Commission Regulation (EC) No 1334/2002 of 23 July 2002 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 as regards the work programmes of operators organisations in the olive sector for the marketing years 2002/03 and 2003/04
Date: 2002-07-23
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU financing, agricultural production policy, aid system, common organisation of markets, marketing, olive, olive oil, producer organisation

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COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1334/2002

of 23 July 2002

laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 as regards
the work programmes of operators organisations in the olive sector for the marketing years 2002/
03 and 2003/04

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

(4)

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 of 20
July 1998 amending Regulation No 136/66/EEC on the estab-
lishment of a common organisation of the market in oils and
fats (1), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1513/2001 (2), and
in particular the second indent of the first subparagraph of
Article 4a(3) and Article 4a(4) thereof,

Whereas:

Article 4a(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 provides
that, under the common organisation of the market in
oils and fats,
in force as from 1 November 2002,
Member States producing olive oil may withhold within
certain limits a portion of aid, where appropriate
intended for olive oil and/or table olive producers, to
ensure Community finance of work programmes drawn
up by approved operators’ organisations. It should be
laid down that the work programmes in question cover
in
the marketing years 2002/03 and 2003/04 only,
accordance with Regulation No 136/66/EEC of
the
Council of 22 September 1966 on the establishment of a
common organisation of the market in oils and fats (3),
as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1513/2001.

To ensure that approved operators’ organisations are
effective, approval must relate to the various categories
of operators having a major impact in the olive oil and/
or table olives sectors, while ensuring that those organi-
sations are large enough to obtain economically signifi-
cant results. Member States should also be able, with
to lay down additional
respect
approval criteria to ensure that the approved organisa-
tions have sufficient capacity.

situations,

to local

(1)

(2)

(3)

To ensure overall consistency between the activities of
approved operators’ organisations in the olive sector, it
is necessary to lay down the types of activities that are
eligible for Community funding and the selection criteria
for the work programmes. The Member States concerned
should, however, be allowed to lay down additional elig-
ibility conditions so as to gear activities more closely to
national realities in the olive sector.

(5)

(6)

To allow work to commence in good time, operators’
organisations in the olive sector should be able to receive
an advance on the approved Community funding,
subject to the lodging of a security under the terms laid
down by Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85 of
22 July 1985 laying down common detailed rules for the
application of the system of securities for agricultural
products (4), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No
1932/1999 (5).

For the purposes of proper management of the rules on
operators’ organisations in the olive sector, the Member
States concerned should draw up a control plan and
specify a system of penalties
for any irregularities
committed. Provision should also be made for operators’
organisations to notify the results of their work to the
national authorities in the Member States concerned and
to transmit those results to the Commission.

(7)

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

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Purpose and definitions

To ensure efficient administrative management of the
system of approved operators’ organisations in the olive
sector, the procedures and time limits for the approval
of such organisations, the criteria for selecting their work
programmes and the arrangements for paying Commu-
nity funding should be laid down.

1.
This Regulation lays down, for the marketing years 2002/
03 and 2003/04, detailed rules for the application of Article
4a(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 as regards the approval of
and the work programmes drawn up by producer organisations
interbranch organisations and other
and associations thereof,
operators’ organisations in the olive oil and table olives sectors
as referred to in that paragraph.

(1) OJ L 210, 28.7.1998, p. 32.
(2) OJ L 201, 26.7.2001, p. 4.
(3) OJ 172, 30.9.1966, p. 3025/66.

(4) OJ L 205, 3.8.1985, p. 5.
(5) OJ L 240, 10.9.1999, p. 11.

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2.

For the purposes of this Regulation:

(a) (a) ‘operators’ organisation in the olive sector’ means an
organisation or association as referred to in Article 4a(1) of
Regulation (EC) No 1638/98;

(b) (b) ‘regional area’ means an area as defined in the Annex to
Commission Regulation (EC) No 2366/98 (1), and the area
constituted by the rest of the territory in each producer
Member State. In the case of Italy the following are also
deemed regional areas:

— Liguria, Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta, or

— Lombardy, Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto and Friuli-

Venezia Giulia, or

— Umbria, Marche and Emilia-Romagna, or

— Basilicata, or

— Sardinia, or

— Abruzzi and Molise.

Article 2

Conditions for the approval of operators’ organisations in
the olive sector

1. Member States shall approve operators’ organisations in
the olive sector which undertake to submit to any controls
provided for in this Regulation and which meet certain condi-
tions.

2.
For the various kinds of operators’ organisation in the
olive sector, the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 shall be
(c) and (d) respectively,
those indicated in points (a),
whereby the minimum number of members and other
minimum size criteria may be increased by the Member State
concerned, and those laid down, where applicable, by the
competent national authorities as regards operational capacities,
available means and controls on operators’ organisations in the
olive sector.

(b),

(a) Producer organisations must be composed exclusively of
olive producers who are not members of any other
this Regulation
producer organisation approved under
which has received production aid as referred to in Article
5 of Regulation No 136/66/EEC for the year before the
preceding marketing year or has lodged a crop declaration
for the current marketing year; and

(i) have at least 2 500 member producers or

(ii) account for 2 % of olive producers or of average olive
oil or table olive production in the regional areas
concerned;

(b) Associations of producer organisations must be composed
exclusively of producer organisations approved under point
(a) which are not part of another association of producer
organisations approved under this Regulation, and

(i) have at least 10 member organisations which are estab-
lished in several regional areas of the Member State
concerned,

(1) OJ L 293, 31.10.1998, p. 50.

(ii) or account for at least 15 % of the average production

of olive oil or table olives in that Member State.

(c) Other operators’ organisations in the olive sector must be
composed exclusively of operators in the olive sector who
are not part of another organisation approved under point
(c) and, in the year preceding the current marketing year,
either generated at least 50 % of their turnover from the
processing of olives or the sale of olive oil or table olives,
or marketed more than 5 000 tonnes of olive oil or more
than 1 000 tonnes of table olives and have at least:

(i) 20 member operators marketing or processing a total
quantity greater than the equivalent of 15 000 tonnes
of olive oil or 3 000 tonnes of table olives,

(ii) or 15 % of the average production of olive oil or table

olives of the Member State concerned.

(d) Interbranch organisations recognised by the Member States
in which they conduct their activities within the meaning
of Article 4a(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 and which
provide
a broad and balanced representation of all
economic activities linked to the production and processing
of, and trade in, olive oil and/or table olives;

3. Without prejudice to Article 10(1) of this Regulation,
operators’ organisations in the olive sector and associations
thereof approved under Article 20c of Regulation No 136/66/
EEC and other operators’ organisations in the olive sector
recognised by the Member State which submit a work
programme in accordance with Article 5 shall be deemed
approved under this Regulation where they meet the criteria
referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2.

Article 3

Procedure for approving operators’ organisations in the
olive sector

1.
For the purposes of approval, operators’ organisations in
the olive sector must lodge, by a date to be determined by the
Member State but no later than 31 March 2003, an application
the conditions laid down in
demonstrating that
Article 2.

they meet

During the two months following that in which the full
2.
application file is lodged, the operators’ organisation in the
olive sector shall be approved by the Member State and shall
receive an approval number.

Approval shall be rejected,

3.
suspended or withdrawn
immediately if the operators’ organisation in the olive sector
does not meet the conditions for approval or is being prose-
cuted by the competent national body for irregularities in
respect of this Regulation.

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Article 4

Eligible activities in the area of traceability, certification

4.
and protection of the quality of olive oil and table olives are:

Activities eligible for Community funding

1.
The activities that are eligible for Community funding
under Article 4a of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 (hereinafter
referred to as ‘eligible activities’) in the area of market follow-up
and administrative management in the olive oil and table olives
sectors are:

(a) collecting data on the sector and the market, in accordance
with specifications relating to method, geographical repre-
sentativeness and precision laid down by the competent
national authority;

(b) drawing up studies, in particular on subjects linked to the
other activities provided for in the work programme of the
operators’ organisation concerned.

Eligible activities in the area of improving the environ-

2.
mental impacts of olive cultivation are:

(a) collective operations to maintain olive groves of high envir-
onmental value at risk of abandonment, in conformity with
specified conditions, on the basis of objective criteria, by
the competent national authority in particular concerning
the areas which may be eligible and the area and the
minimum number of olive oil producers who must be
involved to make the operations in question effective;

(b) developing good agricultural practice in olive growing,
based on environmental criteria adapted to local conditions,
its dissemination among olive growers and following up its
practical application;

(c) practical demonstrations of olive growing techniques geared
towards environmental protection and stewardship of the
countryside;

(d) adding environmental data to the geographic information
system (GIS) referred to in Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No
1638/98.

Eligible activities in the area of improving the production

3.
quality of olive oil and table olives are:

(a) improving conditions for growing (in particular controlling
olive fly), harvesting, delivering and storing olives prior to
processing, in accordance with the technical specifications
laid down by the competent national authority;

(b) improving conditions for storage and use of the residues of

olive oil and table olive production;

(c) technical assistance to the olive oil processing industry on

aspects linked to the quality of products;

(d) setting up and improving laboratories for the analysis of

virgin olive oils.

(a) setting up and managing systems allowing products to be
traced from the olive grower through to packaging and
labelling, in accordance with specifications set out by the
competent national authority;

(b) setting up and managing quality certification systems, based
on a system of risk analysis and checks on critical points,
which is in conformity with technical criteria adopted by
the competent national authority;

(c) setting up and managing systems to monitor compliance
with norms attesting to the authenticity, quality and
marketing of the olive oil and table olives placed on the
market, in accordance with the technical specifications laid
down by the competent national authority.

The following activities shall not be eligible for Commu-

5.
nity funding under Article 4a of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98:

(a) activities which are in receipt of Community funding other
than that provided for in Article 4a of Regulation (EC) No
1638/98;

(b) activities aiming at a direct increase in production or invol-

ving a rise in storage or processing capacity;

(c) activities linked to the purchase or storage of olive oil or

table olives or having an impact on their prices;

(d) activities linked to the commercial promotion of olive oil

or table olives;

(e) activities linked to scientific research.

6. Member States may adopt additional conditions specifying
the eligible activities referred to in paragraphs 1 to 4 of this
Article, without rendering the implementation or presentation
of activities in these fields impossible.

Article 5

Work programmes of operators’ organisations in the olive
sector

The work programmes eligible for Community funding
1.
under Article 4a(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 shall be
composed of activities as referred to in Article 4 of this Regula-
tion and shall be carried out between 1 November 2002 and
31 October 2004.

2.
Each operators’ organisation in the olive sector approved
under this Regulation may lodge an application for Community
funding for one single work programme by a date to be deter-
mined by the Member State but no later than 31 March 2003.

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The application shall consist of the following:

(a) details of the operators’ organisation in question;

(e) the differences in the economic situation of

the area

involved taken into account in the work programme;

(f) the existence of several areas of activities and the size of the

(b) information on the selection criteria referred to in Article

financial contribution from the operators.

6(1);

(c) a description and justification of the proposed activities,

and a timetable;

(d) the planned expenditure, broken down by activity and by
area of activities as referred to in Article 4, separately listing
the overheads, which may not exceed 2 % of the total, and
the other main types of cost;

(e) the financing plan by area of activities referred to in Article
4, indicating in particular the Community funding applied
for and, where appropriate, the financial contributions from
operators and the national contribution;

(f) the description of the quantitative and qualitative indicators
of efficiency allowing the ex-post assessment of
the
programme;

(g) proof that a bank security for an amount equivalent to at
least 5 % of the requested Community funding has been
lodged;

(h) where appropriate, an application for an advance under

Article 8;

(i) a declaration from the organisation concerned to the effect
that no other Community funding has been granted for the
programme activities;

(j) for interbranch organisations and associations of producer
organisations, details of the operators’ organisations respon-
sible for the actual
implementation of the subcontracted
activities in their programmes;

(k) for operators’ organisations in the olive sector forming part
of an association of producers or of an interbranch organi-
sation, a statement that the activities provided for in their
programmes are not covered by any of another application
for Community funding under this Regulation.

Article 6

Selection of work programmes

1. Member States shall select the work programmes on the
basis of the following criteria:

(a) the general quality of the programme and its consistency
with the goals and priorities of the olive sector in the area
concerned, as laid down by the Member State;

(b) the sufficiency of the financial resources of the operators’
organisation concerned for the purposes of implementing
the proposed activities;

(c) the extent of the area involved in the work programme;

(d) the relation between the amount of Community funding
requested and the volume of olive production sold by the
members of the operators’ organisation concerned;

Member States shall take account of the distribution of applica-
tions among the different types of operators’ organisations in
the olive sector referred to in Article 2 and of the extent of
olive-growing in each area.

2. Member States shall exclude from the selection process
any work programmes that are incomplete or contain inaccu-
rate information, or contain one of the ineligible activities
referred to in Article 4(5).

3.
No later than 31 May 2003, Member States shall approve
the work programmes to which they have granted the corre-
sponding national funding. The Member States shall inform the
operators’ organisations concerned thereof.

Final approval of a work programme may be made subject to
the incorporation of amendments judged necessary by the
Member State.

Should the proposed work programme not be selected, the
Member State shall immediately release the security referred to
in Article 5(2)(g).

Article 7

Amendments to work programmes

Operators organisations in the olive sector may, in accordance
with a procedure laid down by the Member State, request that
their approved work programme be amended in respect of one
of the fields of activity referred to in Article 4, provided that
this does not involve any increase in funding.

Requests for amendment shall be accompanied by supporting
documents setting out the reasons for and the nature and impli-
cations of the proposed changes.

Article 8

Advances

1.
An operators’ organisation in the olive sector which has
lodged an application in accordance with Article 5(2)(h) shall
receive, under the conditions referred to in paragraph 2 of this
Article, an advance of a maximum 90 % of the Community
contribution provided for in the period concerned by the
approved work programme.

During the month following the approval of the work
2.
programme in question, the Member State shall pay to the
operators’ organisation concerned one-third of
the amount
referred to in paragraph 1 and, after 16 October 2003, the
remaining two-thirds, once it has verified that the first tranche
of the advance has actually been spent.

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The payments referred to in paragraph 2 shall be subject
3.
to the lodging of a security by the operators’ organisation
concerned in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85 of
an amount equal to 110 % of the advance requested. The main
requirement within the meaning of Article 20 of that Regula-
the measures listed in the
tion is the implementation of
approved work programme.

During the three months following the month in which
4.
the full application file referred to in paragraph 1 is lodged, and
once they have carried out the examination of the documents
referred to in paragraph 2 and the checks referred to in Article
10, Member States shall pay the Community funding that is
due and release the corresponding security.

By a date to be determined by the Member State but no
4.
later than 31 May 2004, the operators’ organisations concerned
may lodge an application for release of the security referred to
in paragraph 3 up to an amount equal to half the expenditure
actually carried out. The Member State shall lay down which
supporting documents must accompany this application and
check them, and shall release the securities corresponding to
the expenditure concerned no later than in the course of the
second month following that
in which the application is
lodged.

Article 9

Payment of Community funding

For the purposes of payment of the Community funding
1.
under Article 4a of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 or, where
appropriate, the balance thereof, operators’ organisations in the
olive sector shall
lodge, by a date to be determined by the
Member State but no later than 31 January 2005, an applica-
tion with the competent national authority.

The Community funding corresponding to the above applica-
tions submitted after that date shall be reduced by an amount
equal to 1 % per working day late. Applications submitted after
25 February 2005 shall be inadmissible.

To be admissible the applications referred to in paragraph

2.
1 shall be accompanied by

(a) supporting documents proving:

(i) the expenditure effected in the period concerned;

(ii) where appropriate, payment of the financial contribu-
tions of the operators and the Member State concerned;

(b) a summary report comprising the following:

(i) a description of

the work implemented under the
programme, broken down by area of activity as
referred to in Article 4;

(ii) where appropriate, the justification and the financial
repercussions of the gaps between forecasts and work
actually implemented;

Article 10

Checks and penalties

1. Member States shall verify that the conditions for granting
Community funding are met, in particular as regards compli-
ance with the approval requirements,
implementation of the
approved work programmes, the expenditure actually imple-
mented and the financial contribution by the olive operators
concerned. To that end, they shall carry out a control plan
involving a sample determined on the basis of a risk analysis
and comprising at least 30 % of producers organisations in the
olive sector and all the other operators’ organisations in the
olive sector in receipt of Community funding under this Regu-
lation.

2. Member States shall specify or, as appropriate, lay down a
system of penalties for irregularities under this Regulation.
Those penalties must be effective, proportionate and act as a
deterrent and comprise, for the most serious cases, withdrawal
of approval and financial penalties of an amount at least double
that of the Community funding involved in the irregularity.

3.
Under the system of controls referred to in paragraph 1,
an individual file shall be opened on each operators’ organisa-
tion in the olive sector that has been subject to checks. These
files shall include proof of the verifications and checks carried
out and, where appropriate, an indication of the anomalies
found and the penalties applied.

Article 11

Communications from the Member States

1.
No later than 31 December 2002 the Member States
producing olive oil shall communicate to the Commission the
national provisions relating in particular to:

(a) the conditions for approval of the operators’ organisations

referred to in Article 2(2),

(b) the additional specifications and conditions relating to the
eligible activities referred to in Article 4(1), (2), (3), (4) and
(6) of this Regulation,

(c) the goals and priorities of the olive sector referred to in

(iii) an evaluation of the results based on the indicators laid

Article 6(1)(a),

down in Article 5(2)(f).

In the case of activities completed by 31 October 2004
3.
and for which payment
the
is made after
Community funding shall be reduced by 1 % per day late in the
first 30 days and by 2 % for each day thereafter.

that deadline,

(d) the arrangements for the system of advances referred to in
Article 8 and, where appropriate, the system for paying the
national funding,

(e) the control plan and system of penalties referred to in

Article 10.

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Before 30 June 2003, Member States shall transmit to the
2.
Commission data on the approved operators’ organisations in
the olive sector and on the approved work programmes and
their characteristics, broken down by type of producer organi-
sation referred to in Article 2 of this Regulation, by area of
activity referred to in Article 4 of this Regulation and by
regional area, and the amounts of funds withheld in accordance
with Article 4a(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 for the
marketing years 2002/03 and 2003/04.

No later

than 30 April 2005, Member States shall
3.
transmit to the Commission a report on the implementation of
this Regulation comprising at least the following:

(a) numbers of programmes funded, recipients, areas, mills,
processing facilities and volumes of oil and table olives
concerned;

(b) characteristics of the activities developed in each of the

areas of activity referred to in Article 4;

(c) any discrepancy between activities planned and activities

(d) a description and evaluation of results, based in particular
on the evaluations of the work programmes referred to in
the third indent of Article 9(2)(b)(iii);

(e) a description of the controls carried out and the penalties

proposed and applied in accordance with Article 10;

(f) expenditure by programme and by area of activity referred
to in Article 4, and the Community, national and operators’
financial contributions.

Article 12

Entry into force

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

actually carried out;

It shall apply from 1 November 2002.

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

Done at Brussels, 23 July 2002.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission