member State meeting the conditions laid down in Article 47(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999, the amount added shall be EUR 6 per 100 kg.
CHAPTER V
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 37
Repeal
1. Regulation (EEC) No 2456/93 is repealed with effect from 1 April 2000.
However, it shall remain applicable for tendering procedures which started before that date.
References to the repealed Regulations shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall be read in conjunction with the correlation table in Annex IX to this Regulation.
2. Regulation (EEC) No 1627/89 is repealed as from 1 July 2002.
Article 38
Entry into force
This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.
It shall apply from the first invitation to tender of April 2000, except for Article 3, Article 11(2), Article 12(1) and Article 14(1) which shall apply only from 1 July 2002.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 15 March 2000.