EN Official Journal of the European Union C 150/13

Publication of an amendment 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 150/08

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

AMENDMENT APPLICATION

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

AMENDMENT APPLICATION ACCORDING TO ARTICLE 9

‘DANABLU’

EC No: DK-PGI-0217-0328-21.02.2011

PGI ( X ) PDO ( )

1. Section of the product specification affected by the amendment:

—  Name of product — ☒ Description of commodity —  Geographical area —  Proof of origin —  Method of production —  Link — ☒ Labelling —  National requirements —  Other (to be specified)

2. Type of amendment(s):

—  Amendment to single document or summary sheet — ☒ Amendment to specification of registered PDO or PGI for which neither the single document nor the summary has been published —  Amendment to specification that requires no amendment to the published single document (Article 9(3) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006) —  Temporary amendment to specification resulting from imposition of obligatory sanitary or phytosanitary measures by the public authorities (Article 9(4) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006)

3. Amendment(s):

3.1. Description of the product:

3.1.1. Water content of Danablu 60+

To ensure that the characteristic of Danablu 60+ as ‘generally soft, cuttable and spreadable, somewhat firmer and shorter towards the edges of the cheese’ is maintained in production terms, the minimum content of dry matter is reduced from 58 % (maximum 42 % water) to a minimum of 56 % (maximum 44 % water).

It has been found that some dairies are producing Danablu 60+ with a lower water content than that required by the PGI standard to avoid the risk of exceeding the 42 % limit. This means that a Danablu 60+ may be slightly more solid than and not quite as creamy in consistency as the specification requires. This led the producers’ association to study, over a three-year period, how the dry matter/water content affected the general assessment of the product. A technical committee has analysed how the water content of Danablu 60+ relates to points for consistency, smell and taste, as well as to its overall assessment mark using the standard tests on Danablu 60+ by Steins Laboratorium A/S. Closer analysis of the results revealed that it is possible to produce Danablu 60+ to a good quality with a water content of more than 42 % and that setting 44 % as the maximum water content would avoid a situation where some dairies, in trying not to exceed the 42 % limit, end up producing Danablu 60+ with a firmer, less creamy consistency than the product specification requires.

3.1.2. Weight limit for Danablu

In order to optimise production and avoid unnecessary waste, the producers’ association wishes to change the current weight requirement for a flat, cylindrical Danablu from 2,75 to 3,25 kg to an indicated weight of ca. 3 kg. This change would be made for technical reasons, and will have no impact on the quality of Danablu. It has been found that there is a large amount of waste when a flat, cylindrical Danablu of the current size is divided into portions. If the size is altered slightly, the wastage is reduced if the cheese is cut correctly using modern methods.

3.1.3. Labelling

The amendment indicates that the words ‘Danish Blue Cheese’ or translations thereof in all official language versions may be included on the label, since ‘Danish Blue Cheese’ and ‘Danablu’ are registered trademarks. The term ‘Danish Blue Cheese’ has always applied in all official language varieties and is referred to in the various markets using the translation which applies in the country concerned.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

‘DANABLU’

EC No: DK-PGI-0217-0328-21.02.2011

PGI ( X ) PDO ( )

1. Name:

‘Danablu’

2. Member state or Third Country:

Denmark

3. Description of agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1. Type of product:

Class 1.3. Cheeses

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

Blue-veined cheese, full-fat or extra full-fat, semi-firm to soft, ripened with blue mould, produced from Danish cow’s milk.

Composition: Danablu 50+ : Minimum fat in dry matter (%): 50, minimum dry matter (%): 52 Danablu 60+ : Minimum fat in dry matter (%): 60, minimum dry matter (%): 56

Shape and weight (whole cheese): — Flat cylindrical, diameter ca. 20 cm, weight ca. 3 kg — Rectangular, length ca. 30 cm, width ca. 12 cm, weight ca. 4 kg.

Surface: White to light yellowish or light brownish colour. No appreciable smear layer or mouldy growth. May be only slightly sunken in the centre. Visible holes from perforations are allowed. No covering in paraffin or plastic emulsion.

Rind: No rind as such, but a tight and somewhat firm outer layer. Visible holes from perforations are allowed. Surface and sides must be whole, even and regular.

Colour: White to light yellowish, not greyish, not overly mouldy, moulded through by quite evenly distributed pure marbling of blue-green veins of mould in perforations, holes and cracks. Marbling may decrease towards the edge of the cheese. Perforations must be free of smear layer and foreign mould growth.

Structure: Evenly distributed dispersed physical openings and cracks (coagulum openings) and perforations. The mass may be denser towards the edge of the cheese. No holes from fermentation.

Texture: Loose but not crumbly, generally soft, cuttable and spreadable, somewhat firmer and shorter towards the edges of the cheese.

Smell and taste: Pure, piquant flavour strongly affected by the pure growth of blue mould. The taste may be sharp and somewhat salty and tart, leaning slightly towards bitter.

Ripening: Minimum 5 weeks.

3.3. Raw materials (for processed products only):

Danablu is made solely from milk from the designated geographical area.

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

There are no specific requirements on the feed quality or origin.

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

The entire production must take place in the geographical area.

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

There are no specific requirements for slicing, grating or packaging.

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling:

Danablu (50+ or 60+).

‘Danish Blue Cheese’ or other translations of this in all official language versions may be added.

4. Concise definition of the geographical area:

Denmark

5. Link with the geographical area:

5.1. Specificity of the geographical area:

Danablu is produced exclusively using milk from Danish cows, in accordance with the original recipe.

Concise definition of the geographical area

The essential element in the production of Danablu that specifically limits it to the geographical area of Denmark is the traditional expertise and know-how possessed by Danish cheese producers. These unique skills ensure that the Danablu produced continues to have the traditional qualities of this cheese.

5.2. Specificity of the product:

Danablu is a blue-veined cheese that is full-fat or extra full-fat, semi-firm to soft, ripened with blue-mould and produced from Danish cow’s milk. The milk is homogenised and thermised/pasteurised, which gives the cheese a sharp, piquant flavour and a cuttable, slightly crumbly texture. Danablu has a strong flavour compared to other blue-veined cheeses. The rind is white and free of visible mould and other microorganisms.

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):

Within and outside the EU Danablu is known as a Danish speciality produced from Danish raw materials. This reputation has been achieved through legislative initiatives and the quality effort of the producers over a period of 60 years, which have ensured the preservation of the product’s traditional and specific characteristics.

History:

During the Second World War, an American university patented the homogenisation of cheese milk and attempted to have charges levied on Danish cheese produced using homogenised milk. Their attempts failed, as it could be proved that this method had been introduced 20 years earlier in Denmark by Marius Boel. Cheese seems to have occupied his thoughts even as a child, as he had very early on made a few highly interesting experiments with blue-vein cultures at home on his family’s farm in Salling, where butter and cheese were produced. He had noticed that the cheeses sometimes turned mouldy, and out of pure curiosity, he tasted them. In his own words, Marius Boel discovered that the cheese ‘had a distinctive, piquant taste’. So he took some of the mould from the cheese and cultivated it on bread. After that, he dried and ground up the bread and added this powder to the fresh curd. This laid the foundation for Danablu cheese.

In 1927, Marius Boel experimented with producing cheese using homogenised milk, which he got from a dairy in Odense. He was inspired by coffee cream with 9 % fat, which due to homogenisation had a creamy consistency despite its relatively low fat content. Experimentation led to a considerable improvement in the quality of the cheese, which became richer, acquired a more piquant taste, became whiter and improved its absorption qualities. Following this, it rapidly became common to homogenise cheese milk at dairies producing cheese of this type. Similarly, in the 1930s it became common to low-pasteurise cheese milk at Danish cheese-making dairies.

Various factors resulted in a considerable increase in the demand for Danish blue-veined cheese around 1930, and the number of producers rose. To maintain quality, the initiative was taken to start negotiations with the head of Denmark’s State Inspection Services, Chief Inspector Lohse, with the aim of setting up regular inspections of cheese intended for export. The negotiations concluded with the decision to first set up a producers’ association to discuss the details of the inspection system. Therefore a meeting was called on 23 June 1934. At the meeting it was decided to establish a producers’ association.

On the same day that the association was established, a decision was taken together with Chief Inspector Lohse to have cheeses called in for the first test assessment in Odense on 16 July 1934. After three test assessments, assessment criteria were laid down for rind, structure, colour, smell and taste, as well as an overall assessment of the suitability of cheeses for export. In September 1934 the association began negotiations with the Ministry of Agriculture and the State Inspection Services to lay down rules on the characteristics of the cheese and the rules for approving dairies as producers of cheese for export. The negotiations led to the Ministry of Agriculture issuing its ‘regulativ for bedømmelser af ost af Roqueforttypen ved Statens Ostebedømmelser’ (regulations on assessing cheese of the Roquefort type in State Cheese Assessments). The regulations entered into force on 1 January 1936.

In 1952 the name of the cheese, Danablu, was officially established by Decree No 80 of the Ministry of Agriculture of 13 March 1952 on the names of Danish cheeses. Act No 214 on the production and sale, etc. of cheese was issued on 16 June 1958. The Act sets out guidelines for production and inspection. The legislation was subsequently supplemented by decrees issued in 1963 and 1969 specifying the characteristics of cheese.

Reference to publication of the specification:

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

http://www.foedevarestyrelsen.dk/SiteCollectionDocuments/25_PDF_word_filer%20til%20download/06kontor/Varespecifikation_DANABLU_September%20201_2.pdf

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