Proposal for a Council Regulation extending the financing of quality and marketing improvement plans for certain nuts and locust beans approved under Title IIa of Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 and providing for a specific aid for hazelnuts
Date: 2001-11-22
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, EU production, marketing standard, nut, producer organisation, production aid, production improvement, quality standard

C 51 E/380

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

26.2.2002

Proposal for a Council Regulation extending the financing of quality and marketing improvement
plans for certain nuts and locust beans approved under Title IIa of Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72
and providing for a specific aid for hazelnuts

(2002/C 51 E/30)

COM(2001) 667 final (cid:151) 2001/0275(CNS)

(Submitted by the Commission on 22 November 2001)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 37 thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

(4) A number of plans expired in 2000, having completed
their
tenth year. These plans became eligible for an
eleventh year of aid under Council Regulation (EC)
No 558/2001 of 19 March 2001 extending for a period
of up to one year the financing of certain quality and
marketing improvement plans approved under Title IIa
of Regulation (EC) No 1035/72 (3).

Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament,

completed the tenth year.

(5) A number of additional plans expired in 2001, having

Having regard to the opinion of
Committee,

the Economic and Social

Whereas:

(1) Title IIa of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 of
the
18 May 1972 on the common organisation of
market in fruit and vegetables (1), provides for various
specific measures
to make good the inadequacy of
production and marketing facilities for certain nuts and
locust beans. Aid is provided to producer organisations
which have received specific recognition and which have
submitted a plan approved by the competent authority for
improving the quality and the marketing of their produce.

of

(2) The specific aid granted towards the drawing up and
implementation
and marketing
the
improvement plan as specified in Article 14(d)(2) of Regu-
lation (EEC) No 1035/72 is restricted to a period of 10
years to allow a shift of financial responsibility on to the
producers.

quality

(3) Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 was repealed by Council
Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 of 28 October 1996 on
the common organisation of
in fruit and
vegetables (2). However, as specified by Article 53 of
Regulation (EC) No 2200/96, any rights acquired by
producer organisations in application of Title IIa of Regu-
lation (EEC) No 1035/72 are to be maintained until
exhausted.

the market

(1) OJ L 118, 20.5.1972, p. 1. Regulation as

last amended by
Commission Regulation (EC) No 1363/95 (OJ L 132, 16.6.1995,
p. 1).

(2) OJ L 297, 21.11.1996, p. 1. Regulation as

last amended by
Commission Regulation (EC) No 911/2001 (OJ L 129, 11.5.2001,
p. 3).

(6) In accordance with Regulation (EC) No 2200/96,

the
Commission forwarded to the Council a report on the
state of implementation of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96
on the common organisation of the market in fruit and
vegetables (4). This report includes an assessment of the
results of the specific measures for nuts and locust beans
carried out
of Regulation (EEC)
No 1035/72.

under Title

IIa

(7) It is appropriate, for the year 2001, and in recognition of
the important environmental and social role played by the
nut sector, to grant to those producer organisations whose
improvement plans expire in 2001, and who continue to
fulfil the recognition criteria, continued financing of their
plans within the 2002 budget. This should include those
producer organisations whose original improvement plans
expired in 2000 and which were extended under Regu-
lation (EC) No 558/2001.

(8) Eligible areas should be able to include those areas within
and which
approved in 1990 or 1991,
a plan,
subsequently have been included in/or
transferred to
another plan through merger or acquisition of producer
organisations.

(9) Only aid applications in respect of work carried out until
15 June 2002 should qualify for financing. Plans for
which the end of the tenth year was after 15 June 2000
were only entitled to an eleventh year of Community
support until 15 June 2001 under Regulation (EC)
No 558/2001. For
these
plans should be entitled to Community support for the
period between 15 June 2001 and 31 December 2001.

the purpose of continuity,

(3) OJ L 84, 23.3.2001, p. 1.
(4) COM(2001) 36 final.

26.2.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 51 E/381

(10) In order to simplify administrative procedures, aid should
be limited to a maximum of those areas for which an aid
application was made in the final year of the plan.

The aid shall:

Article 2

(a) be paid in regard to, and limited to, those areas for which
an aid application has been submitted in respect of the
final year of the plan.

(b) be limited to a maximum of EUR 241,50 per hectare, of
which the maximum Community participation shall be
75 %.

(c) apply for a period of up to one year immediately following
the expiry of the final year of the plan, up to a latest date
of 15 June 2002.

Plans extended pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 558/2001, for
which the starting date of the final year is after 15 June 2000,
shall be entitled to Community support for the period between
the 15 June 2001 and the end of the final year.

Article 3

Regulation (EEC) No 2159/89 shall apply mutatis mutandis to
plans for which aid is paid pursuant to Article 1.

Where necessary, additional
implementing measures shall be
adopted in accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 46 of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96.

Article 4

Article 55 of Regulation (EC) No 2200/96 is replaced by the
following:

(cid:145)For hazelnuts harvested during the 2001/02 marketing
year,
aid of EUR 15/100 kg shall be granted to
producer organisations, recognised pursuant to Regulation
(EEC) No 1035/72 or to this Regulation, which implement
a quality improvement plan within the meaning of Article
14d of Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72 or an operational
programme within the meaning of Article 15, and do not
benefit from the aid provided for in Articles 1 and 2 of
Regulation (EC) No . . ./2001.(cid:146)

Article 5

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

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

(11) The period of up to one year is not sufficient to complete
work of grubbing operations
followed by replanting
and/or varietal reconversion as referred to in Article
2(1) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 790/89 of
20 March 1989 fixing the level of additional
flat-rate
aid for the formation of producers’ organisations and
the maximum amount applied to aid for quality and
marketing improvement
in the nut and locust bean
growing sector (1). The maximum aid per hectare
therefore should be paid in respect of other operations
as specified in Article 2(2) of
that Regulation with a
maximum Community contribution of 75 %.

(12) The implementing rules of Commission Regulation (EEC)
No 2159/89 of 18 July 1989 laying down detailed rules
for applying the specific measures for nuts and locust
beans as provided for in Title IIa of Council Regulation
(EEC) No 1035/72 (2) should apply for the period of the
continued payment of aid.

sector,

(13) In order to deal with the economic situation in the
hazelnut
flat-rate aid should be granted for
hazelnuts harvested in the 2001/02 marketing year, for
those producer organisations not eligible for an extension
to improvement plans under this Regulation,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Recognised producer organisations engaged in the production
and marketing of nuts and/or locust beans and receiving aid
pursuant to Title IIa of Regulation (EEC) No 1035/72, whose
quality and marketing improvement plans were approved in
1990 or 1991, or which contain areas approved in 1990 or
1991, may request the continuation of that aid for these areas
for a further period of up to one year subject to the rules laid
down in Articles 2 and 3 of this Regulation.

that period producer organisations

For
implement the plan as approved for the final year.

shall continue to

For the purposes of this Regulation, the final year of the plan
shall mean the tenth year for areas approved in 1991, and the
eleventh year for areas approved in 1990 and extended under
the provisions of Regulation (EC) No 558/2001.

(1) OJ L 85, 30.3.1989, p. 6.
(2) OJ L 207, 19.7.1989, p. 19. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1363/95 (OJ L 132, 16.6.1995, p. 8).