EN Official Journal of the European Union C 231/6

Publication of an application pursuant to Article 6(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs

2012/C 231/06

This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Article 7 of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 (1). Statements of objections must reach the Commission within six months from the date of this publication.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

‘PANFORTE DI SIENA’

EC No: IT-PGI-0005-0795-28.01.2010

PGI ( X ) PDO ( )

1. Name:

‘Panforte di Siena’

2. Member State or Third Country:

Italy

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1. Type of product:

Class 2.4: Bread, pastry, cakes, confectionery, biscuits and other baker's wares

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

The name ‘Panforte di Siena’ refers to the confectionery product obtained by kneading and baking a dough of flour, candied fruit, dried fruit and a mixture of sugars, honey and spices. The product as placed on the market may be one of two types:

— white type, if the topping is based on caster sugar,

— dark type, if the topping is based on spices.

The physical characteristics which distinguish ‘Panforte di Siena’ are:

— shape: round or rectangular if sold whole; segments or small squares if sold in portions,

— dimensions: height 14-45 mm; for the round type: diameter 10-38 cm; for the rectangular type: 10-20 cm (smaller side) and 20-40 cm (larger side); weight varying according to dimensions, between 33 g and 6 kg,

— consistency: doughy, moderately resistant to cutting,

— external appearance: the surface is rough and irregular;

white type: the colour is white due to the caster sugar topping; the caster sugar may be contained in a sachet and sprinkled on the product at the time of consumption;

dark type: the colour is dark brown due to mixed spice topping.

Chemical characteristics: maximum humidity: 15 % for the finished product.

The organoleptic characteristics are:

— flavour: sweet with aftertaste of candied fruit and almonds and a spicy aroma, light in the white type and very strong in the dark type.

3.3. Raw materials (for processed products only):

The following are the ingredients for making ‘Panforte di Siena’:

3.3.1. Essential ingredients

3.3.1.1. White type: wheat flour type 0: making up between 14 % and 18 % of the dough; dried fruit: whole, unpeeled sweet almonds making up not less than 18 % of the dough; candied fruit: diced candied citron and candied orange peel making up between 35 % and 45 % of the dough; the candied citron must make up at least 25 % of the candied fruit used; sugars: sucrose, glucose syrup or invert sugar, used on their own or mixed together, making up between 18 % and 23 % of the dough; honey: wildflower (millefiori) honey making up between 2 % and 5 % of the dough; spices: nutmeg and cinnamon in quantities between 0,3 % and 1,5 %; other ingredients: caster sugar for sprinkling on the cake, starch wafers used as a base.

3.3.1.2. Dark type: wheat flour type 0: making up between 8 % and 18 % of the dough; dried fruit: whole, unpeeled sweet almonds making up not less than 18 % of the dough; candied fruit: diced candied melon and candied orange peel making up between 35 % and 45 % of the dough; the candied melon must make up at least 40 % of the candied fruit used; sugars: sucrose, glucose syrup or invert sugar, used on their own or mixed together, making up between 18 % and 23 % of the dough; spices: nutmeg, cinnamon and sweet pepper in quantities between 0,6 % and 5 %; other ingredients: a mixture of the above spices for sprinkling on the cake, starch wafers used as a base.

3.3.2. Optional ingredients

3.3.2.1. White type: dried fruit: granulated hazelnuts making up no more than 1,5 % of all the dough; candied fruit: diced candied melon making up no more than 25 % of the candied fruit used; spices: a mixture of mace, pepper, pimento, coriander, cloves; flavourings: vanilla. No other ingredients, additives, colourings or preservatives are allowed.

3.3.2.2. Dark type: candied fruit: diced candied citron making up no more than 25 % of the candied fruit used; spices: a mixture of nutmeg, coriander, star anise, cloves, ginger, allspice, chilli; flavourings: vanilla; caramel: making up no more than 2 % of the dough; walnuts: making up no more than 5 % of the dough; honey: making up no more than 5 % of the dough; cocoa for sprinkling on. No other ingredients, additives, colourings or preservatives are allowed. For each type it is possible to use more optional ingredients at the same time, within the limits indicated in the specification.

3.4. Feed (for products of animal origin only):

—

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

All of the production processes must take place in the area identified in Article 4 because it is only then that the organoleptic properties of the product are guaranteed.

3.6. Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc.:

The working and packaging processes have to take place continuously in order to prevent the product from losing its consistency once it has cooled down. The determining factor in this regard is maintaining the right degree of humidity indicated in point 3.2. The tendency to absorb moisture from outside might in fact combine with the tendency for the internal moisture of the product, due to the sugar, flour and candied fruit mix, to rise to the surface, making the ‘Panforte di Siena’ translucent, soft and sticky and causing a deterioration of its organoleptic profile. ‘Panforte di Siena’ is marketed in fully-closed paper or thin cardboard packaging, normally with a sealed pre-packaging, preventing, besides the absorption of moisture from outside, exposure to external agents, in particular the harmful effects from any attacks from almond or flour parasites (in particular the Indian Meal Moth).

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling:

The packaging and the band round the product container must carry the wording ‘Panforte di Siena’ and ‘Protected geographical indication’ either in full or abbreviated (PGI), as well as the following additional information:

the name, business name and address of the firm manufacturing and packaging the product;

the graphics for the product as described in this section, portraying the image which must appear together with the protected geographical indication.

The following indications may be added as required in accordance with local tradition:

‘white’ or ‘Margherita’ for the white type;

‘dark’ for the dark type.

Any other description not expressly allowed is prohibited.

However, references to brand names may be used, on condition that they have no laudatory purport and are not such as to mislead the purchaser, and of other truthful and documentable references that are permitted under current law and do not conflict with the purposes and content of this document.

The designation ‘Panforte di Siena’ must be given in Italian.

The logo consists of a ‘balzana’ (a shield, white at the top and black at the bottom), surrounded by a scroll in light yellow Pantone 1205 (5 % M/30 % Y) which is folded back on itself at the top.

The scroll bears the words ‘Panforte di Siena’ in black in the font Gill Extra Bold Condensed along its length; in the angle at the bottom, dividing the word ‘Panforte’ from the words ‘di Siena’, a stylised black flower with five petals. In the frieze, yellow gold Pantone 117 (30 C/40 % M/70 % Y), at the top the letters ‘IGP’ in black in the font Gill Extra Bold Condensed, surrounded by a white background with a black border. Immediately below, three lines with the words ‘Indicazione geografica protetta’ in black in the font Gill Extra Bold. It will be possible to adapt the logo proportionally to the various angles of inclination in use. The height may be reduced to a minimum of 1,4 cm.

4. Concise definition of the geographical area:

The area of production and packaging of ‘Panforte di Siena’ comprises the entire administrative territory of the province of Siena.

5. Link with the geographical area:

5.1. Specificity of the geographical area:

The production of ‘Panforte di Siena’ became established close to Siena's convents and apothecaries' shops from the 12th century onwards, when the city exchanges and businesses began to flourish along the Via Francigena. The main characteristics of Sienese confectionery production emerged straight away in this context, summarised by a distinctive expressiveness, borne out by the many typical products, the abundant use of spices allowed by the rapid economic rise of the city, and above all the skill of the apothecaries, witnessed by a success and reputation achieved far beyond the city walls. And the consolidation over centuries of this special know-how, jealously guarded by the Sienese apothecaries, gave rise in the 19th century to the local confectionery industry, an industry which still today represents the most important sector of the economy by staff headcount, turnover and export volume.

The application for registration of the PGI ‘Panforte di Siena’ is based on a product reputation confirmed by many centuries and stemming from a number of economic and cultural factors. Production of the cake, at first confined within the walls of the city of Siena, spread to the surrounding area of the province of Siena as early as 1772, and has always, even to this day, employed a particular type of worker, called, by virtue of his particular abilities, a panfortaio. The panfortaio's skill lies in his professional competence at every stage of production, including checking the homogeneity of the ingredients and the shape of the product. Another worker, who may be the same person as the panfortaio or someone else, is the canditore, who supervises not only the perfection of the candied fruit but also the overall balance of sugars in the product.

5.2. Specificity of the product:

‘Panforte di Siena’ has a characteristically full flavour and a firm consistency. It has a bright appearance when cut, marked by the creamy white of the almonds, the bright green of the candied citron, and the colour of the candied orange and candied ripe melon. Whole almonds are well distributed throughout, and the texture is typically smooth. The chewing consistency, depending on the different ingredients, is that of the fibrous structure of the almonds merging with the smooth structure of the candied fruit and the binding dough. The characteristic flavour is determined by the different tastes of the ingredients brought out and held by the mix of spices.

The reputation of ‘Panforte di Siena’ is undisputed since Christmas would not be the same without it.

5.3. Causal link between the geographical area and the quality or characteristics of the product (for PDO) or a specific quality, the reputation or other characteristic of the product (for PGI):

‘Panforte di Siena’ is perhaps the best ambassador of traditional Sienese cuisine. Known the world over, it has a history stretching right back to Medieval times. It should be pointed out that at that time panforte was held in great esteem not just as a precious food but also as a curative, a kind of placebo, due to the spices in its dough. On the walls facing the counter in the old pharmacy in Siena's Piazza del Campo, we can still admire splendid paintings and inscriptions in gold showing panforte, ricciarelli and other typical Sienese products.

The skilful and abundant use of spices in the dough reflects the Sienese origin of ‘Panforte di Siena’. Thanks in part to Siena's prime strategic position on the Via Francigena — the city was then one of the richest and most advanced in Europe — it has a trade in panforte dating back to the Middle Ages.

Through the centuries, skilfully using plenty of high-quality spices became a source of pride for Siena's convents and spiceries and a sign of this is that many of the best-known factories making ‘Panforte di Siena’ are old spiceries of the region that have been converted.

The area around Siena has always been characterised by the production of vast quantities of cereals and flour (especially in the ‘Sienese Clays’ region), dried fruit (especially almonds and hazelnuts) and honey. Some candied fruits even reveal a typically Sienese style, both in their use and in their origin. For example, a peculiar characteristic of ‘Panforte di Siena’ is the use of melon. This comes from the traditional presence in the region of a local cultivar by the name of ‘Zatti’, which panforte manufacturers had found to lend itself very well to candying due to its very thin skin and particularly sweet flesh, and its very intense colour. Over very many years' time this in fact led to the fruit being widely grown in the Sienese countryside especially for use in making ‘Panforte di Siena’.

The name ‘Panforte’ is first recorded back in the early 19th century. It was in that century that the cake left the confines of the spiceries and production began on a much larger scale, which allowed it to be marketed significantly outside the Sienese region, in particular in the shops of Florence. Due to the work of Natale Pepi, the first ‘Panforte di Siena’ factory was established in 1810 following the closure under Napoleon of the pharmacy of the Ospedale di Santa Maria della Scala. Still in the 19th century, Artusi included panforte among cakes typical of Siena in his classic cookbook ‘La scienza in cucina e l'arte di mangiare bene’ (‘Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well’, 1891). Since then, there has not been a guide, Italian or whatever, that does not refer to it as a typical expression of Sienese gastronomy. Particularly worth mentioning in this regard is the Touring Club Italiano guide of 1931, which confirms its huge reputation: ‘Sienese confectionery glories in a speciality of universal acclaim, the famous panforte di Siena’. White panforte has a precise date of birth, 1879, when, in honour of Queen Margherita of Savoy's visit to Siena's Palio horse race, the cake was made for the first time with less spice and a caster sugar coating and was renamed ‘Panforte Margherita’. Its immediate success ensured its undisputed fame, under the name ‘Panforte bianco’ as well. Preparation for making ‘Panforte di Siena’ used to start in September, when it was easier to gather together some of the ingredients, such as the dried fruit, and continued to the end of the year. The cake was then eaten over Christmas. Nowadays ‘Panforte di Siena’ is also made outside the traditional Christmas season by a number of medium-sized industrial undertakings and various bakers and cake shops which are scattered throughout the region and together account for about half the total production of typical Sienese cakes.

Reference to publication of the specification:

(Article 5(7) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006)

The Ministry launched the national objection procedure with the publication of the proposal for recognising ‘Panforte di Siena’ as a protected designation of origin in Official Gazette of the Italian Republic No 244 of 19 October 2005.

The full text of the product specification is available on the following website:

http://www.politicheagricole.it/DocumentiPubblicazioni/Search_Documenti_Elenco.htm?txtTipoDocumento=Disciplinare%20in%20esame%20UE&txtDocArgomento=Prodotti%20di%20Qualit%E0>Prodotti%20Dop,%20Igp%20e%20Stg

or by going directly to the homepage of the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policy (http://www.politicheagricole.it) and clicking on ‘Prodotti di Qualità’ (on the left of the screen) and finally on ‘Disciplinari di Produzione all'esame dell'UE [regolamento (CE) n. 510/2006]’.

(1) OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12.