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: 2010-11-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Greece, designation of origin, labelling, meat, mode of production, product designation








C_2010322EN.01003101.xml










27.11.2010   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 322/31





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
2010/C 322/10
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 of the date of this publication.
SINGLE DOCUMENT

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006


‘ΚΑΤΣΙΚΑΚΙ ΕΛΑΣΣΟΝΑΣ’ (KATSIKAKI ELASSONAS)


EC No: EL-PDO-0005-0734-14.01.2009


PGI ( ) PDO ( X )

1.   Name:

‘Κατσικάκι Ελασσόνας’ (Katsikaki Elassonas)
2.   Member State or third country:

Greece
3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff:

3.1.   Type of product:







Class 1.1 —


Meat (and offal)




3.2.   Description of the product to which the name in (1) applies:

Fresh meat from sucking kids of 30-55 days old, weighing 5,5-9,0 kg and born of goats bearing the phenotypic characters of indigenous Greek breeds living throughout mainland Greece. The animals have the following phenotypic characters: medium height, good body development, proportionate physique, with a range of colourings but predominantly black, long hair, with horns, average-sized ears, short but strong legs, exceptionally resistant, abstemious, with a strong temperament, suited to dry, hot climates, poor pastures and extensive feeding conditions, late sexual maturity, low incidence of multiple births, low milk production (the milk has high levels of fat (5 %) and protein (3,5 %)), resistant to extreme weather conditions, resistant to disease and able to walk far. These goat populations belong to the local Greek breed (Capra prisca) or are the result of cross-breeding of this breed with males of the Skopelos breed. The goats live under extensive or semi-extensive conditions in the Province of Elassona, as the region is defined and delineated below, and graze on mountain pastures at high altitudes (above 250 m).
The meat is sold only fresh, (a) as whole carcasses, (b) as half-carcasses or (c) in pieces.
Organoleptic characteristics of ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ meat:
‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ meat has a characteristic aroma and a pleasant smell and taste; it is tender and juicy meat with a pH of 7,0-7,2. There is a very thin to inexistent layer of fat with no subcutaneous fat and a bony carcase with high levels of linolenic acid. The meat displays colouring varying from white to faint pink, in accordance with Community regulations. It falls under the category of light kids pursuant to Community legislation.
Chemical characteristics of ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ meat:









Katsikaki Elassonas


Moisture %
(av. value)


Protein %
(av. value)


Fat %
(av. value)


Ash %
(av. value)




 


77,71


19,63


1,02


1,18







Meat colour







L = 43,17 + 0,46
Luminary


a = 7,28 + 0,79
Red


b = 10,40 + 0,63
Yellow




3.3.   Raw materials (for processed products only):

—
3.4.   Feed (for products of animal origin only):

Up to the point of slaughter the kids are fed exclusively on their dam’s milk. The goats graze freely on mountain pastures (above 250 m) and on artificial grassland. Complementary feedingstuffs (mostly cereals, legumes, vegetables, straw, clover and oilseed products) produced mainly in the defined geographical area, as well as vitamins and minerals, are given for 3-5 months. The small artificial grasslands are fertilised using natural manure from animals of the geographical area as the use of insecticides, pesticides and artificial fertilisers is not permitted.
3.5.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area:

Slaughtered kids may only bear the name ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ if:






(a)


both their parents had been living within the defined area for at least eight months before mating;










(b)


the kids must also have been born and reared up to the point of slaughter within the defined area.




3.6.   Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc.:

—
3.7.   Specific rules concerning labelling:

The following label must be put on whole carcases, half-carcases and pieces:



4.   Concise definition of the geographical area:

The area comprises:






(a)


the Province of Elassona, Prefecture of Larissa and










(b)


the district of Damasios in the Municipality of Tirnavos of the same prefecture.




5.   Link with the geographical area:

5.1.   Specificity of the geographical area:

The defined geographical area is mountainous and semi-mountainous with altitudes ranging from 250 m to 2 550 m. Sixty percent of the area is covered by pastures with a large variety of grasses, herbs and aromatic plants. The land suitable for grazing in the Province of Elassona includes natural pastures, agricultural land used to grow animal feed, fallow land and seasonal pastures. The natural pastures are covered with grass pasture, scrub pasture and partly wooded pasture. The most characteristic feature of the region is the high degree of flora biodiversity, with many types of aromatic plants.
The herbaceous vegetation is made up mainly of grasses and, to a lesser degree, legumes and composites. The most commonly encountered sub-families are Festuceae, Hordeae, Pemineae, Aerostideae, Phalatideae and Aneneae. The most common herbaceous plants include Festuca rubra, Dactylis glomerata, Bromus sp., Trifolium sp., Stipa sp., Lolium sp., etc. The scrub pasture contributes significantly to meeting the needs of the animals by providing both young shoots and the herbaceous vegetation which grows in the shadows of the plant crown; pasture capacity is 1,39 livestock units.
Local goat populations are small, abstemious and adapted to the mountainous and semi-mountainous terrain of the defined geographical area. Extensive goat-rearing is an integral part of the culture and conservation of the natural environment and an essential part of daily life in the Province of Elassona.
5.2.   Specificity of the product:

The carcase of slaughtered ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ goat displays uniform muscle coverage. The carcase is light, with a very thin to inexistent layer of fat and no subcutaneous fat. ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ contains a higher level of protein (19,63 %) than that found in kids of other regions (18,9 %), total fat is less than 1,02 % as compared to 4,83 % in other regions and the meat has a white to faint pink colour unlike the slightly red colour of lowland kids. Analyses of the fatty acids from the carcases have shown that the Elassona kids contain higher levels of linoleic acid (C18:3) than those from lowlands areas. Elassona kids give tender, juicy meat with a characteristic aroma and a pleasant smell and taste, even when older. For all these reasons, ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ meat is in high demand in many urban areas: e.g. Larissa, Katerini, Athens, Thessaloniki, Crete and abroad.
5.3.   Causal link between the geographical area and the quality or characteristics of the product (for PDO) or a specific quality, the reputation or other characteristic of the product (for PGI):

The quality features of Katsikaki Elassonas meat are due to the particular soil and weather conditions of the area (mountainous and semi-mountainous land), which contains a wealth of vegetation, a large variety of plants (1 700 species are to be found on Mount Olympus alone) and many aromatic plants. The animals grazing on the mountainous and semi-mountainous pastures of Elassona consume a wide range of grasses, herbs and plants. They often cover long distances and this gives them a different physical form to animals living at lower altitudes and, particularly, confined animals. The antioxidant agents in many aromatic plants give the goats’ milk and, particularly, the kids’ meat a particular and characteristic aroma and taste which make them highly popular among consumers.
There is a positive link between the intensity of the aroma and the linolenic acid (C18:3) found in higher quantities in free-pasture animals and between these sought-after qualities in sucking-kid meat and the soil, vegetation and microclimate of the Province of Elassona.
Fatty acid tests were conducted on Elassona kids and higher levels of linolenic acid (C18:3) were found than those found in kids from lowland areas. The aroma is also affected by how the animal is fed and reared, its breed, age and reproductive situation.
The organoleptic characteristics of ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ meat derive from:






(a)


the small local breeds of goat, which are abstemious, strong and fully adapted to the particular geographical environment;










(b)


free-range housing and daily grazing of goats on pastures;










(c)


the wide variety of vegetation, grasses, herbs and aromatic plants;










(d)


the range of altitudes (250 m-2 550 m);










(e)


the soil and microclimate of the region;










(f)


the fact that the kids are exclusively fed on their dam’s milk;










(g)


the high levels of linolenic fatty acid (C18:3);










(h)


the short period of time in which complementary feedingstuffs, mostly produced in the Province of Elassona, are given to the dams (goats).




Goat-rearing and the production of ‘Katsikaki Elassonas’ meat are historical activities and attested over the centuries; it is marketed in Larissa, Katerini, Athens, Thessaloniki and abroad (Italy, Spain and Cyprus).

Reference to publication of the specification:

(Article 5(7) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006)
http://www.minagric.gr/greek/data/Προδιαγραφές%20προϊόντος%20ΚΑΤΣΙΚΑΚΙ%20ΕΛΑΣΣΟΝΑΣ.doc


(1)  OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12.