WRITTEN QUESTION E-2972/02

by Michl Ebner (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(22 October 2002)

Subject: Funding the disposal of BSE risk material

At least since the BSE crisis, which has taken on devastating proportions throughout Europe for both farmers and consumers, the need for tight controls of feedingstuffs and specialist disposal of animal carcasses has been apparent.

Initiatives and programmes have since then been launched, at both national and regional level, with the aim of disposing of BSE risk material according to the state of the art, so that a similar disaster can be prevented in future.

In South Tyrol, for instance, there is a carcass disposal service that is unique throughout Italy. It is 100 %-funded by the province, and has been disposing of all BSE risk material from all slaughterhouses for the past two years. Projects of this type help greatly to improve the disposal standards of stockbreeders in the case of animal carcasses. Animals are in fact very seldom buried or illegally disposed of at unknown sites. This also ensures that when sharp falls in meat prices make compulsory slaughter procedures necessary, carcasses no longer get into the food chain.

But the 100 % subsidies announced in Brussels in 2000 have a five-year limit. This limit expires in 2004.

Does the Commission not agree that there is a need, particularly in the interest of consumer and environmental protection, to continue services of this kind by continuing to grant a 100 % contribution after 2004?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(18 November 2002)

In view of the exceptional circumstances due to the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)-crisis, the Commission has approved a number of aid measures, which aimed to minimise the risks to consumers and the environment and mitigate the financial impact on the meat sector and disposal services. These measures are in place for a limited period only since, in the long term, the polluter-pays principle as referred to in Article 174(2) of the EC Treaty must be complied with.

The Commission has recently been asked by various Member States to examine ways of avoiding distortions of competition as a result of such assistance. Several Member States have pointed out that the current situation, whereby slaughterhouses or farmers in certain Member States

and regions receive assistance for the disposal of slaughter waste and fallen stock and for transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) tests while others receive no recompense for such costs, creates serious distortions of competition. The Agriculture Council has also discussed this issue on a number of occasions.

Directorate general Agriculture has therefore carried out a survey of the Member States to collect the relevant information on these measures. The Member States were also invited to a meeting of the working group Conditions of competition in agriculture, which discussed the danger of distortions of competition due to such aid schemes.

Based on this information the Commission is now drawing up Community guidelines setting out future Commission policy with respect to state aid for TSE tests, fallen stock and slaughterhouse waste. These guidelines will presumably enter into force from 1 January 2003 onwards.