Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the "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: 2002-02-20
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: aid per hectare, financial aid, marketing, nut, producer organisation, production improvement

18.4.2002

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 94/7

Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the ‘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 94/03)

On 6 December 2001 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under
Article 37 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned proposal.

The Section for Agriculture, Rural Development and the Environment, which was responsible for
preparing the Committee’s work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 29 January 2002. The rapporteur
was Mr de las Heras Caban˜ as.

At its 388th Plenary Session of 20 and 21 February 2002 (meeting of 20 February), the Economic and
Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 121 votes to 1, with 2 abstentions.

1.

Introduction

1.1.
The proposal for a regulation is presented by the
Commission pursuant to the mandate of the Council of
Ministers of 23 July 2001, which called on the Commission to
provide a solution for organisations of producers of nuts
(almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts and pistachios) and locust beans
whose quality and marketing improvement plans expired in
2001 and would not be covered by the budget for 2002. The
Commission proposes to extend for a period of one year aid
to nut and locust bean producers whose areas were included
in the improvement plans which expired in 2001.

1.2.
The Commission also proposes to grant a specific aid
for hazelnuts for one marketing year to certain producer
organisations because of the difficult market conditions in the
sector in the current marketing year caused by low-priced
hazelnut imports from Turkey.

1.3.
The above measures are presented against the back-
ground of the ongoing discussions in the Council, European
Parliament and Economic and Social Committee on a long-
term support framework for the sector. The Commission has
begun an in-depth study of the matter,
focusing on the
economic, social and environmental aspects. The Council has
asked the Commission to present the conclusions of this study
and any appropriate proposals in as short a timeframe as
possible.

2. General comments

2.1.
The Committee would draw attention to the fact that
previous opinions (1) have stressed the economic, social and
environmental importance of the nut and locust bean sector
in the EU and the particularly difficult market conditions
created by competition from third countries.

2.2.
It also stressed the need for stable support measures
under the CAP in order to ensure the survival of the sector, in
economic terms and also for non-economic reasons, including
its role in keeping communities on the land, economic activity,
employment and environmental protection in some of the
less-favoured regions of the EU. It also highlighted the dangers
of excessive reliance on imports and the possible consequences
of this for prices, and hence consumers.

2.3.
It remarked on the positive impact of the implemen-
tation of improvement plans in some Member States in terms
of improvements in production, better organisation of the
sector and higher quality and food safety standards, although
the sector has unfortunately been unable to make its products
as competitive as those from third countries.

2.4.
The Committee warmly welcomes the proposed exten-
sion of the improvement plans as a temporary solution to the
difficult situation in which those producer organisations whose
plans expired in 2001 now find themselves. However, it is
concerned at the delay in presenting proposals for a permanent
solution for the sector.

2.5.
The Committee believes that there is now clear evi-
dence of a need to provide a lasting guarantee for the future of
the sector, and calls on the Commission to present to the
Council a proposal
to resolve the uncertain situation of
producers, producer organisations and the nut processing
industry without further delay.

(1) Extension of improvement plans for nuts and locust beans — OJ
C 116, 20.4.2001, and Commission report on the COM in fruit
and vegetables — OJ C 221, 7.8.2001.

2.6.
The Committee believes that the Council Regulation
should include a commitment by the Commission to present
a solution no later than 1 June 2002, in order to ensure
continuity between these measures and future measures.

C 94/8

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

18.4.2002

3. Specific comments

The Committee does not agree that

the extended
3.1.
measures in their current form are based on the principle of
degressive aid and a gradual shift of financial responsibility
towards producers, since the aid has remained constant. Such
an approach is unacceptable with a view to future long-term
support measures for the nut and locust bean sector.

3.2.
The Committee finds no justification for accepting the
proposed reduction in the level of Community co-funding
from 82 % to 75 %, which would represent a step towards
renationalisation of the CAP, and hence an added difficulty for
the future of the sector in the various producer Member States.
It wishes to draw attention to the small financial impact of
support measures for this sector, which represent a tiny
proportion of expenditure under the EAGGF (Guarantee
Section) and account for 0.2 % of its budget under the CAP.
The Committee has called on various occasions for adequate
funding for the COM in fruit and vegetables, commensurate
in the framework of the
with its needs and importance,
financial perspective set out in Agenda 2000 (1).

3.3.
The Committee calls for the Commission proposal to
provide for funding for all measures carried out under the
improvement plans of producer organisations which expired
in 2001 and that all aid applications in respect of all work
carried out up to 31 December 2002 should be eligible (i.e.
the deadline proposed by the Commission should be extended).

3.4.
The Commission proposes that aid be restricted to
those areas that received aid during the final year of the
improvement plan, which creates problems for the manage-
ment of improvement plans by producer organisations. Taking
account of the implementing procedures for the rules currently
in force, the Committee believes that all areas included in the
plan should be eligible for aid, provided that the overall total
area registered for the final year of each plan is not exceeded.
Such a modification would have no financial implications.

The Committee supports the introduction of

3.5.
the
specific aid for the hazelnut sector, which is intended to relieve
the current market crisis, but considers that the proposal in its
current form would alter conditions of access to the market
for the different producer organisations within the EU and
distort competition.

Likewise, the Committee feels that the unfavourable
3.6.
market conditions in the hazelnut sector affect all producer
organisations equally, and that this proposal discriminates
between the different organisations, since only producer
organisations whose improvement plans have not been
extended can benefit from this measure.

3.7.
Given its low cost, the Committee feels that this
measure should be extended to cover all hazelnut producer
organisations, regardless of whether or not their plans have
been extended.

4.

Final comments

4.1.
Subject to the above remarks the Committee accepts
as a temporary solution the extension of current support
measures for nuts and locust beans, and urges the Commission
to present definitive proposals by 1 June 2002, on the basis of
a flat rate per hectare of land, with appropriate funding to
ensure that producers’ income levels are protected and their
farms remain viable.

4.2.
The Committee wishes to reiterate all proposals con-
tained in its previous opinion, which set out the basic elements
necessary to reach a permanent solution for the sector (2).

4.3.
The Committee supports the creation of a specific flat-
rate aid for hazelnuts produced in the Community in the
2001/2002 marketing year, provided that this does not result
in discrimination between the different producer organisations
in the EU.

(1) OJ C 14, 16.1.2001 (amendment of Regulations 2200, 2201 and
2202) and OJ C 221, 7.8.2001 (Commission report on the COM
in fruit and vegetables).

(2) OJ C 116, 20.4.2001.

Brussels, 20 February 2002.

The President

of the Economic and Social Committee

Göke FRERICHS