EN Official Journal of the European Union C 95/29

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

2010/C 95/08

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

‘SALZWEDELER BAUMKUCHEN’

EC No: DE-PGI-0005-0733-15.12.2008

PGI ( X ) PDI ( )

1. Name:

‘Salzwedeler Baumkuchen’

2. Member State or Third Country:

Germany

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1. Type of product:

Class 2.4 Bread, pastry, cakes, confectionery, biscuits and other baker's wares

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

Round layered cake with individual irregular layers and wild ring formation. A characteristic of Salzwedeler Baumkuchen is the mass of baked layers, which gives the cut surface of the cake the appearance of ‘tree rings’. A Baumkuchen can be up to 90 cm in height with a diameter of up to 40 cm. Inside, the Baumkuchen is hollow along the longitudinal axis, the diameter of the hollow can be up to 20 cm. The unit weight ranges from 2 kg to 5 kg.

Salzwedeler Baumkuchen is not generally served in one piece but cut into rings, which generally have a height of 5 cm to 50 cm and a weight of 200 g to 4 000 g. The most common weights are between 300 g and 500 g. There are also ‘Baumkuchenspitzen’, smooth trapezoidal pieces approximately 4 cm long and 1 cm thick.

Baumkuchen are classified on the basis of their different toppings. Thus we have:

— Baumkuchen with fondant icing

— Baumkuchen with a dark chocolate coating

— Baumkuchen with a white chocolate coating

— Baumkuchen with a milk chocolate coating, and

— Chocolate-covered Baumkuchenspitzen (dark, milk or white chocolate)

Composition

1 kg butter or concentrated butter, 1 kg flour, wheat powder, wheat starch or corn starch in the required amount

0,8 to 1 kg egg yolk or the equivalent amount of individual egg yolks

0,8 to 1 kg egg white or the equivalent amount of individual egg whites

0,8 to 1 kg of sugar

Natural aromas (customary)

Apricot jam (optional)

Icing (fondant) or chocolate coating

No preservatives

No baking powder or baking agents.

On the basis of the above quantities, this produces an end-product with a weight of approximately 3,5 to 4 kg.

Quality criteria

External appearance : appealing form, slightly jagged (with the exception of the Baumkuchenspitzen), even, well-spread, shiny, clean icing or coating Form (of the whole Baumkuchen) : Length of 60 cm to 90 cm, outer diameter 12 cm to 40 cm, inner diameter 6 cm to 20 cm Coating : sugar icing (fondant), dark chocolate, milk chocolate or white chocolate Colour : white to creamy, light brown or dark brown, depending on the coating Consistency : even fluffy texture, light juicy crumbs Internal appearance : even golden-brown layers, even size of layers

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 defined geographical area:

Salzwedeler Baumkuchen must be produced entirely within the defined geographical area.

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

—

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling:

The sales label must indicate the ingredients, weight, and the producer along with the post code, place name and street.

3.8. Concise definition of the geographical area:

The geographical area covers the town of Salzwedel within the 2006 boundaries.

4. Link with the geographical area:

4.1. Specificity of the geographical area:

In 1807 the confectioner Johann Andreas Schernikow wrote down a recipe for Baumkuchen, the technique and formulation of which still form the basis of Baumkuchen production of the first Salzwedeler Baumkuchen factory. Around 1812, Schernikow received the freedom of the town of Salzwedel.

Secondary documentation published in the first half of the 19th century informs us that confectionery in the form of a tree-trunk-like tubular cake were being produced in Salzwedel. In 1843, Baumkuchen from the town of Salzwedel was mentioned in records for the first time.

With the increasing industrialisation in the second half of the 19th century, came the growth of the wealthy middle class who could afford to buy culinary delicacies from other regions. In Salzwedel, a plucky group of bakers and confectioners seized the opportunity by the horns and, building on local experience in producing this cake, began making Baumkuchen for shipping further afield (to Berlin, Hannover, central Germany and as far abroad as Vienna and St Petersburg). A substantial Baumkuchen production began, making Salzwedeler Baumkuchen known throughout Germany and beyond. Even if there is no reliable data source available, no town in Germany could have produced as much Baumkuchen as Salzwedel did from the end of the 19th century until the First World War and between the two World Wars. Most of this was for external consumption, with between 80 % and 90 % being shipped further afield.

Even then consumers considered Salzwedeler Baumkuchen to be a special product which could only come from the town of Salzwedel and which was significantly different from tree cakes from other regions because of its particular qualities, based on its method of production and formulation/composition.

Interrupted during the wars, after the Second World War the production of Baumkuchen slowly redeveloped. The producers’ experience and the long years of tradition in Salzwedel led to Salzwedeler Baumkuchen regaining its special reputation, despite the expropriation of its biggest producer in 1958. Apart from the scarcity of resources making it necessary to replace some of the butter with margarine, the ingredients and method of production did not change at all. As before, Baumkuchen was increasingly baked for export. Under the name ‘Salzwedeler Baumkuchen’ tens of thousands of these cakes were exported, particularly to western countries.

4.2. Specificity of the product:

Salzwedeler Baumkuchen is a regional confectionary speciality with a long tradition, which is held in particular regard by consumers and which is known beyond the region of Salzwedel.

For almost 200 years Baumkuchen have been produced in Salzwedel and sold throughout Germany and further afield since the second half of the 19th century (c.f. ‘Deutschland Spezialitätenküche’ (Germany's Speciality Cuisine), published by Christine Metzger, 1999, p. 46). Its ingredients and production are very costly, making it a very high-end product. The production method was the same in every company: Baumkuchen is a kind of layered cake baked on an open fire. The dough is applied with a ladle, layer upon layer, on a rotating spit. The main ingredients of the recipe were also the same in every company.

It continues to be enjoyed on special occasions such as Christmas, Easter and on birthdays. The high quality of its ingredients meant the Baumkuchen production regularly ceased in wartime, between 1914 and 1918 and from 1939 to 1948.

The ingredients and production method have not changed in approximately 150 years. Preservatives, pasteurisation and deep-freezing continue to be shunned, making Salzwedeler Baumkuchen a freshly-baked good.

As far back as 1883, Dietrichs and Parisius wrote (in ‘Bilder aus der Altmark’, Verlag J. F. Richter, Hamburg) that Salzwedeler Baumkuchen was much preferred by gourmands to cakes of the same name from other places and was well on course for gaining worldwide renown. Even then, thousands of crates with the sweet, tasty cake went from bakeries to post offices to make their way to be enjoyed, not just all over Germany, but often to Russia and America.

In an article ‘Was weiß man vom Salzwedeler Baumkuchen?’ (‘What do we know about Salzwedeler Baumkuchen?’) in the special publication ‘100 Jahre Salzwedeler Wochenblatt’ (1932, p. 113), the following quote appears:

‘If you tell people that you are from Salzwedel, 99 times out of a hundred they will say “Oh, so you are from the same place as Baumkuchen!” ’

The uninterrupted tradition and good reputation of this speciality can also be seen from a survey on trade usage with regard to Salzwedeler Baumkuchen at the International Green Week in Berlin in 2005. Of 500 people surveyed, 60,6 % had previously heard or read of the designation ‘Salzwedeler Baumkuchen’ and 92 % of this group believed that Salzwedeler Baumkuchen were produced only in Salzwedel. Eighty-one % of this group considered this origin significant when deciding to buy.

Salzwedeler Baumkuchen has been a part of regional tradition/customs for approximately 100 years. There are songs and poems about Baumkuchen and it features prominently in regional processions. Today, Baumkuchen is an important tourist attraction, and it is possible to view it being made in some show bakeries. Since 2004, there has been an annual Baumkuchen feast with the election of a Baumkuchen Queen.

National travel guides (c.f. Baedecker Deutschland, 1998, p. 98) and advertisements also present Salzwedeler Baumkuchen as a traditional speciality of the town of Salzwedel.

4.3. 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 high regard in which Salzwedeler Baumkuchen is held is based above all on the long tradition of manufacturing this product in the town of Salzwedel, the craft skills that have developed in the process and the high quality of the product along with its anchoring in the cultural life of the town, which is also know as the ‘Baumkuchen’ town (c.f. ‘Deutschland Spezialitätenküche’ (Germany's Speciality Cuisine), loc. cit.). Salzwedeler Baumkuchen is therefore a regional speciality whose reputation is substantially based on the close link with its place of origin, Salzwedel.

Reference to publication of the specification:

Full specification published in:

Markenblatt Vol. 28 of 11.7.2008, Part 7a-aa, p. 42842

(http://publikationen.dpma.de/DPMApublikationen/dld_gd_file.do?id=581)

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