Publication of an application pursuant to Article 6(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs
Date: 2007-04-19
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Czechia, bakery, designation of origin, labelling, location of production, product designation, product quality

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Official Journal of the European Union

19.4.2007

Publication of an application pursuant to Article 6(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 on
the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and
foodstuffs

(2007/C 85/02)

This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Article 7 of Council Regulation
(EC) No 510/2006 (1) Statements of objection must reach the Commission within six months from the date
of this publication.

SUMMARY

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

‘KARLOVARSKÉ OPLATKY’

EC No: CZ/PGI/005/0381/20.10.2004

PDO ( ) PGI ( X )

This summary sets out the main elements of the product specification for information purposes.

1.

responsible department in the member state:

Name:

Úřad průmyslového vlastnictví

Address: Antonína Čermáka 2a

CZ-160 68 Praha 6

Tel.:

Fax:

(420) 220 38 31 11

(420) 224 32 47 18

E-mail:

posta@upv.cz

2.

Group:

Name:

Sdružení výrobců Karlovarských oplatek

Address:

Slepá 517/1
CZ-360 05 Karlovy Vary

Tel.:

Fax:

(420) 353 56 30 06

(420) 353 56 30 06

E-mail:

obchod@karlovarskapekarna.cz

Composition: producers/processors ( X ) Other ( )

3.

type of product:

Class 2.4: Biscuits — wafers

4.

Specification:

(summary of requirements under Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006)

4.1. Name:

‘Karlovarské oplatky’

(1) OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12.

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4.2. Descr iption: Karlovarské oplatky are produced according to a traditional recipe in the form of flat
rounds of about 19 cm in diameter. They are composed of two thin wafer sheets bearing a character-
istic relief depicting, in a 30 mm-wide strip around the outer edge, a branch which is in leaf, below
which is the circular inscription ‘Karlovarské oplatky’, which is at least 20 mm wide. In the middle of
the wafer is a symbol of the spa town of Karlovy Vary — either a mineral water fountain or a chamois,
which, according to legend, is associated with the founding of Karlovy Vary. Among the raw materials
used in their production, Karlovy Vary medicinal thermal spring water plays a significant role in deter-
mining their taste and in moistening the wafer sheets. The wafer sheets are assembled into a single
wafer by baking after being sprinkled with a sugar-and-hazelnut mixture or, depending on the variety, a
mixture of a different flavour, most often almond, cocoa, vanilla or cinnamon. The wafers are crisp,
light, thin and round, and bear a relief on their surface. They are also have a distinctive flavour and
odour.

The basic raw materials for Karlovarské oplatky are wheat flour, Karlovy Vary medicinal thermal spring
water, vegetable fat, sugar, milk, egg mix, starch, baking powder, butter and, depending on the type of
sprinkling mixture used, hazelnuts, almonds, cocoa powder, vanilla or cinnamon.

Karlovy Vary medicinal thermal spring water, which is used in the production of Karlovarské oplatky,
has specific properties that are characteristic of the defined area. It is the properties of Karlovy Vary
medicinal thermal spring water that give the wafer its distinctive characteristics, in particular its crisp-
ness and specific odour and taste. Karlovy Vary medicinal thermal spring water is a natural bicarbo-
nate-sulphate-chloride type water which seeps to the surface through a tectonic fracture from a depth
of more than 800 m at a temperature of 73 °C and contains lithium, sodium, potassium, rubidium,
lead,
caesium, copper, beryllium, magnesium, calcium, strontium, zinc, cadmium, aluminium, tin,
arsenic, antimony, selenium, manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel, fluorides, chlorides, bromides, sulphates,
bicarbonates, carbonates and silicic acid. It has been used for centuries in Karlovy Vary, the biggest
Czech spa, to treat chronic stomach ulcers, dyskinesis of bile excretory ducts, including postcholecystec-
tomic syndrome, chronic disorders of the pancreas and liver, and bladder calculus and gout. Karlo-
varské oplatky are easily digestible and have a low calorific value, and this is due to their composition
and, in particular, the use of Karlovy Vary medicinal thermal spring water.

Karlovarské oplatky are produced by the piece. They are packaged in boxes of five pieces (125 g), six
pieces (150 g) or eight pieces (200 g).

4.3. Geographical area: The area covered by the spa town of Karlovy Vary.

4.4. Proof of or igin: Production conforms to the food production rules in force, and the HACCP system
is used during the production process. Producers keep registers of suppliers of raw materials and
purchasers of finished products. Each product is accompanied by information on the producer. Compli-
ance with the specification is monitored by the local office of competent State authority, namely the
Plzeň Area Inspectorate of the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (Státní zemědělská a
potravinářská inspekce).

4.5. Method of production: Karlovarské oplatky are composed of two thin round sheets of wafer
having a diameter of about 19 cm and bearing a distinctive relief. The batter is prepared by mixing the
ingredients listed above (see 4.2) with fresh Karlovy Vary thermal spring water, and the vegetable fat
must first be heated so that it melts. The well-mixed liquid, slightly yellowish batter, which does not
increase in volume as it contains no leavening agent (in contrast to other baked products), is left to
stand at a temperature of 20–26 °C for about 60 minutes before being poured into the reservoir of a
rotary baking oven. The wafer sheets are baked by piping thin batter onto rotary baking trays (the
equipment normally used for baking wafers) at a temperature of 220 °C, where the traditional produc-
tion process results in a wafer thickness of up to 2 mm. The wafers sheets produced in this manner are
placed for at least 48 hours in a moistening chamber, where Karlovy Vary medicinal thermal spring
water is again used, this time to produce the moisture to which they are exposed. The wafer sheets
must be specially arranged and weighted down in the moistening chamber so that they are moistened
correctly and do not become deformed. The temperature in the moistening chamber must reach 40 °C,
with 90 % humidity. At the end of the production process, the wafer sheets are placed on special
rotary baking trays (of the type normally used for combining wafer sheets, which differ from the rotary
ovens used to produce the wafer sheets in that they do not apply any relief) at a temperature of 180 °
C, and two wafer sheets are assembled into a single wafer by baking after being sprinkled with sugar-
and-hazelnut mixture, or another flavour of mixture, depending on the variety (see 4.2). The sprinkling
mixture is prepared by crushing and mixing the individual ingredients into a fine powder, which is
then applied by hand to the bottom sheet of wafer in such a way as to obtain an even layer of no
more than 1 mm, covered with the other sheet of wafer and baked through. In order to maintain the
product's quality and specific properties, it is essential that at least the mixing of the batter, and the
baking, resting and the assembly of the wafers take place in the defined area.

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4.6. Link: The specific characteristics of Karlovarské oplatky are imparted by the use of Karlovy Vary
thermal spring water and its specific properties, obtained from springs in the defined geographical area,
and by the traditional recipe (see 4.2).

The first historical references to the production of Karlovarské oplatky in the defined geographical area
date from the mid-18th century. These take the form of the oldest preserved wafer-making irons,
which are now in the Karlovy Vary museum, and a written reference dating from 1788, published in a
book entitled Karlsbad, Beschrieben zur Bequemlichkeit der hohen Gäste. Karlovarské oplatky were
originally home-baked, the first known wafer bakery (albeit a small one that was part of a hotel
kitchen) was apparently at the Hotel U zlatého štítu, operated around 1810 by Anna Grasmuck, wife
of Count Josef von Bolza. Nevertheless, it is likely that until the middle of the 19th century demand for
Karlovarské oplatky was covered almost exclusively by home-baked produce.

Bakeries specialising in the production of Karlovarské oplatky did not begin to appear until the second
half of the 19th century. What is probably the most famous such bakery, Bayer, whose products were
supplied to Kaiser Wilhelm I of Germany and won a number of awards at international exhibitions,
was established in 1867. In 1904 there were already 22 bakeries producing Karlovarské oplatky in the
defined geographical area. At that time, they were producing some four million wafers a year.

The production and sales of Karlovarské oplatky increased until the pre-war period, i.e. until 1939. At
that time, Karlovarské oplatky were being produced by 26 specialised producers in the defined geogra-
phical area, i.e. in the spa town of Karlovy Vary. After the Second World War, production continued in
about half of the firms under the direction of ‘national administrators’. Following nationalisation in
1948, Karlovarské oplatky were produced until 1989 in the Karlovy Vary factory of the national enter-
prise Orion.

After the reintroduction of a market economy, the tradition of producing Karlovarské oplatky in the
defined geographical area was carried on by members of the Karlovarské oplatky Producers' Associa-
tion.

The production of Karlovarské oplatky in Karlovy Vary has been handed down for more than two
centuries. Thanks to the single-minded and patient work of local producers, this popular confection
has become a speciality of the town of Karlovy Vary.

Karlovarské oplatky achieved their renown and recognition in the last century and the century before
that. They were awarded a gold medal at the 1900 Paris World Exposition. In recent times, they were,
as a typical Czech product, one of the best-selling products at the Czech pavilion at the EXPO 2000
Universal World Fair in Hanover, as confirmed by the Commissioner-General for the Czech Republic.

On 1 February 1974, the designation of origin Karlovarské oplatky was registered in the Czech register
of designations of origin under entry No 72.

4.7. Inspection body:

Name:

Státní zemědělská a potravinářská inspekce, inspektorát Plzeň

Address:

Tel.:

Fax:

Jiráskovo náměstí 8
CZ-308 58 Plzeň 8

(420) 377 43 34 11

(420) 377 45 52 29

E-mail:

plzen@szpi.gov.cz

4.8. Labelling:

‘Karlovarské oplatky’

The product designation must be appear as the chief feature on the front of the product and/or its
packaging.