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"B COMMISSION DECISION
of 22 December 1999
approving a Finnish national aid programme implementing in particular Article 141 of the Act concerning the
conditions of accession of the Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden
(notified under document number C(1999) 5200)
(Only the Finnish and Swedish texts are authentic)
(2000/167/EC)
(OJ L 54, 26.2.2000, p. 44)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
"M1 Commission Decision 2000/364/EC of 14 March 2000 L 130 41 31.5.20002000D0167 — EN — 31.05.2000 — 001.001 — 1
COMMISSION DECISION
of 22 December 1999
approving a Finnish national aid programme implementing in particular
Article 141 of the Act concerning the conditions of accession of the
Republic of Austria, the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden
(notified under document number C(1999) 5200)
(Only the Finnish and Swedish texts are authentic)
(2000/167/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in
particular the first subparagraph of Article 88(2) thereof,
Having regard to the Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden, and in
particular Article 141 thereof,
Whereas:
(1) On 25 October 1999, Finland notified the Commission, pursuant in
particular to Article 143 of the Act of Accession and Article 88 of the
EC Treaty, a national aid programme implementing in particular
Article 141 and comprising other related measures for regions A and Band the Archipelago of regions A and B.
(2) On 6 December 1999, Finland submitted an amended version of the
programme.
(3) On 30 July 1996, following an earlier Finnish notification, the
Commission adopted Decision 97/428/EC (
1) approving a Finnish aid
programme implementing in particular Article 141 of the Actconcerning the conditions of accession of the Republic of Austria,
the Republic of Finland and the Kingdom of Sweden and other related
measures,
(4) Under the amended version of the notification submitted by Finland,
certain aid measures previously authorised by the Commission inDecision 97/428/EC are discontinued, other authorised aids aremaintained, the duration of certain aids is extended to the end of
2003 and certain new aids are introduced to apply from 1 January 2000
to 31 December 2003.
(5) In Article 1(a) of Decision 97/428/EC, the Commission, acting
pursuant to Article 141 of the Act of Accession, approved from 1January 1997 to 31 December 2001 a national aid for farmers with adevelopment plan for investments in primary production (on-farm
agriculture and horticultural activities) that do not entail an increase of
the total production capacity of the sector existing on the date ofadoption of that Decision (30 July 1996), amounting at most to 50 % of
the total cost of investments in the pigmeat, poultrymeat and eggs
sectors and to 75 % of that same cost in other sectors, subject tocompliance with the individual maximum limits laid down byCommission Decision C(96) 733 of 19 April 1996. Article 1 (b) of
Decision 97/428/EC also authorises aid to be granted for up to five
years as an income support where there is a change of production.
(6) Finland has requested the Commission to extend the authorisation of
this aid for investments in primary production to 31 December 2003.
(7) The data sent by Finland pursuant to Article 3 of Decision 97/428/EC
indicates that this aid for investments in primary production helps,
through structural improvements, to maintain and improve existingproduction patterns; the request to extend the duration of this aidshould be accepted for this reason.
(8) In Article 2 of Decision 97/428/EC, the Commission has authorised
certain aid measures for an indefinite duration in accordance with
Article 88 of the Treaty.!B
(1) OJ L 184, 12.7.1997, p. 50.2000D0167 — EN — 31.05.2000 — 001.001 — 2
(9) In its notification, Finland has indicated that it intends to discontinue
some of these measures, but to maintain the aid for the development ofquality systems referred to in Article 2(d) of Decision 97/428/EC andthe additional aids referred to in Article 2(e) of that Decision.
(10) There is no reason to review the previous assessment of the
Commission that these aids can be considered compatible with thecommon market. These aids therefore continue to be authorised in
accordance with Decision 97/428/EC.
(11) In its notification of 25 October 1999, Finland also asked the
Commission to approve, under Article 141 of the Act of Accession,
from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2003, certain direct payments to
producers in the animal husbandry, milk and horticultural productionsectors.
(12) In accordance with Article 141 of the Act of Accession, the
Commission may authorise Finland to grant national aids to producersso as to facilitate their full integration into the common agriculturalpolicy where there are serious difficulties resulting from accession
which remain after full utilisation of the provisions of Articles 138,
139, 140 and 142 and of the other measures resulting from the rulesexisting in the Community.
(13) In accordance with Article 137(3) of the Act of Accession, the period
during which aid under Articles 138, 139 and 140 may be grantedexpired on 31 December 1999.
(14) Article 142 of the Act of Accession does not apply to the regions
included in the national aid programme notified to the Commission on25 October 1999.
(15) Due to climatic conditions, as well as to the small size of the farms and
the higher levels of fixed costs, the profitability of agriculturalproduction in Southern Finland is very low.
(16) The data sent by Finland shows that a sudden reduction in support due
to the expiry of aid under Articles 138, 139 and 140 of the Act of
Accession would cause severe problems in that reducing farmers’income significantly would endanger the continuation of agricultural
production in Southern Finland.
(17) Although some improvement was achieved in recent years, further
structural adjustment of the farm sector in Southern Finland is still
needed in order to ensure the effective integration of Finnish
agriculture into the common agricultural policy.
(18) The Commission took the view in Decision 97/428/EC that aid under
Article 141 of the Act of Accession should address structural
inefficiencies that could be changed in order to facilitate the fullintegration of producers into the common agricultural policy.
(19) In the light of experience, however, it appears that transitional and
degressive direct income payments may be seen as a necessary
complement to a structural adjustment policy, providing that suchpayments are essentially intended to accompany structural adaptation,
do not hinder the realisation of the necessary structural changes and
are limited to the period of time necessary.
(20) However, given the length of time necessary to achieve long-term
structural change, it is appropriate to set the duration of the aid
authorised by the present Decision to the period expiring on 31December 2003.
(21) The total amount of production eligible for support should be limited
to that which was previously eligible for aid pursuant to Article 138 of
the Act of Accession. The production in question is less than 1 % ofCommunity production in all the relevant sectors, and is not therefore
expected to have a serious effect on the Community markets.
(22) Finland should be required to provide a detailed report on all measures
and sectors concerned before 30 June 2003, including an assessment of
the results of these measures in solving the serious difficulties and in
assisting the full integration of Finnish farmers in the commonagricultural policy.!B2000D0167 — EN — 31.05.2000 — 001.001 — 3
(23) As regards the livestock sector, for reasons of administrative
efficiency, Finland has asked to apply an aid per livestock unit incertain cases rather than aid per kilogramme or per animal,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
The Commission authorises Finland to continue to grant the aid referred to in
Article 1(a) of Decision 97/428/EC until 31 December 2003.
Article 2
1. The Commission authorises Finland to grant, from 1 January 2000 to 31
December 2003, the aid referred to in Annex I, up to the maximum amountindicated in the table.
2. The aid referred to in paragraph 1 shall be granted within the following
limits:
— cows milk: the reference quantity allocated pursuant to Article 4 of
Council Regulation (EEC) No 3950/92 (
1) after the reallocation of any
unused reference quantities in accordance with the second subparagraphof Article 2(1) of that Regulation for the milk year which ends during thecalendar year in question;
— for bovine animals: the ceilings provided for in Council Regulation (EC)
No 1254/1999 (
2) (Annexes I and II);
— for suckler cows and male bovine animals: the total number of animals
receiving aid cannot exceed a density factor equal to 2 LU/ha of foragearea;
— for ewes and goats: the individual limit allocated to producers in
application of Article 10 of Council Regulation (EC) No 2467/98 (
3).
Article 3
The Commission authorises Finland to grant an additional aid per bull during
the adjustment period from January to June 2000, up to the maximum
mentioned in Annex II, due to the change in the aid system from
slaughter-related aid to aid per livestock unit.
Article 4
No later than 30 June 2003, Finland shall provide a detailed report on the
application of the measures authorised by Decision 97/428/EC and by thisDecision, and their effects on the integration of Finnish agriculture into thecommon agricultural policy.
Article 5
This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Finland.!B
(1) OJ L 405, 31.12.1992, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 21.
(3) OJ L 312, 20.11.1998, p. 1.!M1
!B
!M1
!B2000D0167 — EN — 31.05.2000 — 001.001 — 4
ANNEX I
UnitMaximum rate of aid
FMK/unit
2000 2001 2002 2003
Milk
— Outer archipelago and mainland
Ålandkg 0,45 0,43 0,415 0,405
— Other areas of A- and B-regions kg 0,37 0,355 0,345 0,335
Suckler cows
A- and B-region LU 420 400 385 376
Male bovine animals
A- and B-region LU 2 210 2 120 2 050 2 000
Ewes and she-goats
A- and B-region LU 2 260 2 140 2 045 1 980
Bovines and ewes: supplement in
archipelago to the normal paymentof A- and B-region
(includes dairy cows, suckler cows,
male bovines, other bovines and ewes)LU 2 570 2 460 2 380 2 322
Pigmeat and swine
— Outer archipelago and mainland
ÅlandLU 2 290 2 160 2 070 2 004
— Other areas of A- and B-region LU 1 930 1 830 1 750 1 692
Laying hens
— Outer archipelago and mainland
ÅlandLU 2 300 2 180 2 080 2 017
— Other areas of A- and B-region LU 1 860 1 760 1 685 1 634
Other poultry
A- and B-region LU 2 270 2 150 2 055 1 992
Horses
A- and B-region LU 2 115 2 000 1 910 1 852
Heifers for slaughter
A- and B-region animal 710 680 660 642Greenhouses m
2 76 73 70 68
Horticultural product stores
— With thermal control m3 95 92 89 86
— Without thermal control m3 67 64 62 60!B2000D0167 — EN — 31.05.2000 — 001.001 — 5
Notes:
In the unit column, ‘LU’ means livestock unit
1. The following table is to be used when determining the average amount of livestock
units (LU maximum):
LU
"M1Male bovine animals and heifers from six months to
24 months 30,6
"M1 Male bovine animals and heifers older than 24
months, suckler cows, dairy cows 31,0
Ewes 0,15
She-goats 0,48
Sows 0,7
Laying hens, including parent hens 0,013Parent ducks, broilers, geese or turkeys 0,026Pheasant and mallard parents 0,013Broilers 0,0053Horses, over six months
— Mares for breeding (incl. pony mares) 1,0
— Finnish horse 0,85— One to three year old other horses and ponies 0,60
2. The following table is to be used when determining livestock units (LU) in the case
of pigs and poultry intended for meat production (at least the indicated number ofslaughtered animals for one livestock unit):
13 slaughtered fattening pigs 1 LU
550 slaughtered ducks 1 LU320 slaughtered geese 1 LU190 slaughtered turkeys 1 LU1 375 slaughtered pheasants 1 LU1 375 slaughtered mallards 1 LU!
B2000D0167 — EN — 31.05.2000 — 001.001 — 6
ANNEX II
Aid for bulls during the adjustment period from January to June 2000 due to the
change in aid system from slaughter-related aid to aid per livestock unit
Outer archipelago
January — February 2000 1 030 FIM/animal
March — April 2000 655 FIM/animal
May — June 2000 280 FIM/animal
Mainland Åland Islands
January — February 2000 740 FIM/animal
March — April 2000 470 FIM/animalMay — June 2000 200 FIM/animal
Other areas of A- and B-Region
January — February 2000 675 FIM/animal
March — April 2000 430 FIM/animalMay — June 2000 185 FIM/animal!
B2000D0167 — EN — 31.05.2000 — 001.001 — 7