EN Official Journal of the European Union C 347/19

Publication of an application pursuant to Article 50(2)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs

(2015/C 347/09)

This publication confers the right to oppose the application pursuant to Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1).

SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘ROSÉE DES PYRÉNÉES CATALANES’

EU No: MULTI-PGI-0005-01343 — 23.4.2010

PDO ( ) PGI ( X )

1. Name

‘Rosée des Pyrénées Catalanes’

2. Member State or Third Country

Spain (joint application with France)

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1. Type of product

Class 1.1. Fresh meat (and offal)

3.2. Description of the product to which the name in 1 applies

‘Rosée des Pyrénées Catalanes’ is white veal meat obtained from the Pyrenean Brown, Aubrac or Gascon hardy breeds or from the cross-breeding of mothers of these hardy breeds with males of the Charolais, Limousin or Blonde d'Aquitaine breeds.

The free-range calves remain with their mothers throughout their whole life and they feed on maternal milk and grass.

They are slaughtered unweaned when they are between five and eight months old and the minimum weight of the carcasses is 110 kg.

The meat can be sold as a whole carcass, half-carcass, quarter-carcass (hindquarter/forequarter) or as cuts of meat (including minced meat).

The eligible carcasses are classified as E, U or R on the EUROP grid, with profiles ranging from ‘super-convex’ to ‘straight’ and with muscle development that ranges from ‘exceptional’ to ‘good’.

The fat cover of the carcasses is graded 2-3 on the EUROP grid.

The meat colour ranges from pink to light red. The fat is white to cream in colour.

3.3. Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

The calves feed on maternal milk and grass throughout their life.

This feeding continues until the unweaned calves are slaughtered.

3.4. Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

The protected meat comes from animals of the breeds set out in point 3.2, which are born and reared in the geographical area defined in this Protected Geographical Indication.

The meat-production steps that must take place in the defined geographical area are:

Birth

Rearing: alongside their mother throughout their life in the grazing area of the holding until transhumance takes place, when the calves and their mothers can be moved up to the summer mountain pastures. The calves consume progressively less milk and more grass over time.

The animals are not weaned.

3.5. Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product to which the registered name refers

It is not compulsory for slaughtering and butchering to take place in the area.

Transport time prior to slaughter is limited to three hours so that stress and disturbance are kept to a minimum for the animals, thereby guaranteeing the quality of the finished product.

3.6. Specific rules concerning labelling of the product to which the registered name refers

The name of the Protected Geographical Indication ‘Rosée des Pyrénées Catalanes’ must feature prominently on labels, along with the EU Protected Geographical Indication symbol and any other information required by the legislation in force.

4. Concise definition of the geographical area

The area of the Protected Geographical Indication, the Catalan Pyrenees, is a culturally and geographically homogenous area, despite belonging to two different States.

In the Catalan Pyrenees (Spain):

The geographical area includes all the municipalities in the mountain districts: Alta Ribagorça, Alt Urgell, Berguedà, Cerdanya, Garrotxa, Pallars Jussà, Pallars Sobirà, Solsonès, Ripollès and Val d'Aran, as well as the municipalities in the ‘mountain areas’ of the districts of Alt Empordà (Albanyà, Maçanet de Cabrenys and La Vajol), Bages (Aguilar de Segarra, Castellfollit del Boix, L'Estany, Moià, Mura, Sant Feliu Sasserra, Sant Mateu de Bages and Talamanca), Noguera (Àger, Alòs de Balaguer, Les Avellanes i Santa Linya, La Baronia de Rialb, Camarasa, Os de Balaguer and Vilanova de Meià), Osona (Alpens, Balenyà, El Brull, Centelles, Collsuspina, Espinelves, Folgueroles, Lluçà, Montesquiu, Muntanyola, Olost, Orís, Oristà, Perafita, Prats de Lluçanès, Rupit i Pruit, Sant Agustí de Lluçanès, Sant Bartomeu del Grau, Sant Boi de Lluçanès, Sant Julià de Vilatorta, Sant Martí d'Albars, Sant Martí de Centelles, Sant Pere de Torelló, Sant Quirze de Besora, Sant Sadurní d'Osormort, Sant Vicenç de Torelló, Santa Eulàlia de Riuprimer, Santa Maria de Besora, Santa Maria de Corcó, Seva, Sobremunt, Sora, Tavèrnoles, Tavertet, Tona, Vidrà, Viladrau and Vilanova de Sau) and Pla de l'Estany (Sant Miquel de Campmajor).

In the Catalan Pyrenees (France):

In the Pyrénées-Orientales department, the geographical area includes all the municipalities that are part of the cantons of Vinça, Sournia, Arles sur Tech, Prats de Mollo, Prades, Olette, Mont Louis and Saillagouse, as well as some of the municipalities in the cantons of Perpignan (Perpignan), Millas (Corbère and Corbère les Cabanes), Thuir (Thuir, Castelnou, Camelas, Caixas, Sainte Colombe de la Commanderie, Fourques, Tordères, Llauro and Passa), Latour de France (Belesta and Caramany), Céret (Montauriol, Calmeilles, Oms, Taillet, Reynes, Céret, Vivès, Saint-Jean-Pla-de-Corts, Maureillas las Illas, Les Cluses, Le Perthus and l'Albère), Argelès (Montesquieu des Albères, Villelongue dels Monts, Laroque des Albères, Sorède and Argelès sur Mer) and Saint Paul de Fenouillet (Vira, Fenouillet, Caudiès de Fenouillèdes, Prugnanes, Fosse and Saint Martin).

In the Aude department, the geographical area includes municipalities that border the Pyrénées-Orientales department and are located in the Pyrenean mountain range, namely all the municipalities that are part of the cantons of Axat, Belcaire, Mouthoumet and Quillan, as well as some of the municipalities in the cantons of Couiza (Arques, Bugarach, Camps sur l'Agly, Cassaignes, Couiza, Coustaussa, Cubières sur Cinoble, Fourtou, Luc sur Aude, Missègre, Peyrolles, Rennes le Château, Rennes les Bains, Serres, Sougraigne, Terroles and Valmigère), Lagrasse (Mayronnes and Saint Martin des Puits), Limoux (Alet les Bains, Bouriège, Bourigeole, Castelreng, Festes et Saint André, La Bezole, Saint Couat du Razès and Véraza), Saint Hilaire (Belcastel et Buc, Caunette sur Lauquet, Clermont sur Lauquet, Greffeil, Ladern sur Lauquet, Villardebelle and Villefloure), and Tuchan (Cucugnan, Duilhac sous Peyrepertuse, Maisons, Montgaillard, Padern and Rouffiac des Corbières).

5. Link with the geographical area

The geography of the Catalan Pyrenees is favourable to free-range cattle rearing. It is characterised by paths and mountain pastures at high and low altitude, with extensive natural pasture land for the animals for much of the year, until the weather conditions become difficult. The area is influenced by the Mediterranean (humid, sub-Mediterranean climate), which means that the animals can spend longer in the summer pastures and mountain meadows, where they graze until autumn.

The abundance of water and good exposure to sunlight favour the development of the rich and characteristic flora (particularly Festuca pratensis, Festuca alpina, Poa pratensis, Dactylis glomerata, Sesleria caerulea, Bromus erectus and Arrhenatherum elatius), which creates excellent grazing areas for the cattle. It also allows farmers to sow mixtures of grasses and legumes in the meadows in the mid-mountain zone to feed the cattle during periods when the high-altitude mountain pastures are inaccessible. The most common forage crops are clover, ryegrass, lucerne (alfalfa), sainfoin and fescue.

In terms of human factors, historically working or meat-producing animals would give birth in spring and go up to the summer pastures with their calves, which made it possible to keep workers free for other seasonal activities and to preserve fodder reserves at low altitude. Some of these calves would be slaughtered when they came back down from the summer pastures and would be consumed locally or by the family. This was an economically sound practice, as the calves (called Rosée) were fed solely on maternal milk and the pasture grasses over the summer months. Today's method for producing ‘Rosée des Pyrénées Catalanes’ grew out of this tradition.

The specific character of this Protected Geographical Indication comes from the hardy breeds used (Pyrenean Brown, Aubrac and Gascon), which are suited to this method and reared in the open air.

The calves reared using this production method grow well as a result of their diet during rearing, which produces animals with well-conformed carcasses.

The ‘Rosée des Pyrénées Catalanes’ has excellent muscle development, the meat is pink to light red in colour and the fat is cream coloured, which makes the carcasses and meat highly regarded by butchers and consumers alike. In this area, there is a centuries-old tradition of eating this type of meat from unweaned animals.

In the Catalan Pyrenees, a number of festivals, fairs and markets are held; these events have a strong agricultural feel and the region's cattle feature prominently. They include the Fira de Sant Ermengol de la Seu d'Urgell (which dates back to the 11th century), the ferias in Olette, Prats de Mollo and Vinça, as well as treks through the mountain pastures of the Catalan Pyrenees Regional Nature Park. The large influx of tourists to the region has helped promote the excellent qualities of this meat, meaning that in recent decades the meat has gained a good reputation with consumers and professionals from outside the production area. This regularly gives rise to many articles and mentions in the newspapers covering the area, such as L'Indépendant (2 July 1992 and 11 July 2013), and in more widely distributed papers, in Patrimoine en région magazine (Edition 22, Spring 2014) and on the websites of Le Guide des Gourmands (http://guidedesgourmands.fr) and of the Association des cuisiniers et restaurateurs du Roussillon (www.toques-blanches-du-roussillon.com). Indeed, the distribution channels for the product also attest to its importance; cooperatives are selling the product by mail order and in butchers' shops in the region there are special display areas for the product.

The characteristic features of ‘Rosée des Pyrénées Catalanes’ are the result of:

— a specific environment featuring paths that are conducive to a free-range system of rearing that includes a long period in summer pastures,

— the sunny climate and abundance of water in the geographical area provide the right conditions for abundant and specific flora, which naturally creates large grazing areas. Indeed, this climate means that grass leys can be planted in mid-mountain zones so that the cattle can be fed when grazing is not possible,

— the use of breeds that are well suited to this method. The breeds used, Pyrenean Brown, Aubrac and Gascon, are all hardy breeds that are typical of the region and possess qualities that are useful given the traditional farming methods in mountain areas, as the cattle can handle extreme weather conditions, require little to survive thanks to their ability to use reserves built up when food is plentiful (transhumance) and are therefore well suited to the climate and relief of the land,

— specific know-how (free-range farming with few animals),

— the calves' feed (only milk and pasture grass) linked to the system of rearing, which gives the meat its distinctive colour and tenderness, and the classification of the carcasses. Maternal milk helps calves grow well, as it supplies a significant amount of calcium. This favours good skeletal development, which helps the calves develop a conform carcass.

In summary, the difficult living conditions in these mountainous areas are actually irrefutable advantages thanks to the quality product that is closely linked with the land. Hardy breeds are able to make best use of the upper and lower mountain areas, which helps manage the natural environment. Farmers value their produce (recognition and reputation with consumers and distributors, and higher prices), which enables them to maintain the farming system (also benefiting the rest of the chain), remain in difficult areas and maintain the rural way of life in mountain villages.

Reference to publication of the product specification

(the second subparagraph of Article 6(1) of this Regulation)

http://www.gencat.cat/alimentacio/pliego-rosee-pyrenees-catalanes

https://www.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/CDCRoseedesPyreneescatalanes-FR-24-03-2015.pdf

(1) OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1.