EN Official Journal of the European Union C 375/18

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 375/09

This publication confers the right to object to the 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.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

‘CEBOLLA FUENTES DE EBRO’

EC No: ES-PDO-0005-0817-08.07.2010

PGI ( ) PDO ( X )

1. Name:

‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’

2. Member State or third country:

Spain

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1. Type of product:

Class 1.6. Fruit, vegetables and cereals, fresh or processed

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

‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ is understood to mean the bulbs of the species Allium cepa L. from the ‘Cebolla Dulce de Fuentes’ and ‘Cebolla Blanca Gruesa de Fuentes’ varieties of the native population traditionally from Fuentes de Ebro, as included in the common catalogue of varieties of vegetable species.

Depending upon the phenologic condition at the time of harvest, the commercial types covered by this protected designation of origin shall be:

I. mature onions which are harvested when the bulb is mature, and at stage 9 in accordance with the phenologic scale for onions described by Suso et al. (1992);

II. early onions which are harvested in the full vegetation period during which the bulb is formed, and at stage 7 of the thickening of the bulb in accordance with the scale proposed by Suso et al. (1992) (ITEA, v. 88(1), pp. 46-62).

Specificity of the product

— Colour of the outer skins: straw-white. The early onion is greenish-white in colour.

— Internal colour: white,

— Organoleptic characteristics: mild flavour, low piquancy, internal layers very tender and succulent and once swallowed it does not leave an aftertaste in the mouth.

The mature and early onions are displayed in the following ways:

— whole,

— peeled: without their outermost layers.

The ‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ is an agro-food product native to Aragon which is rated very positively by the consumer for its very satisfying taste which is essentially due to its succulence and low piquancy, and it does not leave an unpleasant taste in the mouth, which is what distinguishes it from the other varieties of onions.

3.3. Raw materials (for processed products only):

—

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

—

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

— Cultivation and harvesting.

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

The proper preparation and storage of the onions until they are sent to the market has a significant bearing on the final quality of the product. This is notably the case of the ‘Dulce de Fuentes’ variety that is characterised by a high water content, which makes it particularly succulent, but more likely to perish during handling and transportation, as pointed out in the book Variedades autóctonas de cebollas españolas, by Miguel Carravedo and Cristina Mallor IBSN 84-8380-0006-5 and the article by Cristina Mallor in the magazine Horticultura No 205 of March 2008.

It is local sellers in the region who have the necessary experience in handling this type of onion during bulb transportation, processing, packaging and later storage, in accordance with the age-old tradition of growing this crop in the area in question. Traditionally, in the first third of the 20th century, the forefathers of today’s current sellers grew the onions and subsequently prepared them for market in the form of plaits or strings, which they had made themselves by plaiting the stalks, before transporting them by cart to their destination. From the 1940s onwards, onions were taken by rail or road to be sold in markets that were further away from the production area, a process started by several of the businesses in the PDO applicant group. From 1980, this accumulated experience in onion handling led these businesses to set up the first installations to store, handle and package onions.

Therefore, the packaging of the product must be carried out in the geographical area defined by the PDO because, as previously explained, this onion perishes very easily and its transport could damage its quality. This also ensures that its origin and traceability are safeguarded throughout the entire process until it reaches its destination and minimises the handling stages that can result in a loss of quality in the onions protected by the PDO.

The packer must use processes enabling the PDO onions to be packaged separately from any other onions.

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling:

In addition to meeting the rules on labelling under current legislation, each package or container must carry the following information:

— the PDO logo, including the designation ‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’,

— the name or company name of the packager/forwarder,

— the batch number,

— the words ‘early’ or ‘peeled’, where appropriate,

— a numbered secondary label.

4. Concise definition of the geographical area:

The geographical area for the onions covered by the protected designation of origin ‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ covers land located in the following municipalities of the province of Zaragoza: Fuentes de Ebro, Mediana de Aragón, Osera de Ebro, Pina de Ebro, Quinto and Villafranca de Ebro.

5. Link with the geographical area:

5.1. Specificity of the geographical area:

The area in which the ‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ is cultivated is located in the central valley of the Ebro, which has a well-defined continental Mediterranean climate. It is known as the ‘Tertiary Depression of the Ebro’ and its soil has a marked fluvial character and an abundance of gypsum and calcium carbonate.

The climatic characteristics of this area are aridity, together with a continental climate and wind. The aridity is reflected in pluviometric measurements, an annual rainfall of approximately 350 mm distributed across the seasons with a maximum at the equinoxes and a minimum at the solstices which, together with raised temperatures, is evidence of the existence of a prolonged period of water stress (from June to October).

The continental climate gives rise to strong contrasts between the summer heat and the winter lows. The average annual isotherm is between 13 °C and 15 °C. With regard to minimum temperatures, it can be seen that in certain periods temperatures can fall to 5 °C, with the most extreme values in December and January. The maximum averages in the summer are above 30 °C, and the hottest months are June, July and August, during which absolute maximum temperatures in the region of 40 °C can be registered.

In terms of wind, the effect of the ‘Cierzo’ on the cultivation area should be noted. The ‘Cierzo’ is a very cold and dry strong wind which originates in the Ebro Valley and is created by the difference in pressure between the Cantabrian and Mediterranean seas, when there is an area of low pressure over the latter and an area of high pressure in the former.

To summarise, this area is characterised by a fertile soil which has an abundance of gypsum and calcium carbonate and a raised pH, and a microclimate which is steppic, windy and lacking in rain.

5.2. Specificity of the product:

‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ stands out from the other vegetables grown in the region on account of its special characteristics. It has a coarse stem, an external straw-white colour and its internal layers are white and spongy. However, this onion is chiefly characterised by its low piquancy. People say of it that ‘it is not strong and has a slightly sweet flavour’.

From a nutritional point of view, the most healthy way to eat this vegetable is raw, and the best onion for this is the ‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ because it does not have the same disadvantages as other onions, such as their piquancy and lasting taste up to several hours after consumption, which is a decisive factor in many consumers deciding not to include raw onion in their diet.

The reputation of this onion has been spreading throughout Spain as an alternative to more piquant onions, its pleasant texture and refreshing taste have also been discovered. In fact, the three most valued characteristics of the ‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ for the consumer are: its low piquancy, its succulence in a salad and its Aragon roots, according to the survey carried out by the Centro de Tecnología Agroalimentaria del Gobierno de Aragón and published in the technical review Surcos de Aragón No 66 (2000).

These aspects differentiate this onion from the other varieties of onion and that is why it is mainly eaten raw.

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):

The characteristics of the soil, the aridity of a dry and windy climate and the age-old irrigation opportunities in the production area, together with the cultivation practices and the vegetable material used for the production of the ‘Cebolla Fuentes de Ebro’ are key to obtaining the low levels of piquancy of this type of onion, and this is the principal characteristic of the product which differentiates it from other onions.

The genetic material from this onion has been used to grow the crop outside the edaphic-climatic scope of the cultivation area indicated here, and it was observed that the onions lose their size and texture and, in particular, the piquancy which characterises them increases (Informaciones Técnicas Nos 110 and 127 published by the Dirreción General de Tecnología del Gobierno de Aragón in the years 2002 and 2003 respectively).

The most relevant aspects which explain this causal relationship between the area and the product obtained, especially in respect of its piquancy, are, on the one hand, the extremely arid climate which causes water stress at very specific points in the cultivation cycle, despite the ability to irrigate using water from the River Ebro, and, on the other hand, the special edaphic configuration of the area in question, which is a mix of soils developed on quaternary materials from the fluvial dynamic of the Ebro, and soils with high gypsum and calcium carbonate contents which are the characteristics of the central part of the Ebro Depression. The mixture and development of these materials throughout the centuries by the alluvial and colluvial dynamic led to an amalgamation of soils in which this vegetable is grown, with USDA textures including loam, sandy loam and silty loam, raised gypsum and calcium carbonate contents, a slightly alkaline pH and low levels of organic materials distributed at all soil depths. All this confirms specific fertility qualities which are characterised by the abundance of certain macronutrients and micronutrients, whose availability for the plant remains conditioned by raised pH levels, all of which contributes to obtaining a low piquancy as a distinguishing feature of the final product.

Reference to the publication of the specification:

http://www.aragon.es/estaticos/GobiernoAragon/Departamentos/AgriculturaGanaderiaMedioAmbiente/AgriculturaGanaderia/Areas/08_Calidad_Agroalimentaria/02_Alimentos_calidad_diferenciada/-CebollaFuentesdeEbro.pdf

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