22.6.85 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 153/7 
Letter to the Member States from the Commission with regard to cereals and colza 
(85/C 153/07) 
Sir, 
The Council of the European Communities failed to 
adopt on time the agricultural prices for cereals and rape 
for the 1985/86 marketing year, which begins on 1 July 
for rape and durum wheat and on 1 August for the other 
cereals; however, there is advance implementation of the 
prices for the new marketing year in certain southern 
areas of the Community. 
For the execution of the tasks entrusted to it by the 
Treaty, the Commission will, if this situation persists, be 
compelled to adopt, as a precautionary measure, the 
management measures essential to ensure continuity of 
operation of the common agricultural policy for these 
two products, on 1 July for rape and durum wheat, and 
on 1 August for the other cereals. 
The Commission has already decided to implement a 
special measure with regard to the buying-in prices of 
cereals in certain Community regions. 
The Commission would draw your Government's 
attention to the fact that it is incumbent upon the 
Member States under Article 5 of the Treaty to take all 
appropriate measures to help to avoid, pending a 
Council decision, an interruption in the operation of the 
machinery of the agricultural markets policy. 
The Commission takes the view that the precautionary 
measures to be implemented must reflect the following 
general guidelines: 
1. The management of the product sectors concerned 
will be carried out on the basis of the arrangements 
applying during 1984/85, and in particular of the 
prices applied during that marketing year. 
However, the Commission will allow for the special 
features of each product sector. Thus, the market 
organizations for cereals and rape (Article 3a of 
Regulation (EEC) No 2727/75 and Article 24a of 
Regulation (EEC) No 136/66) provide for a 
compulsory reduction in prices for the new marketing 
season where the average actual production of the 
three most recent marketing years exceeds the 
guarantee thresholds set. 
2. However, the guarantee threshold for durum wheat 
was not exceeded. Accordingly, the buying-in prices 
applicable during the 1984/85 marketing year should 
be retained. 
3. On the other hand, however, the guarantee threshold 
for rape was exceeded, which should entail a 
reduction in the prices for the new marketing year. 
Under such circumstances, the retention, even on a 
provisional basis, of the intervention price paid during 
1984/85 would definitely involve the threat of very 
heavy sales of rape seed to intervention, which would 
disrupt the market equilibrium for this product for a 
long time. The intervention agencies would be obliged to buy in these products, but such action would be all 
the more undesirable from the angle of proper 
management since it would entail unnecessary public 
expenditure which might well not be endorsed by the 
Council. 
Accordingly, the Commission will decide to 
implement a reduction of 1,8 % in the buying-in 
prices for rape from 1 July 1985 onwards. 
This reduction is a reasonable one since it is virtually 
certain that the Council will not fix new prices at a 
level lower than that of the prices for the preceding 
marketing year minus 1,8 %. The great majority of 
the delegations felt this to be acceptable and it is also 
in line with the Commission's amended proposal. 
4. If the Council was not in a position to fix in good 
time the prices for the new season for cereals other 
than durum wheat, the Commission would, for the 
same reasons, apply a reduction of 1,8 % to the 
intervention price for the cereals, from 1 August 
onwards. 
5. Also, under Article 3 (3) of Regulation (EEC) No 
2727/75, which provides for the effective application 
of the buying-in prices fixed for the new marketing 
year, on 1 June for all cereals in Greece (and on 16 
May in this country for barley), in Italy and in certain 
southern areas of France, the Commission must 
implement, in respect of these three Member States, 
an immediate reduction of 1,8 % in the buying-in 
prices for all cereals except durum wheat (*). 
6. With regard to imports of cereals, the Commission 
will fix the levies on the basis of the threshold prices 
applicable during 1984/85, adjusted in relation with 
the incidence of the 1,8 % reduction in buying-in 
prices, to avoid any undesirable increase in 
Community preference. 
7. The EAGGF financing procedures for the measures 
referred to in this letter are unchanged. The advance 
payments made to the Member State to ensure their 
application will be determined on the basis of the 
principles set out above. 
I would be grateful if you would draw the attention of 
your Government to the point that these measures are 
precautionary measures essential to ensure the operation 
without excessive disruption of the rape and cereals 
market organizations and to safeguard the interests of 
the operators concerned, without prejudice to the 
Council's final decisions. 
For the Commission 
Frans ANDRIESSEN 
Vice-President 
(*) Commission Decision 85/309/EEC (OJ No L 163, 22. 6. 
1985).