30. 5. 88 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 139/1 
II 
(Preparatory Acts) 
COMMISSION 
Commission proposals on the prices for agricultural products and on related matters (1988/1989) 
COM(88) 120 final 
(Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 7 April 1988) 
Proposal for a Council Regulation (EEC) amending Regulation (EEC) No 2727/75 on the common 
organization of the market in cereals 
(88/C 139/01) 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 43 thereof, 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament, 
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social 
Committee, 
Whereas Council Regulation (EEC) No 2727/75 (!), as last 
amended by Regulation (EEC) No ..., provides for the 
introduction of the basic co-responsibility levy and an 
additional co-responsibility levy; whereas a system of 
direct aid for small producers of cereals was also instituted, 
with the aim, having regard to the social implications of the 
measure, of offsetting the effect of the said co-responsibility 
levies on their incomes; whereas that system must be 
adjusted to ensure on the one hand that the levy paid fully 
corresponds to the aid received by each exempted producer 
and on the other hand that it covers the effects of any 
application of the additonal co-responsibility levy; 
Whereas a feature of the world market in buckwheat, millet 
and canary seed is a lack of transparency, which makes it 
very difficult to assess the market with a view to fixing the 
levies; whereas, for the sake of administrative simplifi­
cation and with a view to better management of the market in the cereals in question, the levies on those products 
should be aligned on that applicable to barley; 
Whereas the intervention mechanism was adjusted from 
the 1978/1988 marketing year, in particular as regards the 
conditions for opening buying in by intervention agencies 
during the period when the latter is possible; whereas 
experience has shown that the new mechanism entails 
highly cumbersome administrative management without 
affording any real advantages; whereas the previous 
system should accordingly be re-established; 
Whereas the restoration of balance on the market for 
cereals may be enhanced by greater incorporation of cereals 
in feed; whereas provision should therefore be made for the 
possibility of granting a premium, which could be financed 
from revenue from the co-responsibility levy, 
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: 
Article 1 
Regulation (EEC) No 2727/75 is hereby amended as 
follows: 
1. The following subparagraph is added to Article 4(1): 
'Without prejudice to the exemptions referred to in the 
preceding subparagraph, small producers shall qualify 
for an exemption from the co-responsibility levy in 
accordance with the arrangements laid down in Article 
4a.' . 
2. Article 4a is replaced by the following: 
'Article 4a 
(!) OJ No L 281, 1. 11. 1975, p. 1. 1. Direct aid is hereby instituted for small producers. 
For the Community, the overall aid shall be fixed each 
No C 139/2 Official Journal of the European Communities 30. 5. 88 
year before the beginning of the marketing year in 
accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 
43(2) of the Treaty. 
The overall amount of the aid shall be established on the 
basis of the total estimated amount produced by the co-
responsibility levies provided for in Articles 4 and 4b on 
producers marketing not more than 25 tonnes. 
2. The Member States which experience special 
difficulties of an administrative or technical nature in 
applying the rules provided for in paragraph 1 may 
apply, under conditions to be determined in accordance 
with the procedures laid down in paragraphs 4 and 5, 
the aid for small producers in the form of compensation 
for levies payable by such small producers. 
The overall amount of that compensation for the 
Member State in question may in no case exceed the 
amount which would have been paid to it had this 
paragraph not been applied. 
3. Where paragraph 2 is applied, the overall amount 
referred to in paragraph 1 shall be reduced by the 
amount which would have been paid under the present 
aid scheme had paragraph 2 not been applied. 
4. The Council, acting by a qualified majority on a 
proposal from the Commission, shall define the concept 
of small producer and shall lay down general rules for 
applying this Article. 
5. Detailed rules for the application of the aid, and in 
particular its apportionment, shall be adopted in 
accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 26 
on the basis of objective criteria.' 
3. The following subparagraph is added to Article 4b(2): 
'The amount of the direct aid to be granted to small 
producers to offset the additional co-responsibility levy 
shall be reduced by the amount of the levy reimbursed 
pursuant to this paragraph.' 
4. Article 5(2) is replaced by the following: 
2. For oats, a threshold price shall be fixed for the 
Community for a standard quality in such a way that 
the price for those cereals mentioned in paragraph 1 
which are in competition with that product shall reach 
the target price on the Duisburg market.' 5. Article 7 is replaced by the following: 
'Article 7 
1. The intervention agencies designated by the 
Member States shall buy in cereals mentioned in Article 
3 which are offered to them and have been harvested in 
the Community, provided that the offers comply with 
conditions, in particular in respect of quality and 
quantity, to be determined in accordance with para­
graph 6. 
2. Buying in as provided for in paragraph 1 may only 
take place in the following periods: 
— from 1 August to 31 May in the case of Italy, Spain, 
Greece and Portugal, 
— from 1 October to 31 May in the case of the other 
Member States. 
3. Buying in as provided for in paragraph 1 shall be 
carried out on the basis of a price equal to 94 % of the 
intervention price for the cereals concerned, plus any 
price increase or reduction fixed pursuant to Article 3 or 
paragraph 5 of this Article, under the conditions laid 
down pursuant to paragraphs 5 and 6. 
4. Under conditions to be laid down pursuant to 
paragraphs 5 and 6, the intervention agencies shall offer 
for sale the product bought in pursuant to paragraph 1, 
for export to third countries or for supply to the internal 
market. 
5. The Council, acting by a qualified majority on a 
proposal from the Commission, shall lay down general 
rules governing intervention. 
6. Detailed rules for the application of this Article 
shall be adopted in accordance with the procedure laid 
down in Article 26, in particular as regards: 
— the minimum quality and quantity required of each 
cereal for it to be eligible for intervention and, for 
durum wheat, the technical criteria which that cereal 
must meet, 
— the scales of price increases and reductions app­
licable for the purposes of buying in, including a 
special reduction applicable to common wheat for 
use as feed, 
— the specific quality criteria which common wheat of 
breadmaking quality and rye of breadmaking 
quality must meet to qualify for the special increase 
provided for in Article 3(1), 
— the procedures and conditions for taking over by the 
intervention agencies, 
— the procedures and conditions for disposal by the 
intervention agencies.' 
30. 5. 88 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 139/3 
6. Article lib is replaced by the following: 
'Article lib 
1. Aid may be granted for cereals harvested in the 
Community and used for new industrial purposes. The 
amount of that aid may not exceed that of the export 
refund for the cereal in question. 
2. A premium may be granted for quantities of cereals 
used as feed in excess of the quantity of the latter used 
during a reference period. 
3. The Council, acting by a qualified majority on a 
proposal from the Commission, shall adopt the general 
rules for applying this Article. 
4. The Commission shall adopt the detailed rules for 
applying this Article in accordance with the procedure 
laid down in Article 26.' 
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, 
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European 
Economic Community, and in particular Article 43 thereof, 
Having regard to the Act of Accession of Spain and 
Portugal, and in particular Article 89(1) thereof, 
Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 2727/75 of 
29 October 1975 on the common organization of the 
market in cereals (l), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) 
No ..., and in particular Article 3(5) thereof, 
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission, 
Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament, 
Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social 
Committee, 
Whereas the markets and prices policy, based on modern 
farms, is the main instrument of the incomes policy in 
agriculture; whereas full advantage cannot be drawn from 
such a policy unless it is integrated into the common 
agricultural policy as a whole, including a dynamic social 
(!) OJ No L 281, 1. 11. 1975, p. 1. 7. The second subparagraph of Article 13(1) is replaced by 
the following: 
'However, the levy applicable to barley shall be charged 
on imports of the products falling within heading 1008 
of the Combined Nomenclature with the exception of 
the product falling within subheading 1008 90 10; the 
levy applicable to rye shall be charged on the product 
falling within subheading 1008 90 10.' 
Article 2 
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day 
following its publication in the Official Journal of the 
European Communities. 
It shall apply from the 1988/1989 marketing year. 
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly 
applicable in all Member States. 
and structural policy and the application of the rules on 
competition contained in the Treaty; 
Whereas in many cases surpluses can no longer be disposed 
of on normal terms either inside or outside the Com­
munity ; whereas, in order to reduce the cost to the budget 
of disposing of surpluses on markets outside the Com­
munity and to encourage greater consumption within the 
Community, the restrictive price policy should continue to 
be applied; whereas this aim may be achieved by 
maintaining for 1988/1989 the intervention prices for 
common wheat, barley, rye, maize and grain sorghum for 
the preceding marketing year; 
Whereas, as part of a quality policy, production of common 
wheat of higher breadmaking quality and production of rye 
of breadmaking quality should be supported; whereas, 
accordingly, the special premium for common wheat of 
breadmaking quality and for rye of breadmaking quality 
should be retained; whereas, however, the level of these 
premiums should be maintained at the same level; 
Whereas from the 1986/1987 marketing year the Council 
began a process of aligning the intervention price of durum 
wheat on that of common wheat; whereas, in view of, on 
the one hand, the present ratio between the prices of those 
cereals and, on the other, the imbalance recorded on the 
durum wheat market, it is advisable to pursue that process; Proposal for a Council Regulation (EEC) fixing the prices applicable to cereals for the 1988/1989 
marketing year 
(88/C 139/02)