1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 1
This document is meant purely as a documentation tool and the institutions do not assume any liability for its contents
►B COUNCILREGULATION(EC)No1251/1999
of17May1999
establishingasupportsystemforproducersofcertain arable crops
(OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 1)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Regulation (EC) No 2704/1999 of 14 December 1999 L 327 12 21.12.1999
►M2Council Regulation (EC) No 1672/2000 of 27 July 2000 L 193 13 29.7.2000
►M3Council Regulation (EC) No 1038/2001 of 22 May 2001 L 145 16 31.5.2001
►M4Council Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 of 29 September 2003 L 270 1 21.10.2003
Amended by:
►A1Act concerning the conditions of accession of the Czech Republic, the
Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia,the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic ofMalta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak
Republic and the adjustments to the Treaties on which the European
Union isfoundedL 236 33 23.9.2003
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COUNCILREGULATION(EC)No1251/1999
of17May1999
establishingasupportsystemforproducersofcertainarablecrops
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and
in particular Articles36 and 37 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (1),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (2),
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social
Committee (3),
Having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions(4),
Having regard to the opinion of the European Court of Auditors(5),
(1)Whereasthe common agricultural policy aimsto attain the
objectivesreferred to in Article 33 of the Treaty, taking accountof the market situation;
(2)Whereas, in order to ensure better market balance, a new schemeof support was introduced by Council Regulation (EEC)No 1765/92 of 30 June 1992 establishing a support system for
producersof certain arable crops(
6);
(3)Whereas, after the 1992 reform of the common agriculturalpolicy, there hasbeen a particular improvement of market
balances;
(4)Whereas set-aside under the support system for producers ofcertain arable crops, introduced in 1992 in addition to a loweringof the intervention price, hashelped to keep production undercontrol, while increased price competitiveness has allowedsignificant additional cereals quantities to be used on the
domestic market, mainly for animal feed;
(5)Whereas the support on the basis of the scheme introduced in1992 should be continued, taking into account, however, market
developmentsand experience acquired in applying the currentscheme;
(6)WhereasMember Statesmay, under certain conditions , makegrass silage eligible for area payments under this regime;
(7)Whereas the reform of the support scheme has to take intoaccount the international obligationsof the Community;
(8)Whereasthe bes t way to achieve market balance isto approxi-mate the Community pricesof cerealsto the priceson theworld market and to provide for non-crop specific areapayments;
(9)Whereas area payments should be revised if the market condi-tions differ from those currently foreseen;
(10)Whereas the area eligible should be restricted to the area downto arable crops or publicly funded set aside in the past;
(11)Whereas, when the sum of the areas for which payment isclaimed under the scheme is in excess of the base area, a reduc-tion of the eligible area per farm should be provided for in orderto ensure market balance;1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 2
(1) OJ C 170, 4.6.1998, p. 4.
(2) Opinion delivered on 6 May 1999 (not yet published in the Official Journal).
(3) OJ C 284, 14.9.1998, p. 55.
(4) OJ C 93, 6.4.1999, p. 1.
(5) OJ C 401, 22.12.1998, p. 3.
(6) OJ L 181, 1.7.1992, p. 12. Regulation aslas t amended by Regulation (EC)
No 1624/98 (OJ L 210, 28.7.1998, p. 3).
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(12)WhereasMember Statesmay apply one or more national bas e
areas; whereas it is considered appropriate that the Member
States which choose this option should be able to divide eachnational base area into sub-base areas; whereas, when a nationalbase area has been exceeded, the Member State concernedshould be allowed to concentrate the application of the measurestotally or partially on those areas for which the overshoot has
been noted;
(13)Whereas area payments should reflect the specific structural
characteristics that influence yield; whereas the drawing up of aregionalisation plan based on objective criteria should be left tothe Member States; whereas uniform average yields should be
established by the regionalisation plans; whereas these plans
should be consistent with the average yields of each regionachieved in a given period, taking into account any structuraldifferences between production regions; whereas a specificprocedure should be provided in order to examine these plansat Community level;
(14)Whereasdifferentiation of yieldsmay be permitted for irrigatedand non-irrigated areas provided that a separate base area forirrigated crops is established and there is no extension of thetotal base area;
(15)Whereas maize has a different yield which distinguishes it from
other cereals and therefore may justify a separate treatment;
(16)Whereas, in order to calculate the area payment, a basic amount
per tonne should be multiplied by the ‘average cereals yield’determined for the region concerned; whereaswhen differentyields for maize and for other cereals are fixed, separate base
areas for maize should be established;
(17)Whereas a single basic amount should be fixed for arable crops;
whereas the basic amounts per tonne should be increased takinginto account the reduction in several steps in the cereals inter-vention price; whereas a specific aid should be established forprotein crops in order to preserve their competitiveness with
cereals;
(18)Whereasin the cas e of a final reduction in intervention price the
basic amount shall be increased applying the same compensationrate asthat us ed in the 2000/2001 and 2001/2002 marketingyears;
(19)Whereas a special scheme for durum wheat should be estab-lished to ensure a durum wheat production level which issufficient to supply user industries while keeping budgetaryexpenditure in check; whereasthat objective s hould be achievedby introducing a supplement limited, for each Member Stateconcerned, to a maximum area of durum wheat; whereasany
overshoot of those areas should lead to an adjustment to the
applicationss ubmitted;
(20)Whereas, moreover, in some Member States, the production ofdurum wheat is well established in regions outside traditionalzones; whereas it is desirable to safeguard a certain level of
production in those regions by the grant of special aid;
(21)Whereas, in order to benefit from the area payments, producers
should set aside a predetermined percentage of their arable area;whereas the land set aside should be cared for so as to meetcertain minimum environmental standards; whereas the areas set
aside should also be eligible for use for non-food purposes,
provided effective control systems can be applied;
(22)Whereas in the current market situation, the set-aside require-ment should be reduced to 10 % for the period 2000-2006;whereasthispercentage s hould be re-examined to take accountof production and market developments;1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 3
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(23)Whereas the set-aside obligation should be subject to due
compensation; whereas the compensation should be equivalent
to the area paymentsfor cereals ;
(24)Whereas no set-aside requirement should be imposed for small
producerswhos e claim for area paymentsisbelow a certain
level, whereasthislevel s hould be fixed;
(25)Whereas for voluntary set-aside, producers may be granted set-aside payment for land additionally set-aside; whereas amaximum area limit should be fixed by Member States;
(26)Whereasarea paymentss hould be paid once a year for a givenarea; whereasareasnot cultivated immediately before the entryinto force of the scheme established by Regulation (EEC)No 1765/92 should not be eligible for payment; whereas to takeaccount of certain specific situations, where this provision is
unduly restrictive, certain derogations should be permitted to be
managed by the Member States;
(27)Whereas it is necessary to determine certain conditions for
applying for area paymentsand to s pecificy when producers
should be paid;
(28)Whereas payment dates should be fixed in order to ensure aneven distribution of arable crops sales during the marketing year;
(29)Whereas sowing dates should be adapted to natural conditions inthe different production areas;
(30)Whereas it is necessary to provide for transitional rules in order
to abolish crop specific payments for oilseeds from the 2002/
2003 marketing year onwards; whereas some of the existingprovisions in this sector have to be maintained taking intoaccount the international obligationsof the Community;
(31)Whereasexpenditure incurred by the Member Statesasa res ultof the obligationsaris ing out of the application of thisRegula-tion should be financed by the Community in accordance withArticles1 and 2 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1258/99 of
17 May 1999 on the financing of the common agricultural
policy (
1);
(32)Whereas it is necessary to provide for transitional measures andto enable the Commission to adopt, if necessary, additional tran-sitional measures;
(33)Whereas the adaptations to the arable crops support systemshould be introduced as from the marketing year 2000/2001;
(34)Whereas, in view of the present adaptations to the currentsupport scheme and to previous modifications, it is appropriate,for reasons of clarity, to replace Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92by a new Regulation,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
1. This Regulation hereby establishes a system of area payments for
producersof arable crops .
2. For the purposes of this Regulation:
— the marketing year shall run from 1 July to 30 June,
— ‘arable crops’ are taken to mean those listed in Annex I.
3. Member Stateswhere maize isnot a traditional crop may make
grass silage eligible for the arable crops area payments, under thesame conditions as those applicable for arable crops.1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 4
(1) See page 103 of thisOfficial Journal.
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CHAPTER I
Article 2
1. Community producersof arable cropsmay apply for an area
payment under the conditionss et out in thisRegulation.
2. The area payment shall be fixed on a per hectare basis and
regionally differentiated.
The area payment shall be granted for the area which is down to arable
crops or subject to set-aside in accordance with Article 6 and whichdoes not exceed a regional base area. This is established as the averagenumber of hectareswithin a region down to arable cropsor, where
appropriate, fallow in conformity with a publicly funded scheme during
1989, 1990 and 1991. A region in this sense shall be understood tomean a Member State or a region within the Member State, at theoption of the Member State concerned.
For the Czech Republic, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia, the regional base areas shall be
established as the average number of hectares within a region down toarable cropsduring a cons ecutive three-year period within the period1997-2001. The total of the regional base areas for each of theseMember States shall not exceed the base areas mentioned in Annex VI.
3. Producers applying for the area payment shall be subject to an
obligation to set aside part of the land of their holding from productionand shall receive compensation for this obligation.
4. When the sum of the areas for which payment is claimed under
the arable crops' scheme, including the set-aside provided for underthat scheme, is in excess of the base area, the eligible area per farmershall be reduced proportionately for all the payments granted under thisRegulation in the region in question, during the same marketing year.
Areaswhich are not the s ubject of an application for payment under
this Regulation but are used to support an application for aid underCouncil Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the
common organisation of the market in beef and veal (
1) shall also be
taken into account for the calculation of areasfor which payment isclaimed.
5. If a Member State makes grass silage eligible for the arable crops
area payments, a separate base area shall be defined. If the base area
for arable crops or grass silage is not reached in a given marketingyear, the balance of hectares shall be allocated for the same marketingyear to the corresponding base area.
6. Where a Member State has chosen to establish one or more
national base areas, it may subdivide each national base area into sub-base areas according to objective criteria to be defined by the MemberState.
For the purposes of applying this paragraph, the ‘Secano’ and
‘Regadío’ base areas shall be considered as national base areas.
Where there is an overshoot of a national base area, the Member State
concerned may, in accordance with objective criteria, concentrate themeasure applicable under paragraph 4 totally or partially on the sub-base areas for which the overshoot has been noted.
Member States which have decided to apply the possibilities provided
for in this paragraph, shall notify producers and the Commission by15 September of their choicesand the detailed rulesfor their applica-tion.1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 5
(1) See page 21 of thisOfficial Journal.▼A1
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Article 3
1. For the purpose of setting average yields to be used for calcula-
tion of the area payment, each Member State shall establish aregionalisation plan setting out the relevant objective criteria for deter-
mination of the separate production regions in order to arrive at distinct
homogeneousareas .
With this in mind, Member States shall take due account of specific
situations in drawing up their regionalisation plans. They may in parti-cular adjust average yields in line with any structural differencesbetween production regions.
2. Member Statesmay als o apply a different yield figure for maize
than for other cereals in their regionalisation plans.
(a) Where the yield for maize is higher than for other cereals, a base
area, as referred to in Article 2(2), shall be established separatelyfor maize, covering one or more maize production regions, at the
choice of the Member State.
Member States may also, in the regions in question, establish sepa-
rate base areas for arable crops other than maize. In such cases, ifthe base area for maize is not reached in a given marketing year,the balance of hectares shall be allocated for the same marketing
year to the corresponding base area for arable crops other than
maize.
(b) Where the yield for maize isequal to or les sthan that for other
cereals, a base area may also be established separately for maizein accordance with point (a). In such cases and if the Member
States chooses to establish a base area for ‘arable crops other than
maize’:
— if the base area for ‘maize’ is not reached in a given marketing
year, the balance of hectares shall be allocated for the samemarketing year to the corresponding base areas for other crops,
— if the base area for ‘arable crops other than maize’ is not
reached in a given marketing year, the balance of hectaress hallbe allocated for the same marketing year to the base area for
‘maize’ concerned.
Should these base areas be exceeded, Article 2(4) shall apply.
3. Member States may in their regionalisation plans set different
yieldsfor irrigated and non-irrigated land. In that cas e, Member States
shall establish a separate base area for areas bearing irrigated crops.
The irrigated base area shall be equal to the average area irrigated from
1989 to 1991 with a view to harvesting arable crops including theincreases made pursuant to Article 3(1), fourth subparagraph, lastsentence of Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92. However, the irrigatedbase area in Portugal shall be progressively increased by up to
60 000 ha, for those areas where it has been established that investment
in irrigation began after 1 August 1992. This increase may be addedpartially or totally to the irrigated maize base area as referred to inArticle 3(2).
The establishment of the irrigated base area must not lead to any
increase in the total base area of the Member State concerned. Shouldthe irrigated base area be exceeded, Article 2(4) shall apply.
If the irrigated base area is not reached in a given marketing year, the
balance of hectares shall be allocated for the same marketing year to
the corresponding non-irrigated base area.
4. The regionalisation plan shall in all cases ensure that the average
yield of the Member State concerned established for the period and in
accordance with the criteria referred to in paragraph 5 isres pected.
5. For each production region, the Member State shall give details
of the areasand yieldsof arable cropsproduced in that region duringthe five-year period 1986/1987 to 1990/1991. Average cerealsyieldsshall be separately calculated for each region by excluding the yearwith the highest and the year with the lowest yield during that period.1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 6
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However, thisobligation may be fulfilled in the cas e of:
— Portuguese cereals by providing data having been supplied pursuant
to Council Regulation (EEC) No 3653/90 of 11 December 1990introducing transitional measures governing the common organisa-tion of the market in cerealsand rice in Portugal (
1),
— the five new German Länder by providing the average crop yield
applicable in the other German Länder,
— Italy and Spain by fixing the reference yield at 3,9 tonnes/hectare
and 2,9 tonnes/hectare respectively,
— the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary,
Malta, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia by fixing the reference yields
at the levelsmentioned in Annex VI.
If a Member State decidesto treat:
— maize separately from other cereals, the average cereals yield,
which shall not be altered, shall be broken down between maizeand other cereals,
— irrigated land separately from non-irrigated land, the corresponding
average yield, which shall not be altered, shall be broken down
between the two types.
6. Member States shall submit their regionalisation plan to the
Commission by 1 August 1999 together with all necessary supportinginformation. In order to fulfil thisobligation, they may refer to theirregionalisation plan submitted to the Commission in accordance withRegulation (EEC) No 1765/92.
The Commission shall examine the regionalisation plans submitted by
the Member States and shall ensure that each plan is based on appro-
priate, objective criteria and is consistent with available historicalinformation. The Commission may object to plans that are not compa-tible with the aforementioned relevant criteria in particular with theaverage yield of the Member State. In this case the plans shall be
subject to adjustment by the Member State concerned after consultation
with the Commission.
The regionalisation plan may be revised by the Member State
concerned at the request of the Commission or at the initiative of thatMember State in accordance with the same procedure as outlined inthisArticle.
7. Should a Member State, pursuant to paragraph 1, choose to estab-
lish production regions the demarcation of which does not correspond
to that of regional base areas, it shall send the Commission a summarystatement of payment applications and the yields pertaining to these. Ifit emergesfrom thisinformation that, in a Member State, the averageyield resulting from the regionalisation plan applied in 1993 or, in the
case of Austria, Finland and Sweden, the average yield resulting from
the plan applied in 1995 ►
A1or, in the case of Cyprus, the Czech
Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland,Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain the yield asfixed in Article 3(5) isexceeded ◄, all paymentsto be made in that Member State for the
following marketing year shall be reduced in proportion to the overrun
which has been recorded. However, this provision shall not apply
where the quantity for which applications were made, expressed intonnes of cereals, does not exceed that resulting from the product ofthe total base areas of the Member State by the aforementioned averageyield.
Member Statesmay decide to as certain whether there hasbeen any
exceeding of the average yield for each base area. In such cases, the
provisions of this paragraph shall be applied to the payments to bepaid in each base area concerned.1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 7
(1) OJ L 362, 27.12.1990, p. 28. Regulation as amended by Commission Regu-
lation (EC) No 1664/95 (OJ L 158, 8.7.1995, p. 13).▼A1
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Article 4
1. Without prejudice to Article 10, the area payment shall be calcu-
lated by multiplying the basic amount per tonne by the average cereal
yield determined in the regionalisation plan for the region concerned.
2. The calculation mentioned in paragraph 1 shall be made using the
average cerealsyield. However, where maize istreated s eparately, the‘maize’ yield shall be used for maize and the ‘cereals other than maize’yield shall be used for cereals, oilseeds, linseed and flax and hemp
grown for fibre.
3. The basic amount shall be fixed as follows:for protein crops:
— EUR 63,00/t from the 2004/2005 marketing year onwards
for cereals, grass silage and set-aside:
— EUR 58,67/t for the 2000/2001 marketing year,
— EUR 63,00/t from the 2001/2002 marketing year onwards;
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M2for linseed and flax and hemp grown for fibre ◄:
— EUR 88,26/t for the 2000/2001 marketing year,
— EUR 75,63/t for the 2001/2002 marketing year,— EUR 63,00/t from the 2002/2003 marketing year onwards;
for oilseeds:
— EUR 63,00/t from the 2002/2003 marketing year onwards.
The amount of EUR 63/t may be increased from the 2002/2003
marketing year onwardsin the light of a final reduction in the interven-tion price for cerealsprovided for in Article 3(4) of Regulation (EEC)No 1766/92.
This increase in area payments will bear the same proportion to the
intervention price reduction asthat applicable in 2000/2001 and 2001/2002.
4. In Finland, and in Sweden north of the 62nd Parallel and some
adjacent areasaffected by comparable climatic conditionsrenderingagricultural activity particularly difficult, a supplementary amount tothe area payment of ►
M4EUR 24/t ◄, multiplied by the yield
utilised for the area payments, shall be applied for cereals, oilseeds,
linseed and flax and hemp grown for fibre.
Article 5
A supplement to the area payment of EUR 313/ha for the marketing
year 2004/2005, shall be paid for the area down to durum wheat inthe traditional production zones listed in Annex II, subject to the limitsfixed in Annex III.
Should the total of the areasfor which a s upplement to the area
payment isclaimed be greater than the limit referred to above duringthe course of a marketing year, the area per producer for which thesupplement may be paid shall be reduced proportionately.
However, subject to the limits per Member State laid down in
Annex III, Member Statesmay dis tribute the areasindicated in that
Annex among the production zonesasdefined in Annex II, or, if neces -
sary, the production regions referred to in Article 3, according to theextent of the production of durum wheat during the period 1993 to1997. Where thisisdone, s hould the total of the areaswithin a regionfor which a supplement to the area payment is requested be greater1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 8
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than the corresponding regional limit during the course of a marketing
year, the area per producer in that production region for which thesupplement may be paid shall be reduced proportionately. The reduc-
tion shall be made when, within a Member State, the areas in regions,
which have not reached their regional limits, have been distributed toregionsin which thos e limitshave been exceeded.
In regions where the production of durum wheat is well established,
other than those referred to in Annex II, special aid amounting to
EUR 93/ha for the marketing year 2004/2005 shall be granted up to alimit of the number of hectareslaid down in Annex IV.
Article 5a
1. For flax and hemp grown for fibre, the area payment shall be
made only, depending on circumstances, when the contract isconcluded or commitment made asreferred to in Article 2(1) of Regu-lation (EC) No 1673/2000.
For hemp grown for fibre, the area payment shall also be made only
where the varietiesus ed have a tetrahydrocannabinol content notexceeding 0,2 %.
2. Member States shall establish a system for verifying the tetrahy-
drocannabinol content of the cropsgrown on at leas t 30 % of the areasof hemp grown for fibre for which area payment applicationshavebeen made. However, if a Member State introduces a system of priorapproval for such cultivation, the minimum shall be 20 %.
Article 6
1. The set-aside obligation for each producer applying for area
paymentss hall be fixed asa proportion of hisarea down to arable
crops and for which a claim is made and left in set-aside pursuant to
thisRegulation.
The basic rate of compulsory set-aside is fixed at 10 % from the 2000/
2001 marketing year up to the 2006/2007 marketing year.
2. Member States shall apply appropriate environmental measures
which correspond to the specific situation of the land set-aside.
3. The land set aside may be used for:
— producing materialsfor the manufacture within the Community of
productsnot directly intended for human or animal cons umption,provided that effective controlsare applied;
— growing legume cropson a agricultural holding, managed for the
totality of itsproduction, in compliance with the obligationslaid
down in Regulation (EEC) No 2092/91.
Member States shall be authorised to pay national aid up to 50 % of
the costs associated with establishing multiannual crops intended forbio-mass production on set-aside land.
If the quantity of by-productsfor feed or food us eslikely to be made
available as a result of the cultivation of oilseeds on land set-asideunder the first subparagraph will, on the basis of the forecast quantitiescovered by contractsmade with producers , exceed 1 million metrictonnes annually expressed in soya bean meal equivalents, in order to
limit such quantity to 1 million metric tonnes, the amount of the fore-
cast quantity under each contract, which may be used for feed or fooduses, shall be reduced.
4. Where different yieldsare s et for irrigated and non-irrigated land,
the payment for set-aside for non-irrigated land apply. In the case of1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 9
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Portugal, payment shall take account of the aid granted under Regula-
tion (EEC) No 3653/90.
5. Producers may be granted the set-aside payment on land volunta-
rily set aside in excess of their obligation. Member States shall allowfarmers to set-aside up to at least 10 % of the area down to arable
cropsand for which a payment application ismade, and left in s et-
aside pursuant to this Regulation. Higher percentages may be set by aMember State taking into account specific situations and ensuringsufficient occupation of farmland.
6. The set-aside payment may be granted on a multiannual basis for
a period up to five years.
7. Producerswho make a payment application for an area no bigger
than the area which would be needed to produce 92 tonnesof cereals ,on the basis of the yields determined for their region, are not bound bythe set-aside obligation. Paragraphs 5 and 6 shall apply to these produ-cers.
8. Without prejudice to Article 7, areas:
— set aside pursuant to agri-environment (Articles 22 to 24 of Council
Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 of 17 May 1999 on support for ruraldevelopment from the European Agricultural Guidance and Guar-
antee Fund (EAGGF) and amending certain Regulations(
1), which
are neither put to any agricultural use nor used for any lucrativepurposes other than those accepted for other land set aside underthisRegulation, or
— afforested pursuant to afforestation (Article 31 of Regulation (EC)
No 1257/1999,
asa res ult of an application made after 28 June 1995, may, up to any
limit per holding which may be set by the Member State concerned, be
counted as being set aside for the purposes of the set-aside requirementindicated in paragraph 1. Such limit shall be set only to the extentnecessary to avoid a disproportionate amount of the available budgetrelating to the scheme in question being concentrated on a smallnumber of farms.
However, on these areas, the area payment specified in Article 4 shall
not be granted and the support granted under Article 24(1), or
Article 31(1), second indent of Regulation (EC) No 1257/1999 (rural
development regulation) shall be limited to an amount equal at mostto the area payment for set aside specified in Article 4(3).
Member Statesmay decide not to apply the s cheme provided for in this
paragraph to a new applicant in any region in which there isa conti-nuing risk of a significant overshoot of the regional base area.
Article 7
Applicationsfor paymentsmay not be made in res pect of land which,
on 31 December 1991, wasunder permanent pas ture, permanent cropsor trees or was used for non-agricultural purposes. However, applica-tionsfor paymentsfor areasus ed for growing flax or hemp for fibre
and, if appropriate, for obligatory set-aside relating to it may be
presented for land which benefited from aid granted under CouncilRegulation (EEC) No 1308/70 of 29 June 1970 on the common organi-sation of the market in flax and hemp (
2) during at least one of the
marketing yearsfrom 1998/1999 to 2000/2001.
For Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, and Slovenia, applica-
tionsfor paymentsmay not be made in res pect of land which, on 31December 2000, wasunder permanent pas ture, permanent cropsortrees or was used for non-agricultural purposes. For Slovakia applica-1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 10
(1) Sea page 80 of thisOfficial Journal.
(2) OJ L 146, 4.7.1970, p. 1. Regulation aslas t amended by Regulation (EC)
No 2702/1999 (OJ L 327, 14.12.1999, p. 7).▼M2
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tionsfor paymentsmay not be made in res pect of land which, on 31
December 2001 wasunder permanent pas ture, permanent cropsor treesor was used for non-agricultural purposes. For Estonia applications for
paymentsmay not be made in res pect of land which, on 1 October
2002 wasunder permanent pas ture, permanent cropsor treesor wasused for non-agricultural purposes. For the Czech Republic applicationsfor paymentsmay not be made in res pect of land which, on 30November 2002 wasunder permanent pas ture, permanent cropsor trees
or was used for non-agricultural purposes. For Cyprus applications for
paymentsmay not be made in res pect of land which on 1 December2002, wasunder permanent pas ture, permanent cropsor treesor wasused for non-agricultural purposes.
Member Statesmay, on termsto be determined, depart from thes e
provisions under certain specific circumstances, in particular for areassubject to restructuring programmes or for areas subject to standard
rotations of multiannual arable crops with those crops listed in
Annex I. In such cases, they shall take action to prevent any significantincrease in the total eligible agricultural area. This may in particularinvolve deeming previously eligible areas ineligible as an offsettingmeasure.
Member States may also depart from the provisions of the first and
second sub-paragraphs under certain specific circumstances relating to
one or other form of public intervention where such intervention results
in a farmer growing cropson land previous ly regarded asineligible inorder to continue hisnormal agricultural activity and the interventionin question means that land originally eligible ceases to be so with theresult that the total amount of eligible land is not increased signifi-cantly.
Moreover, Member Statesmay, in certain cas esnot covered by the
previous two subparagraphs, depart from the first and second subpara-graphs if they provide proof in a plan submitted to the Commissionthat the total amount of eligible land remainsunchanged.
Article 8
1. Paymentss hall be made between 16 November and 31 January
following the harvest. However, where Article 6(3) applies, areapayments for the land set aside shall be paid between 16 Novemberand 31 March.
2. In order to qualify for the area payment, a producer shall by
31 May at the latest preceding the relevant harvest have sown the
seed and by 15 May at the latest have lodged an application.
3. Member States shall take the necessary measures to remind appli-
cants of the need to respect environmental legislation.
Article 9
Detailed rulesfor the application of thisChapter s hall be adopted in
accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 23 of CouncilRegulation (EEC) No 1766/92 of 30 June 1992 on the common organi-
sation of the market in cereals (
1) and in particular:
— those relating to the establishment and management of base areas,
— those relating to the establishment of production regionalisation
plans,
— those relating to grass silage,— those relating to the granting of the area payment,1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 11
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— those relating to the minimum area eligible for payment; such rules
shall take particular account of the monitoring requirements and ofthe desired effectiveness of the scheme in question,
— those determining, for durum wheat, the eligibility for the supple-
ment to the area payment referred to in Article 5 and the
eligibility requirementsfor the s pecial aid referred to in that Article,
and in particular determination of the regionsto be taken intoconsideration,
— with regard to flax and hemp grown for fibre, those relating to the
arrangementsfor contractsand to the commitment referred to inArticle 5a(1),
— with regard to hemp grown for fibre, those relating to the specific
control measures and methods for determining tetrahydrocannabinollevels,
— those relating to set-aside, and in particular those relating to Article
6(3); these conditions shall define the fodder legumes that may begrown on land set aside and, with regard to the first indent of thefirst subparagraph of that paragraph, may include the growing ofcropswithout compens ation,
— those relating to the conditions for applying Article 7; these condi-
tions shall specify under what circumstances the provisions ofArticle 7 may be waived and Member States' obligation to refer
envisaged action to the Commission for approval,
— those relating to compliance with the Memorandum of Under-
standing on certain oil seeds between the European Economic
Community and the United Statesof America within the framework
of the GATT approved by Decision 93/355/EEC (
1).
According to the same procedure, the Commission may:
— either make the granting of payments subject to the use of:
(i) specific seeds;
(ii) certified seed in the case of durum wheat and flax and hemp
grown for fibre;
(iii) certain varieties in the cases of oilseeds, durum wheat, linseed
and flax and hemp grown for fibre,
— or provide for the possibility for Member States to make the grant
of payments subject to such conditions,
— allow the datesin Article 8(2) to be varied in certain zoneswhere
exceptional climatic conditionsrender the normal datesinapplic-
able,
— allow Member States, subject to the budgetary situation, to
authorise, by way of derogation from Article 8(1), payments prior
to 16 November in certain regions, of up to 50 % of the areapayments and of the payment for set-aside in years in which excep-tional climatic conditionshave s o reduced yieldsthat producersface severe financial difficulties.
CHAPTER II
Article 10
1. For the 2000/2001 and 2001/2002 marketing yearsthe area
paymentsfor oils eedsare calculated by multiplying the followingamountsby the average cerealsyield determined in the regionalis ationplan in the region concerned:
— EUR 81,74/t for the 2000/2001 marketing year,
— EUR 72,37/t for the 2001/2002 marketing year.1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 12
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However, Member States shall have the possibility of continuing to fix
the oilseeds payments on the basis of historical regional oilseeds yield.In that case the yield shall be multiplied by 1,95.
2. For the 2000/2001 and 2001/2002 marketing years, a maximum
guaranteed area (MGA) shall be established for the crop-specificoilseeds area payments of 5 482 000 hectares, reduced by the rate of
compulsory set-aside applicable for that marketing year, or by 10 % if
that rate isles sthan 10 %. If after the application of Article 2 themaximum guaranteed area is exceeded, the Commission shall reducethe amountsreferred to in paragraph 1, in accordance with the provi-sions of paragraphs 3 and 4.
3. If the area of oilseeds already determined as eligible for crop
specific oilseeds area payments in any year exceeds the MGAs, theCommission shall reduce, by 1 % for each percentage point by whichthe MGA isexceeded, the bas ic amount for that year. If the MGA is
exceeded by more than a threshold percentage, special rules shall
apply. Up to the threshold percentage, the reduction of the amountshall be uniform in all Member States. Beyond the threshold percen-tage, appropriate additional reductions shall apply in those MemberStatesthat have exceeded the national reference areass et out in
Annex V, reduced by the rate referred to in paragraph 4. However, in
the case of Germany the appropriate additional reduction may beadjusted at its request, in whole or in part, according to the regionalbase area; where this option is exercised, Germany shall immediatelysend the Commission the data used to calculate the reductions to beapplied.
The Commission shall, in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 23 of Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92, establish the size anddistribution of the appropriate reductions to be applied and shall, in
particular, ensure that the weighted average reduction for the Commu-
nity asa whole isequal to the percentage by which the MGA hasbeenexceeded.
4. The threshold percentage provided for in paragraph 3 should be
0% .
5. If the oilseeds area payment is reduced in accordance with the
provisions in paragraphs 3 and 4, the Commission shall reduce the rele-
vant basic amounts for the following marketing year by the same
percentage unless the MGA is not exceeded in that year, in whichcase the commission may determine that such a reduction shall notapply.
6. If the MGA for the Community isexceeded in 2000/2001
marketing year, the percentage of reduction of the regional referenceamountsapplied for the 1999/2000 marketing year s hall be applied bythe Commission to the relevant basic amount for the 2000/2001marketing year by the same percentage.
7. Notwithstanding the provisions in this Article, Member States in
which there is a significant risk of the National Reference Area set outin Annex V being substantially exceeded in the following marketing
year may limit the area for which an individual producer may receive
the oilseed area payments referred to in this article. Such limit shall becalculated asa percentage of the arable land area, of either the MemberState or the regional base area, that is eligible for the area paymentsprovided for in thisRegulation and s hall be applied to the eligiblearable area of the producer. Thislimit may be differentiated between
regional base areas or sub-base areas on the basis of objective criteria.
Member States shall announce such limit, at the latest, by 1 August ofthe marketing year prior to that in respect of which the area payment isrequested, or by an earlier date in the case of a Member State, orregionswithin a Member State, where plantingsfor the marketing
year concerned take place prior to 1 August.
8. The reduction resulting from the overshoot of the MGA, applied
in accordance with the provisions of this Article, cannot lead to anamount less than:
— EUR 58,67/t for the 2000/2001 marketing year,1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 13
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— EUR 63,00/t for the 2001/2002 marketing year.
9. Producers of confectionery sunflower seed, sown for harvest,
shall be excluded from the benefit of the support provided for under
the termsof thisarticle.
10. Within two yearsfrom the application of the pres ent article the
Commission will submit a report to the Council on the development onthe oilseeds market. If necessary this report will be accompanied byappropriate proposals should the production potential deteriorateseriously.
Article 11
The amounts of the area payments and the payment for set-aside as
well as the percentage area to be set aside fixed in this Regulationmay be changed in the light of developmentsin production, produc-
tivity and the markets, according to the procedure laid down in
Article 37(2) of the Treaty.
Article 12
Should specific measures be necessary to facilitate the transition from
the system in force to that established by this Regulation, suchmeasures shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid downin Article 23 of Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92.
Article 13
The measures defined in this Regulation shall be deemed to be inter-
vention intended to stabilise agricultural markets within the meaningof Article 1(2)(b) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1258/1999.
Article 14
Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 and Regulation (EEC) No 1872/94 are
hereby repealed.
Article 15
1. This Regulation shall enter into force seven days after its publica-
tion in the Official Journal of the European Communities .
2. ThisRegulation s hall apply from the 2000/2001 marketing year
onwards.
3. Regulation (EEC) No 1765/92 and Regulation (EEC) No 1872/94
shall continue to be applied in relation to the 1998/1999 and 1999/2000marketing years.
ThisRegulation s hall be binding in itsentirety and directly applicable
in all Member States.1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 14
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ANNEX I
DEFINITIONOFPRODUCTS
CN code Description
I. CEREALS
1001 10 00 Durum wheat
1001 90 Other wheat and meslin other than
durum wheat
1002 00 00 Rye
1003 00 Barley
1004 00 00 Oats
1005 Maize
1007 00 Grain sorghum
1008 Buckwheat, millet and canary seed;
other cereals
0709 90 60 Sweet corn
II. OILSEEDS
1201 00 Soya beans
ex 1205 00 Rape seed
ex 1206 00 10 Sunflower seed
III. PROTEIN CROPS
0713 10 Peas0713 50 Field beans
ex 1209 29 50 Sweet lupins
IV. FLAX
ex 1204 00 Linseed
(Linum usitatissimum L.)
ex 5301 10 00 Flax, raw or retted, grown for fibre
(Linum usitatissimum L.)
V. HEMP
ex 5302 10 00 Hemp, raw or retted, grown for fibre
(Cannabis sativa L.)1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 15
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ANNEX II
TRADITIONALPRODUCTIONZONESFORDURUMWHEAT
GREECE
Nomoi (prefectures) of the following regions
Central Greece
PeloponneseIonian IslandsThessalyMacedonia
Aegean Islands
Thrace
SPAIN
Provinces
Almería
Badajoz
BurgosCádizCórdobaGranadaHuelvaJaénMálagaNavarraSalamancaSeville
Toledo
ZamoraZaragoza
AUSTRIA
Pannonia
FRANCE
Regions
Midi-Pyrénées
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'AzurLanguedoc-Roussillon
Departments (*)
Ardèche
Drôme
ITALY
Regions
Abruzzo
BasilicataCalabria1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 16
(*) Each of these departments may be linked to one of the abovementioned regions.
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Campania
LatiumMarchesMolise
Umbria
ApuliaSardinia
Sicily
Tuscany
PORTUGALDistricts
Santarém
Lisbon
SetúbalPortalegreÉvora
Beja
Faro
CYPRUS
HUNGARY1999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 17
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ANNEX III
MAXIMUM GUARANTEED AREAS IN RECEIPT OF THE SUPPLE-
MENTTOTHEAREAPAYMENTFORDURUMWHEAT
(hectares)
Greece 617 000
Spain 594 000
France 208 000
Italy 1 646 000
Cyprus6 183
Austria 7 000
Portugal 118 000
Hungary 2 5001999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 18
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ANNEX IV
MAXIMUM GUARANTEED AREAS IN RECEIPT OF THE SPECIAL
AIDFORDURUMWHEAT
(hectares)
Germany 10 000
Spain 4 000
France 50 000
Italy 4 000
Hungary 4 305
Slovakia 4 717
United Kingdom 5 0001999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 19
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ANNEX V
NATIONALREFERENCEAREA
(in 1 000 hectares)
CountryFor the 2000/2001 and 2001/2002
marketing years
Belgium 6
Denmark 236
Germany 929
Greece 26
Spain 1 168
France 1 730
Ireland 5
Italy 542
Luxembourg 2
Netherlands7
Austria 147
Portugal 93
Finland 70
Sweden 137
United Kingdom 3851999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 20
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ANNEX VI
NATIONALBASEAREASANDREFERENCEYIELDSINTHECZECH
REPUBLIC, ESTONIA, CYPRUS, LATVIA, LITHUANIA, HUNGARY,
MALTA,POLAND,SLOVENIAANDSLOVAKIA
base area
(hectares)Reference yield
(tonnesper hectare)
Czech Republic 2 253 598 4,20
Estonia 362 827 2,40Cyprus79 004 2,30Latvia 443 580 2,50
Lithuania 1 146 633 2,70
Hungary 3 487 792 4,73Malta 4 565 2,02Poland 9 454 671 3,00
Slovenia 125 171 5,27
Slovakia 1 003 453 4,061999R1251 — EN — 01.07.2004 — 004.001 — 21