15. 12. 88 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 322/19 
Proposal for a Council Regulation (EEC) instituting specific measures for nuts and amending 
Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 on the common organization of the market in fruit and 
vegetables 
COM(88) 597 final 
(Submitted by the Commission on 31 October 1988) 
(88/C 322/12) 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 43 
thereof, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European 
Parliament, 
Whereas the situation on the market for nuts, that is 
essentially that for almonds, hazel nuts and walnuts, is 
markedly out of step with technical and commercial 
requirements from the point of view of both technical 
production conditions, which are typified by a large 
number of small holdings and a low level of mechan­
ization, leading in turn to low productivity and high 
costs, and from that of marketing conditions; 
Whereas the formation of producers' organizations 
placing an obligation on their members to comply with 
rules adopted by the organizations in the interests of 
better adapting product quality and the volume of supply 
to market requirements would be a suitable way of 
remedying the structural deficiencies referred to above; 
whereas provisions for facilitating the formation and 
operation of such organizations should be adopted; 
Whereas an incentive of this kind can be provided in the 
first instance by granting a flat-rate aid for the formation 
of these organizations which would be paid in full for 
the first year following the year of an organization's 
recognition by the appropriate Member State, and in 
addition to the aid provided for in Article 14 of Council 
Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 of 18 May 1972 on the 
common organization of the market in fruit and 
vegetables ('), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 
. . . 788; whereas provisions should be made for the 
Community to co-finance this scheme by paying 50 % of 
the aid granted by the Member State; 
Whereas in order to allow producers' organizations 
which produce and market nuts to concentrate supplies, 
to stagger the release onto the market of their products, 
particularly by creating the appropriate storage capacity, 
and to improve product quality, the creation of revolving 
funds for these organizations should be encouraged; 
(') OJ No L 118, 20. 5. 1972, p. 1. whereas such an incentive could be provided by financial 
contributions from the Member State and from the 
Community to setting up the funds, with a ceiling 
determined with reference to the value of the products 
marketed by the producers' organizations over a given 
marketing year; 
Whereas in the interests of further encouraging 
producers who are members of an organization to 
modernize their orchards in order to meet market 
requirements, the granting of the aid should be made 
conditional on the formation of an organization, the 
creation of a revolving fund and the presentation of a 
varietal conversion and marketing modernization plan 
which must be approved by the national authorities 
designated by the Member States; whereas in order to be 
consistent with the aims of the scheme, these plans must 
seek primarily to bring about a genetic and cultural 
improvement of products grown in orchards given over 
solely to nuts; 
Whereas a specific aid should be granted for the drawing 
up of such plans and should be co-financed by the 
Member States and the Community; whereas the level of 
the aid should nevertheless be restricted and the aid itself 
temporary and degressive to allow a progressive shift of 
financial responsibility onto the procedures; 
Whereas in the interests of bringing the products to the 
attention of existing and potential users, promoting 
marketing which is in line with market needs and giving 
impetus to the activity of nut producers' organizations, 
provision should be made for the Community to 
contribute to the financing of schemes to develop and 
improve the consumption and use of these products, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 
Article 1 
Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 is hereby amended as 
follows: 
1. the following is added to the first subparagraph of 
Article 1 (3): 
— 'fresh or dried nuts, from 1 September to 31 
August'; 
No C 322/20 Official Journal of the European Communities 15. 12. 88 
2. the following Title Ha is added: 
'TITLE Ha 
Specific measures for nuts 
Article 14a 
For the purposes of this Title, "nuts" shall be taken to 
mean: 
— almonds falling within CN codes 0802 11 90 and 
0802 12 90, 
— hazel nuts falling within CN codes 0802 21 00 and 
0802 22 00, 
— walnuts falling within CN codes 0802 31 00 and 
0802 32 00. 
Article 14b 
1. Without prejudice to the provisions of Article 
14, the Member States shall grant an additional 
flat-rate aid as an incentive to the formation of 
producers' organizations whose economic activity 
centres on the production and marketing of nuts and 
which have presented a varietal conversion and 
marketing improvement plan approved by the 
competent national authorities pursuant to Article 
14d. 
The aid shall be granted to producers' organizations 
for the first year following the year in which they are 
recognized by the competent national authority. 
2. The level of the aid referred to in paragraph 1 
shall be calculated according to the quantity of nuts 
marketed by the producers' organization during its 
first marketing year; a single amount shall be fixed 
for each quantity tranche. 
The aid granted shall be refunded by the European 
Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund, 
Guidance Section, at a rate of 50 °/o. 
3. The Member States shall notify to the 
Commission details of the producers' organizations 
recognized under this Article, giving their membership 
figures and the quantities of nuts marketed by each 
during their first marketing year. 
4. The Council, acting by a qualified majority on a 
proposal from the Commission, shall determine the 
size of the tranches referred to in paragraph 2 and the 
amount of aid to apply within the span of each 
tranche. 
Article 14c 
1. Member States shall grant a specific aid to 
producers' organizations which set up a revolving 
fund in accordance with the provisions set out below, 
having presented a varietal conversion and marketing 
improvement plan approved by the competent 
national authorities pursuant to Article 14d. 
2. The revolving fund shall be used to stabilize 
supply by providing funding for the storage needed to 
allow an appropriate timing of sales on the market, and to permit an improvement in packaging in the 
interests of better marketing. The organizations shall 
use the fund in particular to finance storage, sorting, 
cracking and packaging. 
3. The specific aid shall be paid once only, subject 
to the fund being financed as follows: 
— 50 % by the producers' organization, 
— 15 % by the Member State. 
The Community contribution shall be 35 % of the 
capital of the fund. However, the overall financial 
commitment of the Member State and the 
Community may not exceed 15 % of the value of the 
production marketed by the producers' organization 
in one marketing year. 
Article 14d 
1. Producers' organizations shall qualify for the aid 
provided for in Articles 14b and 14c provided they 
present a varietal conversion and marketing 
improvement plan approved by the competent auth­
orities of the appropriate Member State. 
The plans referred to in the first subparagraph shall 
have as their primary aim the improvement of the 
quality of produce from single-crop plantations given 
over exclusively to nuts and, where needed, the 
improvement of marketing. They shall bring about the 
implementation of measures adopted according to the 
procedure referred to in Article 14g. 
2. The approved plans shall qualify for Community 
aid for their execution, provided they are funded to a 
level of at least 50 °/o by the producers' organizations 
and a level of 50 % by the Member State. Community 
aid shall account for 70 % of the Member State's 
contribution. 
Funding from the Member State and aid from the 
Community shall nevertheless be subject to a per 
hectare ceiling. 
Funding from the Member State and aid from the 
Community shall be paid over a period of ten years. 
The maximum level shall progessively decrease. 
3. Acting by a qualified majority on a proposal 
from the Commission, the Council shall fix: 
— the per hectare ceiling imposed on funding from 
the Member State and aid from the Community, 
— the rate at which funding from the Member State 
and aid from the Community shall decrease. 
4. Member States shall forward to the Commission 
the plans submitted to them by the producers' organ­
izations. These plans may be approved by the 
15. 12. 88 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 322/21 
competent authority of the Member State only after 
they have been forwarded to the Commission, and 
once a 60-day period, during which the Commission 
may request changes or complete rejection, has 
elapsed. 
Article 14e 
1. The Community shall provide 50 % of the 
funding for measures aimed at developing and 
improving the consumption and use of nuts in the 
Community, subject to the following conditions: 
2. The measures referred to in paragraph 1 shall 
have as their aim: 
— to promote product quality, particularly by means 
of market research and research into new product 
uses, including ways to adapt the products to the 
findings of this research, 
— the development of new packaging methods, 
— the dissemination of marketing advice to the 
various economic operators in the sector, 
— organization of and participation in trade fairs 
and other events. 
3. Following the procedure referred to in Article 
14d, the Commission shall adopt detailed rules of 
application for this Article and shall make a more 
detailed definition of the measures referred to in 
paragraph 2 or shall define new measures. Article 14/ 
1. The aid provided for in Articles 14c, 14d and 
14e shall be deemed to be intervention intended to 
stabilize the agricultural markets within the meaning 
of Article 3 (1) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 
729/70 ('). 
2. As regards the aid referred to in paragraph 1, 
the Commission may, at the request of the interested 
Member State and in accordance with the procedure 
provided for in Article 13 of Regulation (EEC) No 
729/70, decide to pay an initial part of allocations on 
the basis of the varietal conversion and marketing 
improvement plans approved by the Member States. 
Article 14g 
The Commission shall, in accordance with the 
procedure provided for in Article 33, adopt detailed 
rules for the application of this Title. These rules shall 
include measures of a kind which will enable use of 
the financial contribution provided by the Community 
to be monitored. 
C) OJ No L 94, 28. 4. 1970, p. 13.' 
3. In Annex 1, under the heading 'fruit', the following is 
added: 
'almonds, hazel nuts, walnuts'. 
Article 2 
This Regulation shall enter into force on . . . 
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and 
directly applicable in all Member States.