(1)

Section 1 of Chapter II of Title I of Part II is replaced by the following: ‘Section 1 Aid for the supply of fruit and vegetables and of milk and milk products in educational establishments Article 22 Target group The aid scheme intended to improve the distribution of agricultural products and improving children's eating habits is aimed at children who regularly attend nurseries, pre-schools or primary or secondary-level educational establishments which are administered or recognised by the competent authorities of Member States. Article 23 Aid for the supply of school fruit and vegetables and of school milk, accompanying educational measures and related costs 1. Union aid shall be granted in respect of children in the educational establishments referred to in Article 22: (a) for the supply and distribution of eligible products referred to in paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 of this Article; (b) for accompanying educational measures; and (c) to cover certain related costs linked to equipment, publicity, monitoring and evaluation, and, insofar as those costs are not covered by point (a) of this subparagraph, logistics and distribution. The Council shall, in accordance with Article 43(3) TFEU, lay down limits for the proportion of Union aid covering measures and costs referred to in points (b) and (c) of the first subparagraph of this paragraph. 2. For the purposes of this Section: (a) “school fruit and vegetables” means the products referred to in point (a) of paragraph 3 and point (a) of paragraph 4; (b) “school milk” means the products referred to in point (b) of paragraph 3 and point (b) of paragraph 4, as well as the products referred to in Annex V. 3. Member States wishing to participate in the aid scheme established pursuant to paragraph 1 (“the school scheme”) and requesting the corresponding Union aid shall, taking into account national circumstances, prioritise the distribution of products of either or both of the following groups: (a) fruit and vegetables and fresh products of the banana sector; (b) drinking milk and lactose-free versions thereof. 4. Notwithstanding paragraph 3, in order to promote the consumption of specific products and/or to respond to particular nutritional needs of children in their territory, Member States may provide for the distribution of products of either or both of the following groups: (a) processed fruit and vegetable products, in addition to the products referred to in point (a) of paragraph 3; (b) cheese, curd, yoghurt and other fermented or acidified milk products without added flavouring, fruit, nuts or cocoa, in addition to the products referred to in point (b) of paragraph 3. 5. In cases where Member States consider it necessary for the attainment of the objectives of the school scheme and the goals stated in the strategies referred to in paragraph 8, they may supplement the distribution of products referred to in paragraphs 3 and 4 with products listed in Annex V. In such cases, the Union aid shall be paid only for the milk component of the distributed product. That milk component shall not be lower than 90 % by weight for products of Category I of Annex V and 75 % by weight for products of Category II of Annex V. The level of Union aid for the milk component shall be fixed by the Council in accordance with Article 43(3) TFEU. 6. Products distributed under the school scheme shall not contain any of the following: (a) added sugars; (b) added salt; (c) added fat; (d) added sweeteners; (e) added artificial flavour enhancers E 620 to E 650 as defined in Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council (*). Notwithstanding the first subparagraph of this paragraph, any Member State may, after obtaining the appropriate authorisation from its national authorities responsible for health and nutrition in accordance with its national procedures, decide that eligible products referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5 may contain limited quantities of added sugar, added salt and/or added fat. 7. In addition to products referred to in paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 of this Article, Member States may provide for the inclusion of other agricultural products under the accompanying educational measures, in particular those listed in points (g) and (v) of Article 1(2). 8. As a condition for its participation in the school scheme, a Member State shall draw up, prior to its participation in the school scheme, and subsequently every six years, at national or regional level, a strategy for the implementation of the scheme. The strategy may be amended by the authority responsible for drawing it up at national or regional level, in particular in the light of monitoring and evaluation and of the results achieved. The strategy shall at least identify the needs to be met, the ranking of the needs in terms of priorities, the target group, the results expected to be achieved and, if available, the quantified targets to be attained in relation to the initial situation, and lay down the most appropriate instruments and actions for attaining those objectives. The strategy may contain specific elements relating to the implementation of the school scheme, including those intended to simplify its management. 9. Member States shall determine in their strategies the list of all the products to be supplied under the school scheme either through regular distribution or under accompanying educational measures. Without prejudice to paragraph 6, they shall also ensure the appropriate involvement of their national authorities responsible for health and nutrition in drawing up that list, or the appropriate authorisation by those authorities of that list, in accordance with national procedures. 10. Member States shall, in order to make the school scheme effective, also provide for accompanying educational measures, which may include, inter alia, measures and activities aimed at reconnecting children with agriculture through activities, such as farm visits, and the distribution of a wider variety of agricultural products as referred to in paragraph 7. Those measures may also be designed to educate children about related issues, such as healthy eating habits, local food chains, organic farming, sustainable production or combating food waste. 11. Member States shall choose the products to be featured in distribution or to be included in accompanying educational measures on the basis of objective criteria which shall include one or more of the following: health and environmental considerations, seasonality, variety and the availability of local or regional produce, giving priority to the extent practicable to products originating in the Union. Member States may encourage in particular local or regional purchasing, organic products, short supply chains or environmental benefits and, if appropriate, products recognised under the quality schemes established by Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012. Member States may consider, in their strategies, prioritising sustainability and fair-trade considerations. Article 23a Financing provisions 1. Without prejudice to paragraph 4 of this Article, the aid under the school scheme allocated for the distribution of products, the accompanying educational measures and the related costs referred to in Article 23(1) shall not exceed EUR 250 million per school year. Within that overall limit, the aid shall not exceed: (a) for school fruit and vegetables: EUR 150 million per school year; (b) for school milk: EUR 100 million per school year. 2. The aid referred to in paragraph 1 shall be allocated to each Member State taking into account the following: (a) the number of six- to ten-year-old children in the Member State concerned; (b) the degree of development of the regions within the Member State concerned so as to ensure that higher aid is allocated to less developed regions and to the smaller Aegean Islands within the meaning of Article 1(2) of Regulation (EU) No 229/2013; and (c) for school milk, in addition to the criteria referred to in points (a) and (b), the historical use of the Union aid for the supply of milk and milk products to children. The allocations for the Member States concerned shall ensure that higher aid is allocated to the outermost regions listed in Article 349 TFEU in order to take into account the specific situation of those regions in the sourcing of products and to promote such sourcing between outermost regions that are in geographical proximity to each other. The allocations for school milk resulting from the application of the criteria laid down in this paragraph shall ensure that all Member States are entitled to receive at least a minimum amount of Union aid per child in the age group referred to in point (a) of the first subparagraph. That amount shall not be lower than the average use of Union aid per child across all Member States under the school milk scheme which applied prior to 1 August 2017. Measures on the fixing of indicative and definitive allocations and on reallocation of Union aid for school fruit and vegetables and for school milk shall be taken by the Council in accordance with Article 43(3) TFEU. 3. Member States wishing to participate in the school scheme shall submit every year their request for Union aid, specifying the amount requested for the school fruit and vegetables and the amount requested for the school milk that they wish to distribute. 4. Without exceeding the overall limit of EUR 250 million laid down in paragraph 1, any Member State may transfer once per school year up to 20 % of either one or the other of its indicative allocations. That percentage may be increased up to 25 % for the Member States with outermost regions listed in Article 349 TFEU and in other duly justified cases, such as where a Member State needs to address a specific market situation in the sector covered by the school scheme, its particular concerns regarding low consumption of either one of the groups of products, or other societal changes. Transfers may be made either: (a) prior to the fixing of definitive allocations for the following school year, between the Member State's indicative allocations; or (b) after the start of school year, between the Member State's definitive allocations, where such allocations have been set for the Member State in question. The transfers referred to in point (a) of the third subparagraph may not be made from the indicative allocation for the group of products for which the Member State concerned requests an amount exceeding its indicative allocation. Member States shall notify to the Commission the amount of any transfers between indicative allocations. 5. The school scheme shall be without prejudice to any separate national school schemes which are compatible with Union law. Union aid provided for in Article 23 may be used to extend the scope or effectiveness of any existing national school schemes or school distribution schemes providing school fruit and vegetables and school milk but shall not replace funding for those existing national schemes, except for free distribution of meals to children in educational establishments. If a Member State decides to extend the scope of an existing national school scheme or to make it more effective by requesting Union aid, it shall indicate in the strategy referred to in Article 23(8) how this will be achieved. 6. Member States may, in addition to Union aid, grant national aid for the financing of the school scheme. Member States may finance that aid by means of a levy on the sector concerned or by means of any other contribution from the private sector. 7. The Union may also finance, pursuant to Article 6 of Regulation (EU) No 1306/2013, information, publicity, monitoring and evaluation measures relating to the school scheme, including measures to raise public awareness of the scheme's objectives, and related networking measures aimed at exchanging experience and best practices in order to facilitate the implementation and management of the scheme. The Commission may develop, in accordance with Article 24(4) of this Regulation, a common identifier or graphic elements to enhance the visibility of the school scheme. 8. Member States participating in the school scheme shall publicise, at school premises or other relevant places, their involvement in the scheme and the fact that it is subsidised by the Union. Member States may use any suitable publicity tools, which may include posters, dedicated websites, informative graphic material, and information and awareness-raising campaigns. Member States shall ensure the added value and the visibility of the Union school scheme in relation to the provision of other meals in educational establishments. Article 24 Delegated powers 1. In order to promote the healthy eating habits of children and to ensure that the aid under the school scheme is aimed at children in the target group referred to in Article 22, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 concerning rules on: (a) the additional criteria related to the eligibility of the target group referred to in Article 22; (b) the approval and selection of aid applicants by Member States; (c) the drawing up of the national or regional strategies and on the accompanying educational measures. 2. In order to ensure the efficient and targeted use of Union funds and to facilitate the implementation of the school scheme, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 concerning: (a) the identification of costs and measures that are eligible for Union aid; (b) the obligation for Member States to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of their school scheme. 3. In order to take account of scientific developments, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 in order to supplement the list of artificial flavour-enhancers referred to in point (e) of the first subparagraph of Article 23(6). In order to ensure that products distributed in accordance with Article 23(3), (4) and (5) meet the objectives of the school scheme, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 in order to define the maximum levels for added sugar, added salt and added fat which may be allowed by Member States under the second subparagraph of Article 23(6) and which are technically necessary to prepare or manufacture processed products. 4. In order to promote awareness of the school scheme and to increase the visibility of Union aid, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 requiring the Member States participating in the school scheme to clearly publicise the fact that they are receiving Union support to implement the scheme, including in relation to: (a) if appropriate, the establishment of specific criteria regarding the presentation, composition, size and design of the common identifier or graphic elements; (b) the specific criteria related to the use of publicity tools. 5. In order to ensure the added value and the visibility of the school scheme, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 in respect of the rules concerning the distribution of products in relation to the provision of other meals in educational establishments. 6. Taking into account the need to ensure that the Union aid is reflected in the price at which the products are available under the school scheme, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 requiring Member States to explain in their strategies how this will be achieved. Article 25 Implementing powers in accordance with the examination procedure The Commission may, by means of implementing acts, adopt the measures necessary for the application of this Section, including those concerning: (a) the information to be contained in Member States' strategies; (b) the aid applications and payments, including the simplification of procedures resulting from the common framework for the school scheme; (c) the methods of publicising, and networking measures in respect of, the school scheme; (d) the submission, format and content of annual requests for aid, monitoring and evaluation reports by Member States participating in the school scheme; (e) the application of Article 23a(4), including on the deadlines for the transfers and on the submission, format and content of transfer notifications. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 229(2). (*) Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on food additives (OJ L 354, 31.12.2008, p. 16).’;"