Under point 4(2) of Annex IV to the Act of Accession to the European Union of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic, any stock of agricultural products, private as well as public, in free circulation at the date of accession within the territory of the new Member States exceeding the quantity which could be regarded as constituting a normal carryover of stock must be eliminated at the expense of the new Member States.

The meaning and scope of the term ‘to eliminate’ must be determined by considering the general context in which that term is used and its usual meaning in everyday language. Consequently, as regards agricultural products, in everyday language, the term ‘eliminated’, as used in point 4(2) of Annex IV to the Act of Accession, has the meaning of ‘destroyed’ or ‘taken off the market’. Furthermore, agricultural products in free circulation within the territory of the Member States are intended to be absorbed by the market. Consequently, the statement in point 4(2) of Annex IV to the Act of Accession that the surpluses must be eliminated cannot be understood as referring to the absorption of the surpluses by the market.

As regards the purpose of point 4(2) of Annex IV to the Act of Accession, it is primarily to prevent disruption to the functioning of the mechanisms provided for by the common organisation of the market in agricultural products and, in particular, disruption affecting price formation and arising as a result of the accumulation of abnormal quantities of agricultural products in the new Member States before their accession to the European Union. Furthermore, in order to safeguard the effectiveness of point 4(2) of Annex IV to the Act of Accession, the purpose of that provision must be regarded as being also that of correcting the effects of the disruption caused by the sale of the surpluses on the internal market.

Consequently, the arrangements that the Commission is responsible for implementing under point 4(4) of that Annex serve to ensure either that the disruption caused by the sale of those surpluses on the internal market is prevented or that the economic effects of that disruption are compensated for. Under that system, the surpluses existing within the territory of the new Member States on 1 May 2004 are in principle withdrawn from the market at their expense, inter alia by the export of the surpluses outside of the internal market or by the destruction of those surpluses.

Lastly, point 4(2) of Annex IV to the Act of Accession does not state that the new Member States are required to eliminate the surpluses themselves. Furthermore, the Commission, when exercising the powers regarding the common agricultural policy which the Act of Accession conferred on it for implementation of the rules laid down by that Act, may consider it necessary to exercise a broad discretion, so that the legality of a measure adopted in that sphere can be affected only if the measure is manifestly inappropriate having regard to the objective which the competent institution is seeking to pursue. Consequently, it is conceivable that a system under which, first, the Community ensures that the surpluses existing within the territory of the new Member States at the date of accession are destroyed or exported outside of the internal market and, secondly, the cost of those operations is then passed on to the new Member States is also compatible with point 4(2) of Annex IV to the Act of Accession.

(see paras 40-41, 43, 46-48)