EN Official Journal of the European Union C 286/12

Publication of an application pursuant to Article 50(2)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs

2013/C 286/05

This publication confers the right to oppose the application pursuant to Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1).

SINGLE DOCUMENT

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

on protected geographical indications and protected designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs (2)

‘BORNHEIMER SPARGEL’/‘SPARGEL AUS DEM ANBAUGEBIET BORNHEIM’

EC No: DE-PGI-0005-0803-17.03.2010

PGI ( X ) PDO ( )

1. Name

‘Bornheimer Spargel’/‘Spargel aus dem Anbaugebiet Bornheim’

2. Member State or Third Country

Germany

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 the product to which the name in point 1 applies

‘Bornheimer Spargel’/‘Spargel aus dem Anbaugebiet Bornheim’ — hereinafter referred to simply as ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ — is Asparagus officinalis. Asparagus from the Bornheim area is mainly picked after 4 to 10 growing seasons. ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ is marketed in both peeled and unpeeled states. Peeling is done by hand or using an asparagus peeling machine. The white and green asparagus spears must be no more than 22 cm and no less than 16 cm in length. Asparagus with the ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ PGI must be well formed (straight (some curvature of the spears is permissible), intact and with a closed tip). It must also be tender. It must be free of foreign odours and taste, damage from rodents or insects, and soil or other contamination. It is prepared according to UNECE Standard FFV04 (Asparagus), even when sold by the producer directly to the consumer.

What makes ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ special is a distinctive strong, spicy flavour and freshness coupled with its tenderness.

3.3. Raw materials (for processed products only)

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3.4. Feed (for products of animal origin only)

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

From planting through to picking, ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ must be produced in the limited geographical area.

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

To keep them fresh and tender, the spears are instantly cooled in ice-cold water immediately after cutting. They are then sorted according to length and quality and stored in a humid environment at 1-2 °C. They may be kept in water for no longer than six hours.

The cold chain must not be interrupted by the producer. The contents of each package must be consistent, i.e. each unit may contain only Bornheim asparagus of the same quality, colour group and size. The visible part of the package must also be representative of the content as a whole.

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling

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4. Concise definition of the geographical area

The asparagus is grown in the climatically favourable Kölner Bucht area on the lower and central terraces along the historical course of the Rhine. This is on the west bank of the Rhine, north of Bonn and south of Cologne, in the depression between the foothills of the Rheinische Schiefergebirge rising from the eastern banks of the river and the Kottenforst-Ville hills to the west. It includes the municipality of Bornheim and parts of the neighbouring municipality of Alfter, of the towns of Brühl and Wesseling, and of the city of Bonn. Its boundaries are as follows:

To the north, the production area goes up to the Schlosspark in Brühl, from where the boundary follows the main road between Brühl and Wesseling-Berzdorf, and then the Rodenkirchen road to Wesseling-Keldenich. It then loops around the Eichholz estate and runs eastwards alongside the Shell fuel refinery and into the Wesseling-Urfeld meadow. The eastern boundary then runs from that meadow along the Rhine to the Bonn area as far as the dividing line between Bonn-Graurheindorf and Bonn itself. To the south, the boundary skirts the town limits of Bonn-Graurheindorf, Bonn-Buschdorf, Bonn-Tannenbusch, Bonn-Dransdorf and Bonn-Messdorf (which all belong to the production area) up to Bonn-Lessenich and Alfter-Oedekoven and then turns west. To the west, the production area is bordered by the stretch of road along the Alfterer Straße, Gielsdorfer Weg, Pelzstraße, Kronenstraße and Roisdorfer Weg. At the end of the Roisdorfer Weg, the boundary follows the Bornheim town limits, first to the west and then to the north to the dividing line between the towns of Bornheim and Brühl. It then runs along this line round to the east and then onto the Walberberger Straße (also referred to in the official highway map as the ‘L 183’) up to the junction with the Pingsdorfer Straße, which it follows in a north-easterly direction to Schloss Brühl.

5. Link with the geographical area

5.1. Specificity of the geographical area

Climate: the town of Bornheim lies in an area, very favourable in climatic terms, between the cities of Cologne and Bonn. To the south of Bonn, the Rhine valley opens up after leaving the Rheinische Schiefergebirge mountains and flows into the Kölner Bucht. The river plain is contained to the east by the Siebengebirge and the central ranges of the Bergische Land, and to the west by the Kottenforst-Ville hills. Being situated between hills to the east and west means that the Rhine river plain is particularly well sheltered. The resultant climatic conditions are particularly favourable for horticulture, marked as they are by relatively high annual average temperatures and sufficient rainfall. This means that the growing season here starts significantly earlier and ends later than in neighbouring regions.

Soil: ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ is grown in a unique location on the lower and central terraces along the historical course of the Rhine. The soil here, around the Old Rhine meander, is sandy with outcrops of the underlying clay. The high proportion of sand means that the soil warms up quickly and the loamy clay is a good source of nutrition for the asparagus.

Human factors: ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ also owes its special character and renown to the traditional expertise of the local growers. This expertise was emphasised as long ago as 1943 in an article in the Westdeutscher Beobachter noting that a connoisseur could easily distinguish ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ because in Bornheim at the time an older growing process was used whereby the asparagus was not cut as deeply as with the more recent ‘Mainz technique’ and was therefore less woody. The expertise still applies, even alongside modern growing techniques, in that the growers know from long tradition which plots in the area are particularly suited to asparagus.

5.2. Specificity of the product

The favourable location of the geographical area in the Kölner Bucht makes for rapid growth of the shoots in the spring. This growth spurt is an important factor influencing the tenderness and juiciness of the spears.

The product is held in high esteem by virtue of its long history, as documented in various sources from the past.

Even in Roman times, Bornheim was the ‘orchard’ supplying fruit and vegetables to the local colonies of Colonia bonnensis (Bonn) and Colonia agrippina (Cologne). It was the Romans who actually introduced asparagus to the area around the Rhine, along with the knowledge of how to grow it.

‘Bornheimer Spargel’ itself has a tradition going back almost 300 years. Old records refer to convent ladies who grew asparagus in a hollow behind St Anne’s Convent in Alfter from before 1719. In 1769, the local dukes bought up the production of the entire Bornheim area and had it delivered to Dyck Castle and their residence in Cologne. As long ago as 1840, several hundred growers undertook regular ‘market marches’ on foot from Bornheim and the surrounding villages to Cologne to sell their vegetables, in particular asparagus, at the market there.

There was a significant increase in asparagus growing around Bornheim after the previously dominant local wine sector was wiped out by the spread of phylloxera at the beginning of the 20th century.

On its website, the Seeheimer Kreis, a well-established group within the Social Democratic Party (SPD), has featured an article entitled ‘Mit der MS Beethoven nach Unkel’ noting that asparagus from Bornheim was traditionally eaten during the group’s excursions. This too shows that ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ enjoyed an outstanding reputation in national political circles as long ago as 1988.

The ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ season is kicked off every year — to great press fanfare and public interest — with the Bornheim Asparagus Festival, featuring the coronation of the Asparagus Queen. An article in the Bonner Rundschau on 11 May 2010, with the headline ‘Asparagus Festival: street party on the Königstrasse in Bornheim’, stated that ‘“Bornheimer Spargel” is a very special product’ and reported the mayor’s praise for the Asparagus and Health Day: ‘A Health Day has a lot in common with an Asparagus Festival! A healthy — and tasty — speciality of the region can make a big contribution to doing something for your health and general wellbeing’.

An article in the Bonner Generalanzeiger online dated 14 May 2007, ‘“Bornheimer Spargel” selling like hot cakes’, records that ‘the festival theme was not only asparagus but also Europe, with the mayor being joined by Ruth Hieronymi MEP and consular officials from various countries around Europe’. The photo caption reads ‘Europe and asparagus: an attractive combination’. The juxtaposition of the product with the continent shows the enormous significance of ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ for the region.

According to a newspaper article in 2008 (‘A feast for the eyes and the palate’), the neighbouring towns of Brühl and Bornheim were promoting their region as a tourist destination with the slogan ‘Brühl and Bornheim — immer eine Spargellänge voraus’ (‘always an asparagus-length ahead’), showing that even the two municipalities make use of the product's reputation for their own purposes. ‘Die Bonner Burgenrunde’, a local cycling guide, uses the same slogan.

A newspaper article was published on 19 May 2006 with the headline: ‘Brühl-Bornheim asparagus — a tip-top product’.

Another report refers to an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of Bornheim town centre mentioning that, with asparagus, ‘the town has a local speciality’. In the Rhineland Natural Park's publication ‘Regional Delicacies from Brühl and Bornheim (2009)’, ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ is described as ‘the Rhine River plain's best-known product’ and as being prized by connoisseurs from beyond the region.

On 14 March 2012, a newspaper article was published on the Bornheim authorities' intention to take the official moniker ‘Bornheim — Die Spargelstadt’ (‘Bornheim — the home of asparagus’). This shows the enormous worth that ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ has for the municipality.

The worth of the product is confirmed by price comparisons demonstrating that, during the 2009-2011 harvest periods (April-June), ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ has always fetched prices well over 10 % more than those for asparagus marketed simply as ‘Deutscher Spargel’.

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 specially distinctive strong, spicy flavour stems from the particular soil and climate conditions in which the product is grown. The sandy soil ensures steady growth. The under-layer of clay releases minerals. The outstanding freshness and tenderness of the spears are the product of the soil in the geographical area, which is especially suitable for asparagus, and the way they are handled after picking, with a maximum of six hours' watering.

The especially good taste characteristics, the expertise of the local growers, stemming from tradition, and the long history of the product are all factors ensuring that ‘Bornheimer Spargel’ is held in such high esteem.

Reference to publication of the specification

(Article 5(7) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 (3))

Markenblatt (Trademark Gazette) Vol. 27 of 3 July 2009, Part 7a-aa, p. 12

http://register.dpma.de/DPMAregister/geo/detail.pdfdownload/6200

(1) OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1.

(2) OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12. Replaced by Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012.

(3) See footnote 2.