Publication of an application for registration of a name 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

(2021/C 288/05)

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) within three months from the date of this publication.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘Vänerlöjrom’

EU No: PDO-SE-02412 – 6 March 2018

(X) PDO ( ) PGI

1. Name

‘Vänerlöjrom’

2. Member State or third country

Sweden

3. Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1 Product type

1.7. Fresh fish, molluscs, and crustaceans and products derived therefrom

3.2 Description of the product to which the name in 1 applies

‘Vänerlöjrom’ is a natural product made only from vendace (Coregonus albula) roe and salt (NaCl). ‘Vänerlöjrom’ is sold in fresh, frozen or thawed form. The characteristics of ‘Vänerlöjrom’ are the same regardless of the form in which it is sold.

‘Vänerlöjrom’ exhibits the following characteristics:

Appearance: natural lustre, pebble-like sparkle. Whole roe eggs must be visible.

Consistency: ‘Vänerlöjrom’ is characterised by whole eggs that give a distinct ‘pop’ if pressed to the roof of the mouth when tasting.

Size: the eggs range in size from 0,8 mm to 2,0 mm depending on when in the fishing season and in which part of Lake Vänern the vendace was caught.

Colour: clear and bright, varying from light orange to somewhat darker orange over the course of the fishing season (S1060-Y30R to 080-Y40R in the Natural Colour System).

Salt content: 4,0-4,5 per cent NaCl

Moisture content: must not be high enough to cause the ‘Vänerlöjrom’ to fall out of an inverted spoon. The roe must also maintain its shape when placed on a flat surface.

Flavour: mild and clean fish taste of salmon and umami with balanced saltiness. The flavour intensifies when the small eggs are crushed in the mouth.

3.3 Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

Vendace feeds exclusively on plankton (Bythothrepes cederstroemi, Daphnia (sp), Bosmina (sp), Eurytemora (sp), Heterocope (sp) and Diaptomus (sp)) that occur naturally in the fresh water of Lake Vänern.

Raw materials:

The raw material for ‘Vänerlöjrom’ is roe from vendace (Coregonus albula) caught in Lake Vänern.

Other ingredients: Non-iodised salt (NaCl)

3.4 Specific steps in production that must take place in the defined geographical area

‘Vänerlöjrom’ is produced from roe from vendace (Coregonus albula) caught in Lake Vänern. All steps in the production process, from fishing to preparation of ‘Vänerlöjrom’ (squeezing, whisking, pre-rinsing, straining, thorough cleaning, drying and salting), must take place in the defined geographical area described under point 4.

3.5 Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product the registered name refers to

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3.6 Specific rules concerning labelling of the product the registered name refers to

In addition to the general labelling rules, all producers of ‘Vänerlöjrom’ must label the product with the logo below.

4. Concise definition of the geographical area

The production area for ‘Vänerlöjrom’ comprises Lake Vänern and the surrounding parishes:

Väse and Östra Fågelvik in Väse district;

Ölme and Varnum in Ölme district;

Visnum and Visnums Kil in Visnum district;

Karlstad rural and urban parishes and Hammarö in Karlstad district.

Segerstad, Grums and Ed in Grums district:

Millesvik, Eskilsäter, Ölserud, Botilsäter, By, Bro, Södra Ny and Tveta in Näs district

(all located in the county of Värmland).

Leksberg, Björsäter, Torsö, Hassle, Berga, Lyrestad, Amnehärad and the town of Mariestad in Vadsbro district;

Källby, Skeby, Husaby and Sävare in Kinnefjärding district;

Medelplana, Västerplana, Österplana and Forshem in Kinne district;

Tådene, Norra Kedum, Örslösa, Söne, Rackeby, Skalunda, Sunnersberg, Gösslunda, Strö, Otterstad and the town of Lidköping in Kålland district;

Flo, Ås, Sal, Västernäs, Tun, Karaby and Frie in Åse district;

Västra Tunhem, Vassända-Naglum and the town of Vänersborg in Väne district;

Bolstad, Grinstad, Gestad and Frändefors in Sundal district;

Skållerud, Holm and Järn in Nordal district;

Åmål rural and urban parishes Tössö med Tydie and Danisco in Tössbo district;

(all located in the county of Västra Götaland)

5. Link with the geographical area

Specific details of the geographical area

Lake Vänern is Sweden’s largest lake and Europe’s third largest lake. It is located in south-western Sweden and has a surface area of approximately 5 650 km2. Its average depth is 27 metres and its maximum depth is 106 metres. Because of its size, Lake Vänern can be likened to an inland sea with an extensive archipelago of more than 12 000 islands. Despite this extensive archipelago, the lake is primarily pelagic.

In the centre of Lake Vänern, the Lurö archipelago in the north extends towards the Kålland archipelago in the south. These two archipelagos more or less divide the lake into two large basins, with the south-western one being known as Lake Dalbo and the north-eastern one known as Lake Värmland. Lake Dalbo is shallower and has a smaller volume of water than Lake Värmland. This means that the two basins have a somewhat different annual temperature cycles.

Lake Vänern was formed around 10 000 years ago, when it was gradually separated from the mass of water that became the Baltic Sea by the uplift that occurred after the last Ice Age. Today, the mean water level in the lake is 44,3 metres above sea level. Because of its isolation from the Baltic Sea, Lake Vänern is home to some glacial relict crustaceans.

It has a wide-ranging catchment area that extends into Norway. The Klarälven River, with its basin of 11 847,6 km2 and mean flow of 162,5 m3/s (high water flow is 690 m3/s) forms the dominant tributary.

Average annual precipitation is approximately 600 mm at Lake Vänern and approximately 1 000 mm in the area along the Norwegian border to the west and north-west. In the winter, precipitation is mainly in the form of snow. The snow cover may be significant (60-65 cm), above all in the north-western parts of the catchment area. The snow is usually still there in April, and plays a part in the significant spring floods in many of the rivers flowing into Lake Vänern.

The Swedish part of the catchment area comprises approximately 10 per cent of the country’s territory and consists primarily of forested land , which means that some organic material is fed into the lake (total organic material in Lake Vänern (TOC) is approximately 5 - 6 mg/l). The surface water temperature is approximately -5 - 0° C from December to February and approximately 10 - 16° C from May to September. When Lake Vänern was formed, the Vänern vendace was separated from its relatives in the Baltic Sea, which means that it is today genetically different from other vendace and is adapted to the natural conditions in Lake Vänern.

The Vänern vendace is a pelagic fish that lives in large schools that move between Lake Dalbo and Lake Värmland, depending on factors including the water temperature and underwater currents. It stays mostly in the colder water below the thermocline.

The Vänern vendace is common and comprises approximately 30 per cent of the biomass in the open waters. It attains maturity at approximately one year of age. Its reproductive cycle is influenced by the climate. Abundant rainfall in winter, with heavy spring floods and a good inflow of organic material, helps ensure a higher level of plankton, which is the vendace’s primary source of food.

Description of the human factors

‘Vänerlöjrom’ is produced from roe from vendace (Coregonus albula) caught in Lake Vänern.

The properties of ‘Vänerlöjrom’ are the result of the skill and expertise of those involved in fishing the mature berried Vänern vendace and in the subsequent preparation process.

The quality of ‘Vänerlöjrom’ is ultimately dependent on the stage in the vendace’s spawning period when it is caught. Vänern vendace spawns between October and December. The exact spawning period is influenced by the water temperature, which means that the timing of spawning varies between different parts of Lake Vänern. During the spawning period, the vendace prefer the areas where the bottom waters are forced towards the surface by currents and the topography of the lake bed. In connection with spawning, schools are primarily found at a depth of 10-20 metres. Despite modern aids, the fishermen’s knowledge of the vendace’s behaviour in relation to currents, bed topography, weather and wind direction is key to catching the berried fish at the right stage of the spawning period so that the raw material – the roe – is of the highest possible quality.

The vendace is caught exclusively with nets, with a mesh size of no less than 16.5 mm. Each fisherman may use a maximum of 1 400 metres of net per fishing operation. Vendace fishing is regulated and is carried out during the vendace’s spawning season in late autumn. The fishing period is set by the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management (HaV).

The quality of the raw material must then be maintained during the preparation process to ensure that ‘Vänerlöjrom’ has its characteristic properties. Preparation is carried out by hand and the work must be done quickly. Preparation of ‘Vänerlöjrom’ is started as soon as the catch is landed. As a quick preparation process is necessary in order to preserve the quality of the roe, the product is prepared in the direct vicinity of the lake (no more than 5 km from the water line at normal water levels).

To prepare ‘Vänerlöjrom’, the roe is squeezed from the fish by hand and subsequently cleaned of blood, membranes and unusable eggs by means of whisking. In a mature female vendace, the roe can amount to 5-10% of the body weight (approximately 30 grams). The roe is squeezed out of the berried fish by staff with a deft hand and long experience. During the process, the cleanliness and quality of the raw material is checked by means of a visual inspection.

After the whisking, the roe is immediately rinsed in clean cold water three to five times. Any remaining impurities are removed and the roe is collected in straining cloths, which are hung up to allow the water to drain. So that the roe does not lose its colour or swell up to the point of breaking, the time between the initial rinse and straining must be as short as possible (approximately 10 minutes).

After straining, the roe is dried in a cold storage room at 3-6°C for approximately 48 hours. The drying process reduces the weight by approximately 8-10%. The dried roe is salted with non-iodised salt (NaCl).

The properties of the finished product are assessed by means of sampling and blind testing during the fishing season. The assessments are carried out by independent assessors. Only roe that meets the specifications is packaged and marketed as ‘Vänerlöjrom’.

‘Vänerlöjrom’ has a strong local connection. Every year various events linked to Lake Vänern and roe fishing, including Vendace Roe Day, attract large numbers of visitors.

Special characteristics of the product

‘Vänerlöjrom’ is produced from roe from Vänern vendace, a freshwater fish that has been genetically separated from the vendace in the Gulf of Bothnia for 8 000-9 000 years.

‘Vänerlöjrom’ is a natural product with no additives other than cooking salt (NaCl). This distinguishes it from the majority of other fish roe products on the market.

‘Vänerlöjrom’ obtains its specific properties from the minerals and nutrients in the waters of Lake Vänern. The eggs are somewhat smaller than those from vendace in the Gulf of Bothnia. The roe is a paler colour with a clear orange tinge.

‘Vänerlöjrom’ has balanced saltiness that allows the smooth, rounded taste of the roe to come through.

The small size of the eggs means that ‘Vänerlöjrom’ is perceived as less ‘grainy’, which, combined with the balanced saltiness and a naturally elegant taste, helps to provide a pleasant eating experience.

‘Vänerlöjrom’ is a well-drained product (dried) that releases less water than other similar products on the market.

Causal link

Lake Vänern is a very special environment. The lake was separated from the Baltic Sea approximately 10 000 years ago. Its ecosystem has since developed without contact with the Baltic, which means that its vendace stocks are today genetically different from the population that lives in the Baltic Sea. Lake Vänern also has a population of glacial relict zooplankton.

The water in Lake Vänern comes from a range of large and small watercourses that mainly run through wooded moraine land and through more humus-rich bogs and lakes. The lake is relatively nutrient-poor, so the addition of nutrient-rich water following heavy precipitation stimulates the growth of plankton, which in turn provides food for the lake’s unique population of vendace, known as Vänern vendace.

The water quality of Lake Vänern and the fact that the food sources solely comprise freshwater organisms contribute to the special character of the Vänern vendace roe. The eggs are somewhat smaller than those of vendace from the Gulf of Bothnia and also have a distinct orange colour.

For the production of ‘Vänerlöjrom’, the vendace must be caught at the correct stage of the spawning period to ensure that the raw material is of the highest quality. Because of the size of Lake Vänern, the conditions in the lake are easily affected by the weather and the wind. During the vendace spawning season in the autumn, conditions may become very difficult, and this is something that fishermen must take into account. The spawning behaviour of Vänern vendace is affected by water temperature, currents and the topography of the lake bed. In order to catch the berried females at the right stage of egg-bearing, the fisherman must be familiar with the vendace’s behaviour and must predict from experience where the vendace will spawn in the prevailing weather conditions.

Once the berried vendace has been caught, the quality of the roe must be maintained during the preparation process in order to obtain the special character of ‘Vänerlöjrom’. Preparation is carried out by hand by people with long experience of and an eye for the craftsmanship required to produce high-quality vendace roe and who have mastered the particular technique required to squeeze the roe from the fish by hand.

The special characteristics that define ‘Vänerlöjrom’ are entirely due to the natural conditions in the geographical area and people’s ability to utilise and manage the raw material resulting from the natural conditions.

Reference to publication of the specification

(the second subparagraph of Article 6(1) of this Regulation)

https://www.livsmedelsverket.se/globalassets/produktion-handel-kontroll/livsmedelsinformation-markning-halsopastaenden/skyddade-beteckningar/produktspecifikation-vanerlojrom_2020_05_11-002.pdf

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