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

(2002/C 168/06)

This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Article 7 of the abovementioned Regulation. Any objection to this application must be submitted via the competent authority in the Member State concerned 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 ( ) PGI (x)

National application No: 105/00

1. Responsible department in the Member State Name: Direcção-Geral do Desenvolvimento Rural

Address: Av. Defensores de Chaves, n.o 6, P-1049-063 Lisboa

Tel. (351) 213 18 43 00

Fax (351) 213 52 13 46.

2. Applicant group 2.1. Name: Federação Agrícola dos Açores CRL

2.2. Address: Av.a Álvaro M. Homem, 31, P-9700-017 Angra do Heroismo, Terceira Açores

Tel. (351) 295 62 83 50

Fax (351) 295 62 83 50

2.3. Composition producer/processor (x) other ( ).

3. Type of product: Class 1.1 - Fresh meat and offal.

4. Specification (Summary of requirements under Article 4(2)):

4.1. Name: Carne dos Açores.

4.2. Description: Meat from animals of the bovine species which are born, reared and slaughtered in accordance with traditional practices in the autonomous region of the Azores. Depending on the sex and age at slaughter of the animal, meat from the Azores (Carne dos Açores) comprises three types of product - veal from the Azores (Carne de Vitela dos Açores) (male and female calves slaughtered up to the age of nine months or at 180 kg), meat from young bulls from the Azores (Carne de Novilho dos Açores) (young bulls slaughtered up to the age of 24 months whose carcases weigh more than 180 kg), meat from heifers from the Azores (Carne de Novilha dos Açores) (heifers slaughtered up to the age of 30 months or on first calving whose carcases weigh more than 175 kg). Veal from the Azores - Carne de Vitela dos Açores - distinguishes itself by its tenderness, pinkish colour, small amounts of intramuscular fat, juiciness, smooth texture as well as a distinctive aroma and flavour that are peculiar to and characteristic of the traditional production methods, namely the pasturing practices and the type of feeding. The calf carcases correspond to conformation classes E, U, R and O of the EUROP grading scale for carcases of bovine animals and have a very thin layer of fat cover corresponding to classes 2 and 3 of the EUROP scale. Fat deposits on and in the carcase and in the cavities are ivory-white in colour and are firm in consistency. The meat from young bulls and heifers from the Azores is tender, red to dark red in colour, has small amounts of intramuscular fat, a high juiciness factor, smooth texture, a distinctive aroma and flavour that are peculiar to and characteristic of the traditional production methods, namely the pasturing practices and the type of feeding. The carcases of young bulls correspond to conformation classes E, U, R and O of the EUROP grading scale for carcases of bovine animals and have a thin layer of fat cover corresponding to classes 2 and 3 of the EUROP scale; in exceptional circumstances and in years of recognised feed shortages, however, classification is permitted in class 1. Fat deposits on and in the carcase and in the cavities are ivory-white and are firm in consistency. Cow meat from the Azores (Carne de Vaca dos Açores) is tender and is dark red in colour, has small amounts of intramuscular fat, a high juiciness factor and a distinctive aroma and flavour that are peculiar to and characteristic of the traditional production methods, namely the pasturing practices and the type of feeding. The conformation classes for cow carcases extend to O of the EUROP grading scale for carcases of bovine animals, and the light layer of fat cover corresponds to classes 1, 2 and 3 of the EUROP scale.

4.3. Geographical area: The geographical area in which are born, reared and slaughtered the bovine animals from which comes the Carne dos Açores (meat from the Azores) is confined to the islands which make up the archipelago of the Azores: Santa Maria, São Miguel, Terceira, São Jorge, Graciosa, Pico, Faial, Flores and Corvo.

4.4. Proof of origin: Only those carcases are covered by the geographical indication which come from animals that are born and reared on farms located in the defined geographical area and are subject to the livestock registration and identification system laid down in the specification and to the control and certification regime provided for in the document: "Regras de Controlo e Certificação da Carne dos Açores" (rules governing the inspection and certification of meat from the Azores).

4.5. Method of production: The carcases are obtained as a result of the slaughter and dressing of bovine animals which are born and reared in accordance with ancestral and traditional practices and are slaughtered in the delimited geographical area. Slaughter takes place in approved slaughterhouses situated within the geographical production area. The animals are slaughtered in whole batches (uninterrupted series) made up, before entry into the slaughterhouse, of animals from various farms. Bleeding and evisceration take place immediately after stunning, which is compulsory. Slaughter is always carried out in the presence of a technician from the Comissão Técnica de Controlo e Certificação (technical board for control and certification), or a duly authorised representative, who is responsible for identifying the carcases. After the post mortem inspection, the carcases are cooled under chill conditions, a deep muscle temperature of 7 °C (± 1 °C) being achieved within 24 hours; until dispatch, the carcases are kept in a chill-room at a temperature of 2-4 °C, the relative humidity being around 85-90 %; maturation under chill conditions takes place over seven days, distribution for sale is permitted, however, from the third day following slaughter; the average pH over the first 24 hours following slaughter must be below 6; freezing prior to sale to the final consumer is prohibited.

4.6. Link: Producers are anxious, in order to obtain this product, to preserve the ancestral and unique livestock farming traditions that are characteristic of the Azores. The natural production system existing in the Azores means that it is possible to maintain a balance between livestock production and the ecological conditions obtaining on the different islands. The animals are reared, as tradition demands, on the pastures of the Azores, and the pasturing practices of the region are intimately linked to the combination of two factors: climate and vegetation. Indeed, the importance of pasture land in agriculture in the archipelago is undeniable, whether from the point of view of the extensive areas involved, their fertility or the fact they account for the large livestock population of the Açores. As far back as the sixteenth century, historians and writers praised the qualities of the meat produced in the Azores, qualities which have nothing to do with a particular breed but everything to do with a particular beef and veal production system.

4.7. Inspection body: Name: IAMA - Instituto de Alimentação e Mercados Agrícolas

Address: Rua do Passal, n.o 150, P-9500 Ponta Delgada.

4.8. Labelling: The following words must appear on the label: "Carne dos Açores - geographical indication", as well as the certification mark, duly numbered, indicating the name of the product and the name of the certifying body.

4.9. National requirements: All those which stem from the national and Community legislation in force.

EC No: G/PT/00155/2000.09.14.

Date of receipt of the full application: 23 July 2001.