Publication of an application for registration pursuant to Article 6(2) of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin

(2004/C 58/07)

This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Articles 7 and 12d of the abovementioned Regulation. Any objection to this application must be submitted via the competent authority in a Member State, in a WTO member country or in a third country recognized in accordance with Article 12(3) within a time limit of six months from the date of this publication. The arguments for publication are set out below, in particular under 4.6, and are considered to justify the application within the meaning of Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92.

COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 2081/92

APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION: ARTICLE 5

PDO (x) PGI ( )

National application No: 95

1. Responsible department in Member State Name: Subdirección General de Denominaciones de Calidad y Relaciones Interprofesionales y Contractuales - Dirección General de Alimentación - Subsecretaría de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación del Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación de España

Address: Paseo Infanta Isabel, 1, E-28071 Madrid

Tel. (34) 913 47 53 94

Fax (34) 913 47 54 10

2. Applicant group 2.1. Name: D. José A. García Chamizo, C/ Campo San Juan s/n, E - 10200 Trujillo (Cáceres) Da. Gloria Mariscal González, C/ Valencia, 8, E - 10251 Aldeacentenera (Cáceres) D. Tiburcio José Ramiro Soleto, C/ Eras s/n, E - 10373 Deleitosa (Cáceres) Da. María Teresa Rodríguez García, Av. Luis Chamizo, 57, E - 10137 Alía (Cáceres)

2.2. Address: C/ Eras s/n, E-10370 Deleitosa (Cáceres)

2.3. Composition: Producer/processor (x) Other ( )

3. Type of product: Class 1.3. Cheese

4. Specification (summary of requirements under Article 4(2))

4.1. Name: "Queso Ibores"

4.2. Description: Queso Ibores is a full-fat cheese, produced exclusively with raw milk from goats of the breeds Serrana, Verata, Retinta and crosses thereof. The milk is the full natural product obtained from healthy goats reared on holdings registered in the PDO Register of Livestock Holdings (Registro de Ganaderías de la Denominación de Origen Protegida).

Mature Queso Ibores has the following characteristics:

PHYSICAL: Cylindrical in form, with substantially flat outer surfaces and slightly convex on top, it is 5 to 9 cm high, with a diameter of 11 to 15 cm and weighs 650 to 1200 g. Its rind is smooth, medium hard and traditionally coated in pepper or oil. Its natural colour is between waxen yellow and dark ochre, though this varies depending on the different types of mould that develop, from the greyish of its natural rind to the orange-red of the pepper-coated type and ochre yellow for the oil-coated version. The interior is ivory-coloured, slightly hard, with a moist, creamy texture that varies between crumbly and spongy, and has a few small, unequally distributed holes.

CHEMICAL: Minimum fat content - 45 % of dry matter. Minimum dry matter content - 50 %. PH - 5,0 to 5,5. Total protein content of dry matter - minimum 30 %. Maximum NaCl - 4 %.

ORGANOLEPTIC: Aroma varies between sweet and mild, typical of goats cheese made from raw milk. Typically has a strong taste: slightly tart, tangy and salty, with a slight aftertaste of goat's milk. Very pleasant on the palate.

MICROBIOLOGICAL: Complies with current rules on food safety.

4.3. Geographical area: The area where the milk is produced and the cheese manufactured includes the districts of Ibores, Villuercas, La Jara and Trujillo - a total of 35 municipalities in the Southeast of the province of Cáceres.

4.4. Proof of origin: The milk used to manufacture Queso Ibores is from the breeds of goat listed above. The holdings must be located in the production area and registered in the PDO Register of Livestock Holdings, as required by the Quality Manual.

The cheese is manufactured in registered cheese dairies inside the production area covered and overseen by the Regulatory Board.

The maturing process takes place in registered establishments overseen by the Regulatory Board.

The final product is then subjected to the appropriate physical, chemical, microbiological and organoleptic analyses required to guarantee its quality.

4.5. Method of production: The product is made from raw milk, produced under the strictest conditions of hygiene and food safety, from goats of the breeds Serrana, Verata, Retinta and crosses thereof. These breeds are characterised by a number of particular qualities such as their great hardiness and capacity to adapt to extreme climates and terrain, and have traditionally been the main goat breed reared in the Queso Ibores production area. This is because other breeds are not able to reach this level of adaptability in an extensive or semi-extensive pastoral system, given the orographic conditions in the area.

Coagulation is promoted by industrially homogenised natural rennet from the abomasum in the stomachs of lactating ruminants, generally containing 80 % rennin and 20 % pepsin, and with an average strength of 1:15000. Coagulation takes place at a temperature of between 28 and 32 °C and lasts between 60 and 90 minutes. The curd produced is then chopped until 5 to 10 mm granules are obtained. These are then placed into authorised cylindrical moulds for shaping and pressed by special machines for 3 to 8 hours at a pressure of between 1-2 kg/cm2.

The salting process can be either dry or wet, but the agent used is always sodium chloride. With wet salting, the product may be immersed for up to 24 hours in a saline solution with a maximum concentration of 20 °Bé.

Queso Ibores needs at least 60 days to mature. Cheese manufactured by producers using milk from their own livestock and matured for at least 100 days may be regarded as handcrafted ("Artesano") cheese.

4.6. Link Historical:

Queso Ibores is a product whose origins, both as regards production and marketing, date back for centuries. In its present form it has been produced in the area covered by this PDO from time immemorial. There are records of it being sold every Thursday in Trujillo since 14 July 1465, the date on which Henry IV of Castile awarded this town the right to have its own free market, exempt from royal taxes on vegetables, cereals, livestock and animal products (meat, milk, cheese, etc.). One of the streets in this town is still called "Calle de los Cabreros" ("Street of the goat herds"), recalling its use as the compulsory route to the weekly market, through which farmers would drive their animals. What is more, in February 1940 the local town of Jaraicejo applied to have a weekly market, and was awarded one in January 1945. Any articles and products that could be weighed or measured could be brought to this market. In time the market came to be limited to the selling and buying of goat's cheese, with farmers from nearby villages bringing their products to sell every week from January to July.

Natural:

The countryside is mainly Mediterranean in character, primarily pasture-covered plains featuring holm oaks and cork trees; with groves of alders, poplars and willow on the rivers, mountain forests and rockrose undergrowth. The land is elevated, forming parallel upland ranges facing south-east to north-west, and areas of peneplain, the surface of which is igneous rock. The climate is characterised by average temperatures of 15-16 °C, with cold winters and very hot summers.

The characteristic flora of the area, dominated by holm oaks and cork trees, (with acorns being one of the main and high-quality sources of winter food, together with rockrose undergrowth, thyme, heather, etc.) provides food with certain specific qualities for the livestock. This translates into dairy products which, while they may not be very refined, are of renowned quality.

The indigenous goat breeds have proved to be the best adapted to the climatic characteristics of the area, with its cold winters and hot summers, and to the uneven topography and tough extensive and semi-extensive pasture conditions. They extract the most out of the grassland on this marginal land and have a very low environmental impact.

The milk obtained from this type of breed has certain specific characteristics that give Queso Ibores cheese its unique organoleptic properties: butteriness, slight acidity, and aromas of raw goat's milk.

4.7. Inspection body Name: Consejo Regulador

Address: Mercado Regional de Ganados. Trujillo-Cáceres

The Board for "Queso Ibores" meets the requirements of standard UNE-EN 45011

Tel./Fax (34) 927 32 30 76

4.8. Labelling - Obligatory designation of the PDO "Queso Ibores"

- Labels authorised by the Regulatory Board

- Numbered labels issued by the Regulatory Board

4.9. National requirements: Law 25/1970 of 2 December, the Statute of vineyards, wine and spirit drinks (Estatuto de la Viña, del Vino y de los Alcoholes); in its Regulation approved by Decree 835/1972, of 23 March. Statutory Order of 25 January 1994, specifying the correlation between Spanish legislation and Regulation (EEC) 2081/92 on designations of origin and geographical indications for agricultural and food products. Royal Decree 1643/1999 of 22 October, regulating the process for the handling of applications for registration in the Community Register of Protected Designation of Origins and Protected Geographical Indications.

EC No: ES/00261/28.10.2002.

Date of receipt of the full application: 15 January 2004.