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 89/03)

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: 90

1. Responsible department in the Member State Name: Subdirección General de Denominaciones de Calidad y Relaciones Interprofesionales y Contractuales - Dirección General de Alimentación - Subsecretaría 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: Asociación Provincial de Apicultores de Granada

2.2. Address: Pago de las Hoyas s/n, E-18420 Lanjarón (Granada)

Tel. (34) 958 77 11 96

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

3. Type of product: Honey - Category 1.4. Other products of animal origin (eggs, honey, various milk products, not including butter)

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

4.1. Name: "Miel de Granada"

4.2. Description: Honey made by bees (Apis melifera) from the nectar of flowers or the secretions either exuded by the live parts of plants or found on them, which the bees gather, transform, combine with their own specific substances, store and allow to mature in the honeycombs stored in hives located in the designated area.

The types of honey are single-flower honeys made from chestnut flowers (Castanea sativa), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), thyme (Thymus sp.), avocado (Persea americana), orange blossom (Citrus sp.) and lavender (Lavandula stoechas), mountain honey and multi-flower honey.

Physical and chemical characteristics common to all the varieties of honey:

Water content: < 17,5 %

Hydroximetiylfurfural content: < 10 mg/kg.

Pollen characteristics common to all the varieties of honey:

Pollen spectrum chiefly made up by the Cistaceae, Lamiaceae, Fagaceae, Rosaceae, Asateraceae, Brassicaceae, Fabaceae, Myrtaceae, Borraginaceae, Salicaceae, Campanulaceae, Resedaceae, Plantaginaceae, Apiaceae, Caesalpinaceae and Lauraceae families.

- Erica sp. < 1 %

Distinctive physical and chemical characteristics:

>TABLE>

The units of α-glucosidase are expressed in US, conductivity in 10-4 S/cm and colour on the Pfund scale.

Distinctive pollen characteristics:

>TABLE>

4.3. Geographical area: The area where the hives are located and the honey is extracted, i.e. the production area, comprises all the municipalities of the province of Granada, in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia.

4.4. Proof of origin: The product's traceability is guaranteed by the Regulatory Board by means of inspection and certification arrangements, which can briefly be described as follows:

1. Supervision of the holdings from registration to certification of the protected product: on entering their names in the bee farm and beekeeper register, the producers declare all the hives they own, as well as the location and the site used for those hives throughout the year. The hives registered under the designation of origin are identified by a red numbered plate; these registered hives may not share the same site with others intended for a different product. The entire production of the sites hosting the registered hives is stored in approved, labelled containers, the label bearing such information as the number of kilograms, provenance, type of honey, etc. The entire production is declared by the producer, who numbers each of the containers and indicates the destination. Once the relevant inspections and the organoleptic and physical and chemical analyses, as well as the pollen assessment have been carried out with a view to verifying botanical origin and the existence of the pollen spectrum characteristic of Granada honey, the appropriate certificate is issued prior to the product being sold to a commercial undertaking listed in the packaging plant register.

2. The packaging plants listed in that register inspect the products entering and leaving their premises. These plants must separate the products covered by the designation of origin from their other products. Inspections, checks and analyses are carried out prior to the certification of the product covered by the designation of origin and to the issuing of the relevant numbered back labels. Numbering of the back label issued by the Regulating Board ensures full traceability of the protected product.

4.5. Method of production: At the time of the harvest, the bees are removed from the hive using the traditional method of brushing the bees with brushes having single or double rows of natural sow's bristle. The combs filled with honey are first decapped using the traditional method of knives previously heated with water on the boil. The honey is extracted from the combs by centrifugal force. Containers for storing the honey are made of food-use plastic or of sheet metal painted with non-toxic paint.

Packaging must take place at the point of production in order better to protect the quality and authenticity of the product and hence the reputation of the designation of origin. The beneficiaries collectively bear full responsibility for this and there can be no doubt that the checks carried out in the area of production under their responsibility are detailed and systematic. They are undertaken by professionals with a specialist knowledge of the features of the product. It would be difficult to undertake the checks required to guarantee the product outside the area of production.

4.6. Link Background:

The quality of Granada honey is well-known and well-documented since the beginning of the 14th century. Honey has been produced in the area since time immemorial. The first documents come from Ibn al-Jathib (1313-1375), who, in his "Descripción del Reino de Granada" comments on the abundant production of honey in and around Granada, areas which still today draw a substantial part of their revenue from this traditional resource. Hence, the honey was frequently referred to by various chroniclers of the time, who told of the conquest of the Kingdom of Granada by the Christian armies.

After the conquest, the municipalities started to sort out the various economic activities. Hence, in Baza, the "Libro de Propio" of 1564 tells of how the municipal government levied taxes on the hives located in the mountains around Baza, rosemary honey having acquired some fame.

In Granada's register of trades (1752), the trade of "keeper of beehives" was expressly mentioned. In 1777, Juan de la Serna's "Diccionario Geográfico o descripción de todos los reinos" (Geographic Dictionary or description of all the kingdoms) says, when referring to Granada, that it is a kingdom rich in wax and honey. Sebastián de Miñano (1826) again mentions the abundance and excellent qualities of the honey from Granada in his "Diccionario Geográfico Estadístico de España y Portugal" (Geographic and Statistical Dictionary of Spain and Portugal), listing the important honey-producing areas of Granada as Baza, Alhama de Granada, Güejar-Sierra and Guadix. Again, Pascual Madoz, in his "Diccionario Geográfico, Estadístico e Histórico de España" (Geographic, Statistical and Historical Dictionary of Spain) stresses the variety, abundance and excellent qualities of the Miel de Granada. He recounts that white honey is very abundant around Loja, and also that large quantities of honey are produced at the coast (La Garnatilla and Motril). Also Tomás López, in his "Diccionario Geográfico de Andalucía: Granada" (Geographic Dictionary of Andalusia: Granada), compiled in the last quarter of the 18th century, again mentions certain areas in the province of Granada, such as Quéntar or Ribera de Oveja (close to Granada), where beehives and honey abound.

In 1888, Luis Morell y Terry undertook a census, estimating the number of hives at some 15000, with the traditional areas in terms of quantity of hives still being the eastern hills, the Alpujarra and the city of Granada. In the same year, Ms Bertha Wihelmi introduced and promoted in the province hives with movable panels, gradually replacing the traditional (Arabic) fixed hives. In this way she converted Granada into a pioneering province which led the way in developing new techniques of bee-keeping. In May 1909 the magazine "Granada Agrícola" reported the interest shown by the German market in importing honeys from Granada because of their quality derived from the rich range of aromatic plants and herbs in its hills, particularly the Sierra Nevada.

Natural conditions:

The natural factors which directly influence the product include the terrain, climate and vegetation while the human factors include the inland migratory paths made by the bee-keepers of Granada.

The province of Granada has a wide variety of relief and climate which has a direct impact on the sector, influencing for example the inland migratory paths made by the bee-keepers as they seek different kinds of flowers. From the point of view of bee-keeping, this variety means that the bee-keepers of Granada can make hillside roads in the province, since the various flowering characteristics provide a yield at all times of the year. The type and season of flowering vary depending on altitude with the bee-keepers moving up and down the slopes and rarely covering a distance gratear than 50 km.

Hence the bee-keepers on the coast, in the Valle de Lecrín and the Alpujarra-Sierra Nevada normally move upwards, i.e. from the coast to the hills and vice versa in search of the vegetation which flowers depending on the altitude.

There is no doubt that the main factor which gives Granada honey or the special features which distinguish it from other honeys is the flowers in the province. It has over 296000 ha of cleared hillside covered by aromatic plants of great importance to bee-keeping, plus large areas of chestnuts, orange trees and, on the coast, avocados, which are exclusive to the coasts of the provinces of Granada and Málaga.

Virtually 70 % of the owners of bee-keeping establishments in the province of Granada have links to protected areas (the Sierra Nevada national park and the nature parks of the Sierra Nevada, the Sierra de Baza, the Sierra de Huétor, the Sierra de Castril and the Sierras de Tejeda, Alhama y Almijara) which are their normal areas of residence. Their hives remain in these areas for part of the year, as an area of production or of over-wintering. The movement of bees which the keepers undertake throughout the province of Granada in search of the richest flower supplies throughout the year, or sites for over-wintering, subsequently provides honey from Granada with a genuine range of pollens.

These areas have remained isolated for a long period and bee-keeping has played an important economic role by providing an alternative source of agricultural income. The variety of flowers in these parks means that the honeys they produce offer unique and unusual combinations of flowers. The Sierra Nevada alone has over 160 endemisms, of which some 60 are exclusive.

Studies of pollen in the province have identified some 92 forms belonging to about 50 botanical families. Granada honey typically contains the spectrum comprising the families Cistaceae, Lamiaceae, Fagaceae, Rosaceae, Asteraceae, Brassicaceae, Fabaceae, Borraginaceae, Salicaceae, Campanulaceae, Resedaceae, Plantaginaceae, Apiaceae, Caesalpinaceae and Lauraceae. This knowledge of the pollen spectrum of Granada honey, together with the considerable quantity of botanical endemisms, enables us to find geographical indicators which enable us to differentiate clearly our production from that from the rest of the Iberian Peninsula.

4.7. Inspection body Name: Consejo Regulador de la Denominación de Origen Miel de Granada

Address: La Casita de Papel s/n

Apartado de Correos n° 21

E-8420 Lanjarón (Granada)

Tel./Fax (34) 58 77 11 31

The Regulatory Board complies with standard EN 45011.

4.8. Labelling: The labels are approved by the Regulatory Board. On the labels on the packaging the name of the designation of origin "Miel de Granada" must appear in a prominent place.

Whatever the type of packaging used for dispatching the honey for consumption, it must be provided with a label or numbered back label, supplied by the Regulating Board, in accordance with the rules set out in the quality manual and always in such a way as to prevent it being reused.

4.9. National requirements - Law No 25/1970 of 2 December 1970 on rules governing viticulture, wine and spirits,

- Decree No 835/1972 of 23 March 1972 on detailed rules for the implementation of Law No 25/1970,

- Order of 25 January 1994 specifying the correlation between Spanish law and Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 as regards designations of origin and geographical indications for agricultural products and foodstuffs,

- Royal Decree No 1643/1999 of 22 October 1999 on the procedure governing applications for entry into the Community register of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications.

EC No: ES/00243/15.5.2002.

Date of receipt of the full application: 13 February 2004.