WRITTEN QUESTION E-3385/02

by Erik Meijer (GUE/NGL) to the Commission

(28 November 2002)

Subject: Obstacles to the export of Bulgarian white salted cheese containing Lactobacillus bulgaricus because the designation feta is protected within the EU

1. Is the Commission aware that in Bulgaria, a candidate country, cheese and yoghurt are produced which contain the bacterium Lactobacillus bulgaricus, also known as Bacillus bulgaricus, to which human health promoting characteristics are ascribed?

2. Can the Commission confirm that salted crumbly white cheese from Bulgaria that contains the Lactobacillus bulgaricus bacterium and is very different from Greek feta cheese, which is fattier, tangier and does not contain that bacterium, was being bought up in Bulgaria, from Greece, as long ago as before 1989 and subsequently sold as Greek feta cheese within the EU?

3. Can the Commission also confirm that, since 2000, the name feta may be used within the European Union only to designate a white cheese of Greek origin, even though that Greek cheese involves a dairy technique of Danish origin and, furthermore, the designation has been taken from the Bulgarian cheese now known by the same name precisely because of the emergence of Greek trade in it?

4. What steps are being taken to ensure that the Bulgarian plan, following accession in 2007, to promote exports of that cheese is not needlessly hampered by making it impossible to use the name under which the cheese has become well known, so that the product can therefore only be sold to the consumer under a name unknown to other Europeans? Will the use of the name Bulgarian feta be made possible?

5. If the answer to question 4 is negative, in what other way will Bulgaria be compensated for the fact that the cheese to be exported will become less widely known because of a decision which probably would not have been taken if Bulgaria were already a member of the EU?

Source: 14 November 2002 edition of the Dutch newspaper Het Nederlandse Dagblad

Answer given by Mr Verheugen on behalf of the Commission

(17 January 2003)

The Commission is aware that Balkans and South-East Mediterranean regions produce white cheese whose manufacturing process is very similar to the one used for Feta. Bulgaria as well as other candidate countries like Romania, Cyprus and Turkey is concerned.

Feta was registered as a protected designation of origin (PDO) for Greece by Commission Regulation (EC) No 1829/2002 of 14 October 2002(1). The name Feta (by itself or as part of a compound name) may now only be used for cheese originating in the specified geographical area in Greece and complying with the product specification. However, a five-year transitional period (starting from 15 October 2002) is possible under Article 13(2) of Regulation 2081/92(2) during which the name Feta may continue to be used for cheese not complying with the specification. In any case, it would not be consistent with Community law to market Bulgarian cheese as Feta or Bulgarian Feta as from 15 October 2007.

The imports of Feta-like cheese from candidate countries into the Union are very low in terms of volume. In 2001, only 40,4 tonnes have been exported to the Union from the candidate countries, Bulgaria being the biggest exporter with a quantity of 11,8 tonnes. In view of the fact that the EU currently consumes approximately 150 000 tons per year of this product, the 40,4 tons represent only 0,027 % of EU consumption of this product. Whilst there is concrete information available on the volume of Feta-like cheese exported from Bulgaria to the Union, there are no precise details available as to whether the name of Feta is used to denominate this cheese. Under these circumstances the impact on Bulgarian producers of Feta-like cheese of the registration of Feta as a PDO is considered as being negligible.

(1) Commission Regulation (EC) No 1829/2002 of 14 October 2002 amending the Annex to Regulation (EC) No 1107/96 with regard to the name Feta, OJ L 277, 15.10.2002.

(2) Council Regulation (EEC) No 2081/92 of 14 July 1992 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs, OJ L 208, 24.7.1992.