EN Official Journal of the European Union C 119/15

Publication of an application in accordance with 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

2011/C 119/09

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 of the date of this publication.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

‘FIGUE DE SOLLIÈS’

EC No: FR-PDO-0005-0544-30.03.2006

PDO ( X ) PGI ( )

This summary sets out the main elements of the product specification for information purposes.

1. Denomination:

‘Figue de Solliès’

2. Member State or third country:

France

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1. Type of product:

Class 1.6 — Fresh or processed fruit, vegetables and cereals

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

The ‘Figue de Solliès’ is a violet-coloured fig of the Bourjassote Noire variety, with a diameter of 40 mm or more, which is sold fresh as a whole fruit. Its skin is free of insect bites, has not ruptured and bears no trace of leaf rub. The ‘Figue de Solliès’ is characterised by a balance of acidulous and sweet flavours and contains a guaranteed 14 °Brix or more of sugar at time of packaging. The fruit is oblate, violet with black veins, dense, firm and supple. The receptacle of the fruit is thin and pale green, its flesh is plump, glossy and juicy and the colour of strawberry jam, containing many fine, beige-coloured grains. It has an elegant, low-intensity bouquet with vegetal and fruity notes of watermelon, honeydew melon, strawberry and other red fruits. It is crunchy at first and then tender, full-bodied in taste and with a characteristic balance of acidulous and sweet flavours, intense vegetal and fruity aromas and floral notes.

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 identified geographical area:

The product must be produced and packaged in the geographical area of the designation.

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

The fruit is packaged and sold in cardboard trays one layer deep or in a punnet whose capacity may not exceed 1 kilogram, so as to preserve the quality of the product. The lots offered for sale are homogeneous in terms of both size and colour.

The fruit has to be packaged in the geographical area because of the fragility of the product and so as to preserve its quality and the characteristics of the designation. Indeed, the fig is a fruit that generally does not withstand travel and shocks well. That is why it must be handled as little as possible and packaged very rapidly in containers which prevent any risk of crushing (i.e. in a cardboard tray one layer deep or in a punnet with a maximum capacity of 1 kg). This also means that the figs have to be packaged as soon as they are sorted, i.e. in the same place as they are sorted, requiring precisely the expertise held by producers in the geographical area.

3.7. Specific rules concerning labelling:

Each pack bears:

— the name of the protected designation of origin ‘Figue de Solliès’ written in a font at least as large as the largest font used on the label,

— the word ‘appellation d’origine protégée’ (protected designation of origin) immediately before or after the designation, with no text in between,

— the logo ‘AOP Figue de Solliès’, lodged by the producers’ organisation with the INPI (National Intellectual Property Institute).

In addition to the label, all accompanying documents and invoices must bear the words ‘Figue de Solliès’ and ‘appellation d’origine protégée’ (protected designation of origin).

4. Concise definition of the geographical area:

The geographical area of the fig designated as ‘Figue de Solliès’ is located in the department of Var in south-eastern France, within the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region. The geographical area contains 15 municipalities (communes), although two of these are included only partially. The municipalities falling within the geographical area are Belgentier, Carqueiranne, Cuers, La Crau, La Farlède, La Garde, Hyères, La Londe-Les-Maures, Pierrefeu-du-Var (sections A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, B1, B2, B3, B4, C1, C2p, C3, D5p, D6p, E5, E6, E7, E8, E9, E10, E11, E12), Puget-Ville (sections A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, A6, A7, A8, A9, B1, B2, B3, B4, C, D1, D2, D3, D4, E1, E2, E3, E4, F10), Le Pradet, Solliès-Pont, Solliès-Toucas, Solliès-Ville and La Valette-du-Var.

A map defining the boundaries of the geographical area has been lodged with the municipal authorities of the partially covered municipalities.

The area has been demarcated on the basis of geography (between the metamorphic zone of the Maures Mountains to the east and the landforms of calcareous Provence to the west), climate (rainfall, humidity, Winkler index), geology (layers of sandstone and red and wine-lees-coloured pelites which have been altered to a greater or lesser extent), soils (brown, deep and stony) and customary practices (variety and know-how).

5. Link with the geographical area:

5.1. Specificity of the geographical area:

Since the Middle Ages cultivation of figs in the Solliès Basin, where conditions are ideal for their qualities and typical features to be fully expressed, has expanded phenomenally. However, it was at the end of the 19th century that as a result of fig cultivation the Solliès basin became the veritable ‘garden of Provence’, as the newspaper ‘Le Petit Marseillais’ put it so poetically in its edition of 14 August 1898. According to data on agriculture in the department of Var, the canton of Solliès produced more than 1 100 tonnes of figs in 1903. From the end of the 19th century and especially at the beginning of the 20th, sales of the ‘Figue de Solliès’ expanded considerably with rail networks being used to bring the produce to French customers, as related by Roger Livet in 1962 in his book ‘Habitat Rural et structures agraires en Basse Provence’.

The geographical area is completely contained within the south-western end of the Permian depression formed by the northern Maures Mountains and the Toulon region. It coincides with the middle and lower catchments of the Gapeau and the Réal Martin, which form an undulating plain. The Solliès basin has the distinctive characteristic of being bordered by landforms favouring the development of a particular climate. The hot Mediterranean climate is favourable for fig cultivation, with an average annual precipitation of between 700 and 800 mm and a very low risk of frost. The Solliès basin is found in an area where tectonic plates meet, between the metamorphic zone of the Maures Mountains in the east and calcareous Provence in the west. Most of the area is characterised by layers of sandstone and red and wine-lees-coloured pelites which have been altered to a greater or lesser extent. The alteration products of these Permian rocks are for the most part (along the northern edge and in the centre of the area) mixed with significant inputs ranging from sandy loam to loamy sand with a heavy load of calcareous gravel. The eastern edge of this basin has been covered by inputs ranging from sandy loams to loamy sands which to a greater or lesser extent are gravelly and siliceous. The soils characteristic of the fig orchards are loamy to loamy-sandy are a greater or lesser extent gravelly, deep, well-drained, moderately calcareous and have formed on alluvial and colluvial inputs.

The geographical area is also characterised by the predominance of the Bourjassotte Noire variety of fig which is tended in accordance with the traditional practices endemic to the geographical area. The Bourjassotte Noire variety is produced almost exclusively within the geographical area of the designation ‘Figue de Solliès’. In fact, according to data from the fruit and vegetables section of Bassin Rhône Méditerranée (BRM), the proportion of figs of the Bourjassotte Noire variety coming from the geographical area of production amounted to as much as 90 % of the fig harvest registered in France in 2006. The ‘Figue de Solliès’ accounts for 74 % of the total area under fig orchards and 77 % of the harvest produced in the geographical area of the designation.

5.2. Specificity of the product:

Characteristics

The size of the ‘Figue de Solliès’ is characteristically greater than the average for figs on the European market. In actual fact the ‘Figue de Solliès’ is at least 40 mm in size. What makes it special in terms of taste is its excellent balance of acidulous and sweet flavours, a phenomenon unique in Europe. Although the Bourjassotte Noire variety can be found to a lesser extent in other production areas, the figs harvested outside the geographical area of the designation, despite being similar in appearance, do not have the special taste qualities of the ‘Figue de Solliès’. The unique taste of the ‘Figue de Solliès’ comes from its exquisite balance of acidulous and sweet flavours. In figs of the Bourjassotte Noire variety from other production basins, acidulous flavours predominate and the fruit has less organoleptic richness owing to its having been harvested too early. This balance of acidulous and sweet flavours is achieved by ensuring that the fruit has a sugar content of at least 14 °Brix at time of packaging.

The fig is also sought after for how well it keeps; in good conditions (i.e. if the fruit has not burst) it can be kept for several days.

The ‘Figue de Solliès’ is distinguishable by its shape (that of a flattened water drop), colour (violet with black veins, the skin being at least 80 % violet), density, relative firmness, suppleness, juiciness and the lustre of its flesh.

Reputation

The particularities of the area of origin of ‘Figue de Solliès’ give the fruit a range of organoleptic qualities which do not leave the taster disappointed. The ‘Figue de Solliès’ enjoys a reputation which extends well beyond the geographical area of the designation. It is sold both locally and nationally. It can especially be found in Lyon and Paris, where it is very highly regarded, but also in Switzerland and Germany. Since the beginning of the 1970s it has also been available in supermarkets.

Furthermore, the prestige of the ‘Figue de Solliès’ has made it highly popular in gastronomy. Famous restaurants offer a wide variety of dishes prepared from ‘Figues de Solliès’ to accompany both sweet and savoury courses. The popularity of the ‘Figue de Solliès’ can also be seen in the gourmet cooking pages of women’s magazines and cookery books which contain several recipes featuring ‘Figues de Solliès’ as an essential ingredient. The greatest hommage paid to the fig came from the great Provençal chef Guy Gedda, who in 2004 published a book devoted entirely to the ‘Figue de Solliès’, ‘La Magie de la Figue dans la Cuisine Provençale’, ultimate proof of its increasing renown.

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 Solliès basin has the distinctive characteristic of being bordered by landforms favouring the development of a particular climate. The hot Mediterranean climate is favourable for fig cultivation, with an average annual precipitation of between 700 and 800 mm and a very low risk of frost. The ample amount of sunshine associated with this climate ensures refractometric values of 14 °Brix or more throughout the harvest period. In terms of geology, the Solliès basin benefits from its soil mixing with others generally composed of loamy sands having a healthy soil profile and significant hydrological potential, thereby ensuring that fig trees grow rapidly and develop a significant amount of foliage, which in turn is conducive to the development of the richness of taste of the ‘Figue de Soliès’ and the balance of acidulous and sweet flavours. These soils contain little calcium (less than 20 %), ensuring that the harvested figs are fleshy, juicy and greater than 40 mm in size. The mineral richness of the soils leads to the figs grown on them having a corresponding richness of flavour.

The natural factors favouring the fig cultivation are supplemented by the ancestral know-how particularly evident in activities associated with the planting, pruning, harvesting and irrigation of the trees and the sorting and packaging of the fruit. This know-how is evident first and foremost in arboricultural practices such as the establishment of pedestrian orchards, use of open-centre pruning and harvesting (between 15 August and 15 November) by a large work-force of qualified pickers trained to pick the fruit manually straight from the tree at the best stage of ripeness (the harvest is begun when the skin of 80 % of the figs is 80 % violet in colour). In this way the fruit acquires the suppleness, juiciness and lustre characteristic of the ‘Figue de Solliès’. Local knowledge is also fully evident in the sorting and packaging of these especially fragile fruits.

All of these beneficial aspects make the ‘Figue de Solliès’ the main type of fig produced in France, accounting for 58 % of national production or more than 1 900 tonnes per year.

Reference to the publication of the specification:

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

https://www.inao.gouv.fr/fichier/CDCFigueDeSollies.pdf

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