WRITTEN QUESTION P-3146/97 by Joan Colom i Naval (PSE) to the Commission (30 September 1997)

Subject: Supply of fruit trees and vines

In the early 1980s, one of the most spectacular instances of fraud perpetrated against the Community budget was the use of plastic fruit trees to obtain certain premiums and subsidies under the CAP.

Following the recent reforms or reform proposals involving certain COMs, it appears that some companies on the Community market are again supplying synthetic models of fruit trees, olive trees and vine stocks which are guaranteed to be 'undetectable'.

Is the Commission aware of these rumours? If so, has it taken any action in this connection? Can it ensure that its inspection techniques are capable of detecting these new materials?

Supplementary answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission (10 December 1997)

The Commission is aware of rumours concerning the presentation of synthetic trees and signs for the purpose of qualifying for Community aid but it is not aware of specific cases of fraud being perpetrated against the Community budget through the use of synthetic models of fruit trees, olive trees and vine stocks. Under Council Regulation (EEC) No 595/91 of 4 March 1991 concerning irregularities and the recovery of sums wrongly paid in connection with the financing of the common agricultural policy and the organisation of an information system in this field and repealing Regulation (ECC) No) No 283/72 ((OJ L 67, 14.3.1991. )), Member States are under the obligation to communicate to the Commission cases of fraud and irregularities in the field of the common agricultural policy. There has been no explicit mention by the Member States that they have been confronted with the practices referred to above (the different fraud mechanisms, however, cannot be analysed systematically). The Commission considers that the current inspection techniques offer every guarantee of detecting such irregularities.

Remote sensing using satellite images would make it possible at a glance to recognise plastic if entire plots were being examined because the radiometric response of vegetation is totally different.

Vineyard and olive cultivation registers are partly established by aerial photographs but are validated by very extensive field work. Plastic plants would immediately be detected. Also, the simulation in plastic of adult trees is clearly very difficult. Because young plants do not show up clearly on images or photographs, new plantations must in any case be inspected in situ. As far as olive trees are concerned, aid is granted for actual production in respect of 80% of Community production, and only 20% of aid is paid on the basis of the number of trees and average yield, subject to the obligation to submit a crushing certificate from an approved mill.

In the fruit and vegetables sector, Community aid is granted per hectare only in one area, which is the programme for grubbing apple and peach trees (both of which are deciduous). Inspections provided for under Community rules are conducted on the spot and include verification of plot density and of the age of the trees concerned. Under these conditions plastic trees would be spotted immediately.The same situation applies for the grubbing of vines.