COMMISSION REGULATION (EEC) No 690/92 of 19 March 1992 establishing a reference method for the detection of cows' milk casein in cheeses made from ewes' milk
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community,
Having regard to the Treaty of Accession of Spain and Portugal and in particular Article 67 (1) and (2), Article 98, Article 234 (2) and Article 310 thereof,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 1677/85 of 11 June 1985 on monetary compensatory amounts in the agricultural sector (1), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 2205/90 (2), and in particular Article 1 (1) thereof,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 804/68 of 27 June 1968 on the common organization of the market in milk and milk products (3), as last amended by Commission Regulation (EEC) No 374/92 (4), and in particular Article 9 (3), Article 14 (7) and Article 17 (4) thereof,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 876/68 of 28 June 1968 on the general rules for granting export refunds in the milk and milk products sector and for the fixation of their amounts (5), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1344/86 (6), and in particular Article 6 (3) thereof,
Whereas cheeses made exclusively from ewes' milk are subject to certain specific rules under the terms of Community regulations in the agricultural sector; whereas prior to the application of these rules steps should be taken to check that the product concerned does not contain cows' milk;
Whereas aid for private storage of ewes' milk cheeses can be granted under Council Regulation (EEC) No 508/71 of 8 March 1971 laying down general rules on private storage aid for long-keeping cheeses (7); whereas a special refund for these same products can be decided under the terms of Regulation (EEC) No 876/86; whereas no monetary compensatory amounts are imposed for the trade in ewes' milk-based products under the terms of Regulation (EEC) No 1677/85; whereas the application of accessionary compensatory amounts is excluded trade in ewes' milk cheeses to and from Spain by Council Regulation (EEC) No 466/86 of 25 February 1986 determining the general rules for the application of accessionary compensatory amounts in the milk and milk products sector with respect to the accession of Spain (8), and by Council Regulation (EEC) No 3640/90 of 11 December 1990, determining the general rules for the application of accessionary compensatory amounts in the milk and milk products sector with respect to the accession of Portugal (9);
Whereas, as the Commission has indeed established the abovementioned provisions concerning cheeses made from ewes' milk, it is necessary to verify by appropriate control that no cows' milk has been incorporated into the products concerned; whereas it appears necessary at control level to establish a Community reference method for the detection of cows' milk without prejudice to the use of routine methods, if they comply with certain criteria;
Whereas the Management Committee for Milk and Milk Products has not delivered an opinion within the time limits set by its chairman,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
The reference method of analysis figuring in the Annex shall be applied to ensure that cheese which must be exclusively made from ewes' milk does not in fact contain cows' milk casein.
Cows' milk casein shall be held to be present, if the apparent cows' milk casein content of the sample to be analyzed is equal to or higher than the content of the reference sample described in the Annex.
Article 2
Routine methods for the detection of cows' milk casein in cheeses from ewes' milk may be used under the following conditions:
- the detection limit must be 0,5 % or lower,
- false-positive results must not occur. If this cannot be excluded, any sample giving a positive result has to be analyzed using the reference method,
- cows' milk casein must be detectable with the required sensitivity even after long ripening periods, as may occur under usual commercial conditions. If this requirement is not fulfilled for a certain type of ewes' milk cheese, that cheese must be analyzed using the reference method.
Article 3
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following its publication in the Official Journal of the European Communities.
It shall apply from 16 September 1992. This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.
Done at Brussels, 19 March 1992.