WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1610/97 by José VALVERDE LÓPEZ to the Commission. New olive groves in EU Member States
Date: 1997-05-07
Institutions: European Parliament, VALVERDE LOPEZ
Subjects: EU financing, EU production, area of holding, oleaginous plant, olive, olive oil, production quota

C 45/58

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

10. 2. 98

The  Council  has  given  the  Commission  instructions  to  negotiate  fisheries  agreements  with  Namibia,  South
Africa and Mozambique but formal negotiations have not yet begun. There have, however, been contacts of a
technical and exploratory nature with the authorities of these three countries.

The Commission would note that, with regard to South Africa, the Council has insisted on a close link between
the negotiation of a fishing agreement and a trade agreement.

All the protocols to the fisheries agreements with Cape Verde, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, the Comoros Islands,
Cote d(cid:146)Ivoire, and Guinea-Bissau expire during 1997. The Commission intends to negotiate their renewal. An
initial round of negotiations with Guinea-Bissau has already taken place and a second round is planned for the
beginning of June. Negotiations with the other countries have not yet started but are expected to begin during the
coming months before each protocol expires.

The  Community  has  held  two  rounds  of  negotiations  with  Venezuela,  most  recently  in  June  1996,  but  no
negotiations have taken place with Mexico, Peru, Chile, Colombia or Uruguay. However, the Commission has
met the authorities of those countries for exploratory talks.

Following exploratory talks with New Zealand, the Commission has proposed negotiating instructions which are
being discussed by the Council.

A negotiating mandate permitting the Commission to negotiate fishing agreements with the United Kingdom on
behalf of some of its overseas territories is under discussion in the Council.

(98/C 45/69)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1610/97

by Jose· Valverde Lo·pez (PPE) to the Commission

(7 May 1997)

Subject: New olive groves in EU Member States

In the current debate on the reform of the COM in olive oil, various points on which the Commission has yet to
state its position require clarification. Among these points is the immediate future of new olive groves.

How many hectares of olive trees have been planted in the last five years?

Since  there  is  no  ban  on  planting  new  olive  trees,  does  the  Commission  have  any  plans  for  increases  in
production quotas and hence in total funding?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(13 June 1997)

The latest information on new olive-tree plantings given by the Member States is as follows:

›  Greece: no new olive trees plantations have been established lately; however, Greece is currently rebuilding

its damaged olive groves under the appropriate Community programmes;

›  Spain: around 166 000 hectares of new trees have been planted, which could produce around 50 000 tonnes

in 2002;

›  France:  old  olive-trees  are  to  be  restructured,  which  could  bring  production  up  to  an  average  of  around

5 000 to 6 000 tonnes;

› 

Italy: no significant increase in production levels is envisaged;

›  Portugal: the Portuguese authorities predict that average production will increase by around 10 000 tonnes

by the year 2002 and by almost 50 000 tonnes in ten years’ time.

Despite the average increase in production, the Commission does not plan to increase the support budget for this
product.