Commission Regulation (EC) No 794/98 of 15 April 1998 laying down detailed rules governing the grant of private storage aid for Pecorino Romano cheese
Date: 1998-04-15
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: private stock, sheep's milk cheese, storage premium

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Official Journal of the European Communities

16. 4. 98

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 794/98

of 15 April 1998

laying down detailed rules governing the grant of private storage aid for
Pecorino Romano cheese

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 804/68 of
27 June 1968 on the common organisation of the market
in milk products (1), as last amended by Regulation (EC)
No 1587/96 (2), and in particular Articles 9(3) and 28
thereof,

Whereas Council Regulation (EEC) No 508/71 of 8
March 1971 laying down general rules on private storage
aid for long-keeping cheeses (3) permits the granting of
private storage aid for sheep’s milk cheeses requiring at
least six months for maturing where a serious market
imbalance could be eliminated or reduced by seasonal
storage;

Whereas the seasonal nature of Pecorino Romano cheese
production results in the building up of stocks which are
difficult to sell and which risk causing a lowering of
prices; whereas seasonal storage should therefore be intro-
duced for the quantities to improve the situation and
allow producers time to find outlets for their cheese;

Whereas the detailed rules of this measure should deter-
mine the maximum quantity to benefit from it as well as
the duration of the contracts in relation to the real re-
quirements of the market and the keeping qualities of the
cheeses in question; whereas it is necessary to specify the
terms of the storage contract so as to enable the iden-
tification of the cheese and to maintain checks on the
stock in respect of which aid is granted; whereas the aid
should be fixed taking into account storage costs and the
foreseeable trend of market prices;

Whereas Article 1(1) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No
1756/93 of 30 June 1993 fixing the operative events for
the agricultural conversion rate applicable to milk and
milk products (4), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No
420/98 (5), fixes the conversion rate to be applied in the
framework of private storage aid schemes in the milk
products sector;

Whereas experience shows that provisions on checks
should be laid down, particularly as regards the docu-

(1) OJ L 148, 28. 6. 1968, p. 13.
(2) OJ L 206, 16. 8. 1996, p. 21.
(3) OJ L 58, 11. 3. 1971, p. 1.
(4) OJ L 161, 2. 7. 1993, p. 48.
(5) OJ L 52, 21. 2. 1998, p. 21.

ments to be submitted and checks to be made on the
should be provided that
it
spot; whereas
Member States require the costs of checks be fully or
partly borne by the contractor;

therefore,

Whereas it is appropriate to guarantee the continuation of
the storage operations in question;

Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are
in accordance with the opinion of
the Management
Committee for Milk and Milk Products,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Aid shall be granted in respect of the private storage of
15 000 tonnes of Pecorino Romano cheese manufactured
in the Community and satisfying the requirements of
Articles 2 and 3.

Article 2

1.
The intervention agency shall conclude storage
contracts only when the following conditions are met:

(a) the quantity of cheese to which the contract relates is

not less than 2 tonnes;

(b) the cheese was manufactured at least 90 days before
the date specified in the contract as being the date of
commencement of storage, and after 1 November
1997;

(c) the cheese has undergone tests which show that it
meets the condition laid down in (b) and that it is of
first quality;

(d) the storer undertakes:

— not, during the term of the contract, to alter the
composition of the batch which is the subject of
the contract without authorisation from the inter-
vention agency. If the condition concerning the
minimum quantity fixed for each batch continues
to be met, the intervention agency may authorise
an alteration which is limited to the removal or
replacement of cheeses which are found to have
deteriorated to such an extent that they can no
longer be stored.

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In the event of
quantities:

release from store of certain

Aid shall be paid not later than 90 days from the last

2.
day of storage under contract.

(i) if the aforesaid quantities are replaced with the
authorisation of the intervention agency, the
contract is deemed not to have undergone any
alteration;

(ii) if the aforesaid quantities are not replaced, the
contract is deemed to have been concluded ab
initio for the quantity permanently retained.

Any supervisory costs arising from an alteration
shall be met by the storer,

— to keep stock accounts and to inform the interven-
tion agency each week of the quantity of cheese
put into storage during the previous week and of
any planned withdrawals.

2.

The storage contract shall be concluded:

(a) in writing, stating the date when storage covered by
the contract begins; this may not be earlier than the
day following that on which the operations connected
with putting the batch of cheese covered by the
contract into storage were completed;

(b) after completion of

the operations connected with
putting the batch of cheese covered by the contract
into storage and at the latest 40 days after the date on
which the storage covered by the contract begins.

Article 3

Aid shall be granted only for cheese put into storage

1.
during the period 1 May to 31 December 1998.

2. No aid shall be granted in respect of storage under
contract for less than 60 days.

3.
The aid payable may not exceed an amount cor-
responding to 180 days storage under contract termin-
ating before 31 March 1999. By way of derogation from
the first indent of Article 2(1)(d), when the period of 60
days specified in paragraph 2 has elapsed, the storer may
remove all or part of
the batch under contract. The
minimum quantity that may be removed shall be 500
kilograms. The Member States may, however, increase this
quantity to 2 tonnes.

The date of the start of operations to remove cheese
covered by the contract shall not be included in the
period of storage under contract.

Article 4

1.

The aid shall be as follows:

(a) ECU 100 per tonne for the fixed costs;
(b) ECU 0,35 per tonne per day of storage under contract

for the warehousing costs;

(c) ECU 0,65 per tonne per day of storage under contract

for the financial costs.

Article 5

The Member States shall ensure that the conditions

1.
granting entitlement to payment of the aid are fulfilled.

The contractor shall make available to the national
2.
authorities responsible for verifying execution of
the
measure any documentation permitting in particular the
following particulars of products placed in private storage
to be verified:

(a) ownership at the time of entry into storage;

(b) the origin and date of manufacture of the cheeses;

(c) the date of entry into storage;

(d) presence in the store;

(e) the date of removal from storage.

3.
The contractor or, where applicable, the operator of
the store shall keep stock accounts available at the store,
covering:

(a) identification, by contract number, of

the products

placed in private storage;

(b) the dates of entry into and removal from storage;

(c) the number of cheeses and their weight shown for

each lot;

(d) the location of the products in the store.

4.
Products stored must be easily identifiable and must
be identified individually by contract. A special mark
shall be affixed to cheese covered by contract.

5. Without prejudice to Article 2(1)(d), on entry into
storage, the competent bodies shall conduct checks in
particular to ensure that products stored are eligible, for
the aid and to prevent any possibility of substitution of
products during storage under contract.

The national authorities responsible for controls

6.
shall undertake:

(a) an unannounced check to see that the products are
present in the store. The sample concerned must be
representative and must correspond to at least 10 % of
for a private
the overall quantity under contract
storage aid measure. Such checks must include,
in
addition to an examination of the accounts referred to
in paragraph 3, a physical check of the weight and
type of product and their identification. Such physical
checks must relate to at least 5 % of the quantity
subject to the unannounced check;

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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(b) a check to see that the products are present at the end

of the storage period under contract.

9.
The Member States may provide that the costs of
checks will be borne partly or fully by the contractor.

Checks conducted pursuant to paragraphs 5 and 6

7.
must be the subject of a report stating:

Article 6

— the date of the check,
— its duration,
— the operations conducted.

The report on checks must be signed by the official
responsible and countersigned by the contractor or, where
applicable, by the store operator.

8.
In the case of irregularities affecting at least 5 % of
the quantities of products subject to the checks the latter
shall be extended to a larger sample to be determined by
the competent body.

The Member States
Commission within four weeks.

shall notify such cases

to the

Member States shall communicate to the Commission
before 15 December 1998:

(a) the quantity of cheese for which storage contracts have

been concluded;

(b) any quantities in respect of which the authorisation

referred to in Article 2(1)(d) has been given.

Article 7

This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day
following its publication in the Official Journal of the
European Communities.

It shall apply from 1 May 1998.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member
States.

Done at Brussels, 15 April 1998.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission