WRITTEN QUESTION E-3679/00

by Daniel Varela Suanzes-Carpegna (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(29 November 2000)

Subject: Export aid for milk surpluses

The recent aid or refunds payable in respect of milk powder and/or butter exports to non-member countries may have distorted the markets in southern Europe because milk will have found its way to other countries which export dairy products.

Can the Commission say which Member States have been receiving the above aid and what amounts have been granted? What is the nature of the products concerned, what quantities are involved, and to what uses have they been put?

Can the Commission also say how long the aid will continue to be paid and what amounts will be granted? What specific measures and operations will be eligible, and, assuming that the aid is to remain in existence, what purposes will they ultimately serve?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(12 January 2001)

Provisional figures on export refund expenditure for skimmed milk powder and butter for the budget year 2000 are indicated on the table which is sent direct to the Honourable Member and Parliament's Secretariat. The table also indicates the quantities of both products exported in the period January-September 2000.

In providing these data, the Commission should like to underline that the payment of an export subsidy in a particular Member State cannot be considered as an indication of the origin of the goods exported nor of the domicile of the operator exporting them. Since export licenses may be used in any Member State and goods may be moved freely to any part of the Community, exporters may request payment of the export refund in the country where the goods are put on board a ship.

As regards skimmed milk powder, the main export destinations for the 304 800 tonnes (t) indicated below were Algeria (50 379 t), Mexico (50 013 t), Indonesia (25 151 t), the Philippines (24 688 t) and Thailand (17 263 t). In the case of butter/butteroil, the main export destinations of the 115 100 t indicated below were Russia (18 520 t), Saudi Arabia (11 865 t), Egypt (7 762 t) and Morocco (6 812 t).

Export refunds for milk and milk products are an important instrument of the common organisation of the milk and milk products market. The refund amounts for different dairy products are fixed on the basis of the price difference between the Community and world markets and taking account of the Community's World trade organisation (WTO) commitments on export subsidies.

Consequently, future developments on export subsidies and exported volumes of milk and milk products will depend on the outcome of the new round of WTO trade negotiations, on the Community's relative price level as well as on the Community's exportable surplus.

Finally, the Commission believes there is no ground for assuming that exports of skimmed milk powder and butter to third countries may have distorted the dairy markets in southern Europe recently. To take butter as an example, on a total quantity of 44 078 t of surplus butter purchased into public intervention in the Community in the year 2000, 12 982 t were purchased in Spain, 3 762 t in Portugal and 2 350 t in Italy. It seems, therefore, that market support measures are relevant for the Community as a whole.