Publication of an application for registration of a name pursuant to Article 50(2)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs 2023/C 255/07
Date: 2023-07-20
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: Azores, Portugal, butter, consumer information, designation of origin, labelling, product designation, quality control of agricultural products








C_2023255EN.01001001.xml










20.7.2023   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 255/10






Publication of an application for registration of a name pursuant to Article 50(2)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs
(2023/C 255/07)
This publication confers the right to oppose the application pursuant to Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1) within three months from the date of this publication.
SINGLE DOCUMENT

’Manteiga dos Açores'


EU No: PDO-PT-02645 — 21.10.2020


PDO (X) PGI ( )

1.   Name(s)

’Manteiga dos Açores'
2.   Member State

Portugal
3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1.   Type of product

Class 1.5. Oils and fats (butter, margarine, oil, etc.)
3.2.   Description of the product to which the name in (1) applies

‘Manteiga dos Açores’ is a butter made exclusively from pasteurised cream from raw cow’s milk, with or without the addition of salt. If salt is added, the maximum quantity is 2 g/100 g.
The use of reconstituted milk or cream is not permitted.
‘Manteiga dos Açores’:






—


does not contain any lactic ferments, food colourings or preservatives;










—


has a beta-carotene content of ≥ 5 mg KOH/g (measured using high-performance liquid chromatography), giving it a yellow to bright yellow colour;










—


has an intense, fresh, lactic taste and smell;










—


has a fat content of between 81 % and 86 %;










—


has a uniform, smooth, dense texture, which makes the product easy to spread.




3.3.   Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

The dairy cattle are typically reared out in the open, with access to grazing all year round and a diet based on fresh grass and preserved fodder produced in the geographical area.
However, as the dairy cows’ dietary needs cannot always be met by the areas of grazing available, which are typically small, with the animals scattered quite densely, they are occasionally given supplementary feed, namely compound energy and protein feed and dried grass, particularly when adverse weather conditions lead to a shortage of food.
Supplementary feed sourced from outside the Azores archipelago must never account for more than 50 % of dry matter in the animals’ total annual diet. This ensures that the link with the geographical area is not affected by feed sourced from outside that area, as the animals have access to grazing for 365 days a year.
The most commonly found plant species in the Azorean pastureland are legumes and grasses, including Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass), Lolium multiflorum (Italian ryegrass), Trifolium repens (white clover), Trifolium pratense (red clover) and Dactylis glomerata (orchard grass).
The silage made from green maize and grass from many varied types of pasture is all produced in the geographical area.
The raw material used to make ‘Manteiga dos Açores’ is pasteurised cream from raw cow’s milk obtained solely and exclusively from cows grazing the Azorean pastureland. The use of reconstituted milk or cream is not permitted.
3.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

The production of the milk and the production of ‘Manteiga dos Açores’ must take place in the geographical area.
3.5.   Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product the registered name refers to

All packaging must take place in the geographical area of origin, i.e. in facilities located in the Azores archipelago, as this is a very delicate operation, given the nature of the product, notably the risk of oxidation if it is not packaged promptly.
Moreover, the Azores are an island region and therefore at a distance from consumer markets, which naturally affects how it is transported.
3.6.   Specific rules concerning labelling of the product the registered name refers to

The labelling must include the words ‘Manteiga dos Açores’ – DOP [‘Manteiga dos Açores’ – PDO] or ‘Manteiga dos Açores’ – Denominação de Origem Protegida [‘Manteiga dos Açores’ – Protected Designation of Origin].
4.   Concise definition of the geographical area

‘Manteiga dos Açores’ is produced and packaged in the Azores archipelago, which is composed of nine islands in the North Atlantic.
Supplementary feed sourced from outside the Azores archipelago must never account for more than 50 % of dry matter in the animals’ total annual diet. This ensures that the link with the geographical area is not affected by feed sourced from outside that area, as the animals have access to grazing for 365 days a year.
5.   Link with the geographical area

Owing to its geographical location in the middle of the North Atlantic and the influence of the Azores High, the Azores archipelago has a temperate maritime climate characterised by:






—


mild temperatures, with small temperature fluctuations of no more than 10 °C, average air temperature being around 14 °C in winter and 23 °C in summer;










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high relative air humidity of 70–75 % in summer and more than 80 % in winter;










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rainfall that is evenly distributed throughout the year, varying, from east to west, between 748 mm per year on Santa Maria and 1 479 mm per year on Flores.




The islands are further north than the other Macaronesian archipelagos, so they are not directly impacted by tropical circulations, nor are they immediately influenced by polar currents, as the seasonal variation of the islands’ climate is determined by the position, intensity, direction and development of the Azores High. It moves north in summer, pushing the polar front to higher latitudes, and is positioned to the south of the archipelago in winter, bringing the polar front down.
The moderating effect of the surrounding ocean also helps explain the constant temperatures and high humidity that characterise the climate of the Azores.
The Azores have loam, sandy loam and clay loam soils, rich in organic matter and potassium.
The soil and climate of the Azores archipelago thus naturally provide conditions that are exceptionally well-suited to growing grass, which means that livestock can graze for 365 days a year.
Allowing the cows to graze in the open air, i.e. to feed mainly on fresh grass for most of the year, gives the raw material physical, chemical and sensory characteristics that are passed on through the processing chain.
The specificity of ‘Manteiga dos Açores’ derives from the fact that it is made exclusively from cream from raw cow’s milk produced in the Azores, without the addition of lactic ferments, food colourings or preservatives, giving it the characteristics described in point 3.2, namely its yellow to bright yellow colour and intense, fresh, lactic taste and smell.
The high levels of beta-carotene give the butter a naturally more intense colour, without the use of food colourings, and are the result of the animals’ typical pasture based diet.
With ‘Manteiga dos Açores’ there is thus a clear link between the raw material (the milk), the environment and the traditional livestock farming methods, namely permanent grazing throughout the year, which became established and took root over two centuries ago.
Over time, the producers have been able to combine their traditional butter-making expertise with new technologies and health and hygiene requirements, without resorting to the use of lactic ferments, food colourings or preservatives. The cream therefore undergoes a physical rather than a biological process, without the use of lactic ferments to increase the acidity of the product.
The excellent soil and climatic conditions, namely the fertile soils and ready availability of water as a result of regular rainfall, both of which promote the growth of fresh grass throughout the year, together with the farming practices that have been passed down from one generation to the next, enable the Azorean producers to make butter with an intense, fresh, lactic taste and smell.
Many farms are now also equipped with modern milk cooling systems, which helps to preserve the milk and ensure good quality.
Furthermore, the Region has an official milk grading system at producer level, where testing accredited under NP EN ISO/IEC 17025:2018 is carried out to guarantee the physico-chemical and health and hygiene quality of the milk delivered to the factories, thereby contributing to the excellence of Azorean dairy products, as in the case of ‘Manteiga dos Açores’.

Reference to publication of the specification

https://tradicional.dgadr.gov.pt/images/prod_imagens/queijos/docs/CE_Manteiga_Acores_DOP.pdf


(1)  OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1.