Commission Regulation (EC) No 1209/2001 of 20 June 2001 derogating from Regulation (EC) No 562/2000 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 as regards the buying-in of beef
Date: 2001-06-20
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU Member State, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, award of contract, beef, intervention buying

21.6.2001

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Official Journal of the European Communities

L 165/15

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1209/2001

of 20 June 2001

derogating from Regulation (EC) No 562/2000 laying down detailed rules for the application of
Council Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 as regards the buying-in of beef

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 of 17
May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in beef
and veal (1), and in particular Articles 38(2) and 47(8) thereof,

Whereas:

animals for the presence of bovine spongiform ence-
phalopathy, as amended by Decision 2001/8/EC (7),
requires all bovine animals over 30 months of age
subject to normal slaughter for human consumption to
be examined by one of the approved rapid tests listed in
Annex IV(a) to Commission Decision 98/272/EC (8) as
from 1 July 2001 at the latest. Animals that have not
been subject
therefore be
to those tests may not
accepted into public intervention with a view to subse-
quent disposal on the market.

(1)

(2)

(3)

Events
involving bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE) have provoked a serious loss of consumer confi-
dence in the safety of beef and veal. This has led to a
sharp drop in beef consumption and a significant decline
in prices. The subsequent outbreak of foot-and-mouth
disease has further complicated the situation. Under
these circumstances, although the situation appears to
be improving slowly, the market for beef and veal is still
disrupted and there is a risk of continuing instability.

regards

the buying-in of beef (2), as

In view of the market situation described above and to
improve the effectiveness of the measures to be taken,
additional products should be accepted into interven-
tion, as provided for by Commission Regulation (EC) No
562/2000 of 15 March 2000 laying down detailed rules
for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1254/
1999 as
last
amended by Regulation (EC) No 1082/2001 (3), carcases
of animals which exceed the maximum weight currently
permitted and which have had to be kept for a longer
period than usual due to low demand should be
accepted and, finally, the increase to be applied to the
average market price in order to calculate the maximum
buying-in price should be adjusted temporarily to take
account,
in particular, of increased costs and reduced
receipts in the sector.

for bovine animals

Commission Regulation (EC) No 716/96 of 19 April
1996 adopting exceptional support measures for the
beef market in the United Kingdom (4), as last amended
by Regulation (EC) No 1176/2000 (5), adopted special
measures
reared in the United
Kingdom which are more than 30 months old. Those
measures comprise the slaughtering and subsequent
destruction of such cattle. Castrated animals from the
United Kingdom exceeding that age are not therefore
eligible for public intervention. Moreover, Commission
Decision 2000/764/EC (6) on the testing of bovine

(1) OJ L 160, 26.6.1999, p. 21.
(2) OJ L 68, 16.3.2000, p. 22.
(3) OJ L 149, 2.6.2001, p. 19.
(4) OJ L 99, 20.4.1996, p. 14.
(5) OJ L 131, 1.6.2000, p. 37.
(6) OJ L 305, 6.12.2000, p. 35.

(4)

(5)

In order to permit intervention to play a full role faced
with this serious market situation, the acceptance into
intervention of forequarters should also be authorised,
with the price being derived from the carcase price, and
some rules on taking over quarters should be laid down.

In order to deal with the further disturbance of the
market which may result
from the entry onto the
market of substantial numbers of male store animals
originating in the Community, which have been kept on
their holdings of origin due to a lack of demand and for
which these holdings no longer have fodder, the neces-
sary support measures should be adopted under Article
38 of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 and buying-in of
the carcases of such animals permitted. Moreover, to
prevent
the buying-in of animals which are almost
finished, a limit should be placed on the weight of
eligible carcases under these arrangements. Since cattle
of the breeds listed in Annex I to Commission Regula-
tion (EC) No 2342/1999 of 28 October 1999 laying
down detailed rules for the application of Council Regu-
lation (EC) No 1254/1999 on the common organisation
of the market in beef and veal as regards premium
schemes (9), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 192/
2001 (10), are not considered as belonging to a meat
breed, they should not be eligible for this type of inter-
vention. To avoid granting aid twice, a mechanism
should be introduced making full payment of
the
buying-in price conditional on the producer not having
applied for the special premium referred to in Article 4
of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 for
the animal
concerned. Finally, further additions to or derogations
from the normal intervention scheme as laid down by
Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 are also needed.

(7) OJ L 2, 5.1.2001, p. 28.
(8) OJ L 122, 24.4.1998, p. 59.
(9) OJ L 281, 4.11.1999, p. 30.
(10) OJ L 29, 31.1.2001, p. 27.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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(6)

(7)

Consequently, Regulation (EC) No 562/2000 should be
derogated from.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
the Management
accordance with the opinion of
Committee for Beef and Veal,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

1.
Notwithstanding Article 4(1) of Regulation (EC) No 562/
2000, the additional products which may be bought into inter-
vention shall be as follows:

— category A, class O2 and class O3,

— Ireland: category C, class O4,

— United Kingdom — Northern Ireland: category C, class O4.

accepted during that inspection may be presented without their
hindquarters to be definitively taken over at the intervention
centre after being transported there in a sealed means of trans-
port.

Notwithstanding Article 36 of Regulation (EC) No 562/

6.
2000:

(a) in the case of tendering procedures under Article 47(3) of
Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999, the amount to be added to
the average market price shall be EUR 14 per 100 kg
carcase weight;

(b) in the case of tendering procedures under Article 47(5) of
Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999, the amount to be added to
the average market price shall be EUR 7 per 100 kg
carcase weight.

7.
Buying-in under Regulation (EC) No 562/2000 and this
Regulation shall also be opened for carcases and half-carcases
of male animals of Community origin under 12 months old in
category A and under 14 months old in category C.

In derogation from or in addition to Article 4(2) of

2.
Regulation (EC) No 562/2000:

(a) the following may not be bought into intervention:

In this case:

— the animals shall be of breeds not listed in Annex I to

Regulation (EC) No 2342/1999,

(i) carcases and half-carcases of castrated animals reared in
the United Kingdom which are more than 30 months
old;

— the carcase weight shall be between 140 and 200 kg and
carcases shall not show any deformities or anomalies of
weight vis-à-vis the age of the animal,

(ii) in the other Member States, carcases and half-carcases
of castrated animals which are more than 30 months
old and which have not been subjected to one of the
approved rapid tests listed in Annex IV(a) to Decision
98/272/EC;

(b) five-rib forequarters obtained using a straight cut from the
carcases or half-carcases referred to in Article 4(2) of Regu-
lation (EC) No 562/2000; the price of forequarters shall be
calculated by applying the coefficient 0.80 to the carcase
price.

3.
Notwithstanding Article 4(2)(g) of Regulation (EC) No
562/2000, for the third quarter of 2001 the maximum weight
of the carcases referred to therein shall be 380 kg.

Notwithstanding Article 16(2) of Regulation (EC) No
4.
562/2000, the delivery period for the last tendering procedure
in July 2001 shall end on 31 August 2001.

Notwithstanding Article 17 of Regulation (EC) No 562/
5.
2000, where only forequarters are taken over, to be accepted
by the intervention agency these must be presented together
with their corresponding hindquarters so that the maximum
weight, presentation and classification of the carcases from
which they originate can be verified.

— where the carcases and half-carcases presented for interven-
tion are of animals at least nine months old, the buying-in
price to be paid to the successful tenderer shall be reduced
by EUR 68 per half-carcase delivered. However, where
proof is provided that no special premium has been applied
for in respect of the animal concerned, that reduction shall
not apply,

— the price offered shall be without reference to product

quality,

— Article 13(3) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2000 shall apply
to buying-in as referred to in this paragraph. However, the
coefficients laid down may be different from those laid
down under that Article for other products bought in,

— the following provisions of Regulation (EC) No 562/2000

shall not apply:

(a) Article 4(3)(b) and (c), with the exception of those
concerning the markings indicating the category and
the slaughter number,

(b) Article 18(3),

(c) Article 20 in the case of animals under 12 months old,

(d) Article 36,

However, where preliminary inspection of the forequarters and
hindquarters has been conducted under the conditions referred
the forequarters
to in paragraph 3 of

the above Article,

(e) the information in Annex II relating to the classification

of products.

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Moreover, with respect to products purchased under this para-
graph:

— notwithstanding Article 11(5)(a) of Regulation (EC) No
562/2000, tenders must relate to at least 5 tonnes,

— the notifications provided for in Article 31(1), (2), (3) and
(4) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2000 shall be sent separately
from those required for other intervention products.

Article 2

— when notifying tenders to the Commission, the intervention

agencies must specify the quantities concerned,

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publica-
tion in the Official Journal of the European Communities.

— such products shall be stored separately, by tendering
procedure or by month of storage, in easily identifiable lots,

It shall apply to tendering procedures opened during the third
quarter of 2001.

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

Done at Brussels, 20 June 2001.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission