No C 112/16 Official Journal of the European Communities 7. 5. 90 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Regulation (EEC) instituting a special system of aid 
for small cotton producers (*) 
(90/C 112/06) 
On 22 December 1989 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, 
under Article 198 of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on the 
abovementioned proposal. 
The Section for Agriculture and Fisheries, which was responsible for preparing the Com­
mittee's work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 8 February 1990 (rapporteur: Mr 
Bazianas). 
At its 274th plenary session (meeting of 28 February) the Economic and Social Committee 
unanimously adopted the following Opinion. 
Under the Community system of aid for cotton, as laid 
down by Protocol 4 annexed to the Greek Act of 
Accession and adapted by Regulation (EEC) No 1964/ 
87, an annual target price is fixed and aid equal to the 
difference (if any) between the target price and the 
world market price is granted. 
However, where production of raw cotton (i.e. before 
ginning) exceeds the maximum guaranteed quantity of 
752 000 tons, the target price and the amount of aid 
granted may be reduced, depending on the size of the 
overrun. 
If the minimum price is reduced, farm incomes fall 
accordingly. Worst affected are small farmers with low 
incomes, as they usually live in infertile areas and 
cultivate only small parcels of land. As a result—and 
the statistics confirm this—they give up farming. 
Since the principle of co-responsibility was introduced, 
cotton producers, particularly small producers, have 
seen a fall in their income, as the market price fails to 
cover the high production costs. 
The Committee therefore feels that the system of aid 
for cotton should be revised, for the following reasons: 
1. There is a shortfall in cotton as an industrial 
product. It is an important source of jobs and income 
(!) OJ No C 2, 5. 1. 1990, p. 18. for farming communities and also provides thousands 
of jobs in the processing industry. 
2. In spite of the fact that the Community does 
not produce enough cotton to meet its own needs, a 
maximum guaranteed quantity of 752 000 tons has been 
imposed. In Greece alone, however, 805 000 tons of 
top-quality raw cotton were produced in the 1989/1990 
marketing year. 
This acts as a deterrant to cotton production, whereas 
what is really needed is action to promote development 
in the least-favoured areas and protect the environment. 
In the Committee's view, the Commission should 
instead increase the maximum guaranteed quantity for 
1989/1990 to a level equivalent to the Community's 
present potential output. 
Over the next few years the Commission should also 
review its basic policy on cotton production in the 
Community. The aim should be to increase output, 
bearing in mind that cotton is a vital source of income 
for small producers, particularly in the Community's 
more deprived areas. 
3. The Committee supports the Commission pro­
posals to grant flat-rate aid worth 250 ECU per hectare 
and to exempt small farmers from the principle of co-
responsibility. It would be illogical to apply the prin­
ciple of co-responsibility alongside the system of flat-
rate aid. 
Done at Brussels, 28 February 1990. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Alberto MASPRONE