Publication of an application for approval of an amendment, which is not minor, to a product specification 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 322/03
Date: 2023-09-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: Castile-Leon, Spain, beef, consumer information, designation of origin, labelling, meat product, product designation, quality control of agricultural products




C_2023322EN.01000301.xml










12.9.2023   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 322/3







Publication of an application for approval of an amendment, which is not minor, to a product specification 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 322/03)

This publication confers the right to oppose the amendment 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.
APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF AN AMENDMENT TO THE PRODUCT SPECIFICATION OF PROTECTED DESIGNATIONS OF ORIGIN/PROTECTED GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS WHICH IS NOT MINOR

Application for approval of an amendment in accordance with the first subparagraph of Article 53(2), of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012



                     ‘Cecina de León’
                  


EU No: PGI-ES-0103-AM02 – 7.9.2021
                  


PDO ( ) PGI (X)

1.   Applicant group and legitimate interest

Name of the group: Consejo Regulador I.G.P. ‘Cecina de León’ [‘Cecina de León’ PGI Regulatory Board]
Address: Calle Padres Redentoristas, 26, 24700 Astorga (León), España
            
Tel. +34 987615275
Email: consejo@cecinadeleon.org
The applicant group represents the collective interests of the producers of ‘Cecina de León’ and has a legitimate interest in this application to amend the product specification for the Protected Geographical Indication ‘Cecina de León’. It is also the group that originally applied for protected status for this product.
2.   Member State or third country

Spain
3.   Heading in the product specification affected by the amendment(s)







☐


Name of product










☒


Description of product










☐


Geographical area










☒


Proof of origin










☒


Method of production










☒


Link










☒


Labelling










☒


Other [to be specified]




4.   Type of amendment(s)







☒


Amendment to product specification of a registered PDO or PGI not to be qualified as minor in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 53(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012.










☐


Amendment to product specification of registered PDO or PGI for which a Single Document (or equivalent) has not been published not to be qualified as minor in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 53(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012




5.   Amendment(s)

5.1.   Amendments that impact key elements

5.1.1.   Amendment to ‘Description of product’
The number of cuts of beef used to produce ‘Cecina de León’ has been increased from four to five. These include the cuts in the previous specification, which are known in Spanish as the tapa [centre leg], contra [round], babilla [stifle] and cadera [sirloin]. The additional cut is the centro de contra [bottom round]. The purpose of this amendment is to offer a wider choice of cuts, in order to respond to consumer demand for smaller, more uniform options, more suitable for their needs.
The centro de contra has a minimum weight of 4 kg, is rectangular in shape and is made up exclusively of the gluteo-biceps muscle.
This new cut has been trialled following the production method laid down in the specification for the Protected Geographical Indication ‘Cecina de León’. The results show that this cut complies with the product characteristics laid down in the specification.
Households are smaller nowadays, with over half of family units having one or two members. Consumers’ purchasing habits have changed as a result, requiring producers to adjust their product sizes and packaging formats. The centro de contra forms part of the contra and has a minimum weight of 4 kg. It has been included in order to extend market demand for smaller, more uniform options better suited to current consumer trends. Moreover, demand for ‘Cecina de León’ has increased significantly in recent years. Including this cut may lead to corresponding growth in production volume and sales, with the involvement of new companies which already produce this cut but whose products are not covered by the Protected Geographical Indication ‘Cecina de León’.
(This amendment also applies to point 3.2 of the single document.)
5.2.   Amendments that do not impact key elements

5.2.1.   Amendment to ‘Proof of origin’
The section ‘Proof that the product originates in the area’ is being amended to comply with Article 4(2) of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 668/2014 of 13 June 2014. The control methods have been updated following an internal review. The current control method involves a panel of tasters checking the sensory characteristics of the cecina. This is to be replaced by organoleptic analyses of the end product in a laboratory where the necessary experience, equipment, infrastructure and staff will be available.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)
5.3.   Amendment to ‘Method of production’
                           

5.3.1.   Amendment to the salting stage
The reference to the minimum salting time has been removed and the maximum time has been reduced from 0,6 to 0,4 days per kilo in order to reduce the salt content of the end product. At present, salting times follow the lower limit allowed in the specification in order to comply with 0,3 days per kilo. Nevertheless, producers are calling for shorter salting times for a less salty end product. This reflects current consumer preferences and the demand for healthier, lower-salt products (as part of the Spanish Strategy for Nutrition, Physical Activity and the Prevention of Obesity).
The aim in removing the minimum salt content from the specification and reducing the maximum content is to enable cecina producers to make products containing less salt. However, the products must still comply with the characteristics laid down in the specification, which remain unchanged, and their microbiological safety must be guaranteed.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)
5.3.2.   Amendment to stage D – Resting
The reference to the maximum resting time has been removed, while the minimum resting time remains 30 days. This has been done to ensure that the product dries out properly, according to the needs of each cut.
The resting phase is necessary in order to remove water content from the meat and allow the salt to penetrate evenly. This ensures that the necessary biochemical processes can take place to develop the product’s characteristic flavour and aroma.
Limiting the maximum duration of this stage may lead to cuts of meat being kept in environmental conditions designed to make them dry out more quickly, negatively affecting the proper development of the product’s organoleptic characteristics and its final quality.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)
5.3.3.   Amendment to stage F – Drying
The definition of the drying stage has been amended to allow regulation of the natural conditions inside the drying chambers in the warmer months, and to encourage appropriate levels of heat and humidity for the product to mature. This amendment therefore includes the option for the drying chambers to be equipped with suitable mechanisms to regulate, standardise and help maintain appropriate temperature and humidity conditions throughout the drying chambers, as well as ensuring consistent ventilation for all the products.
The production method has been amended to reflect changes to the traditional seasonality of production. It takes into account the impact of climate change on the production conditions that prevented the curing of cecina in optimal conditions all year round.
Traditionally, cecina was mostly produced in autumn, winter and spring because summers are hot in the province of León and this is not conducive to the product drying properly. Now, however, cecina is produced all year round, even in summer. It is therefore essential to be able to control environmental conditions to ensure optimal curing throughout the year. The impact of climate change in Spain in recent years must also be taken into account. Since 1971, there has been a clear trend towards higher temperatures, with the most perceptible rises coming at the transitions from summer to autumn and from spring to summer, and especially in summer, as the season is becoming ever longer.
It is therefore necessary to be able to regulate environmental conditions during the drying stage. This is especially important in summer and in months in which the higher temperatures caused by climate change prevent the cecina from drying in a way that results in a product in compliance with the requirements of the specification.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)
5.4.   Amendment to ‘Labelling’
                           

The symbols that must feature on the label have been updated. The label now must include the EU Protected Geographical Indication symbol in the same visual field as the product’s registered name.
An image of the logo of the Protected Geographical Indication is included here.





(This amendment also applies to point 3.6 of the single document.)
5.5.   Drafting amendments

5.5.1.   Amendments to the layout/presentation






(a)


The headings of some sections of the specification have been changed, and lettering has been added to improve readability. The section headed ‘Product characteristics’ in the previous specification is now headed ‘B. Product description’. The section previously headed ‘Geographical area’ is now headed ‘C. Demarcation of the geographical area’. The section previously headed ‘Production method’ is now headed ‘E. Method of production’.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)










(b)


The following section has been inserted: ‘A. Name of product: “Cecina de León”’.
(This amendment does not concern the single document).










(c)


In the section headed ‘B. Product description’, in the subsection about the contra, the reference to the cut has been changed from ‘the contra itself’ and the redondo (in the previous specification) to the ‘centro de contra’ and the redondo. The name has been changed to make the product description easier to understand, as the centro de contra is now one of the cured cuts used in the end product.
(This amendment also applies to point 3.2 of the single document.)










(d)


The capital letters identifying each stage of the production process have been replaced with lowercase letters to prevent confusion with the letters indicating the sections of the product specification.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)










(e)


In the description of the resting stage, the following error has been corrected: ‘The purpose of this stage is to remove the salt content’. In fact, it is the water content that is removed at this stage.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)










(f)


An error has been corrected in the section ‘Link with the area’: The part referring to the Tratado de Agricultura General [General agricultural treatise] states that it is possible to make cecina from other types of meat, including beef cecina. The latter reference to cecina is incorrect. It should say ‘meat’, as it refers to a type of meat.
(This amendment also applies to point 5 of the single document.)










(g)


In the ‘Labelling’ section, the passage about the re-use of labels has been rewritten to make it more readable.
(This amendment also applies to point 3.6 of the single document.)










(h)


A number of spelling and grammatical errors have been corrected throughout the specification.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)




5.6.   Administrative amendment to the link

The link with the geographical area remains unchanged, but the description has been amended to bring it into line with the specifications of section 5 of Annex I to Regulation No 668/2014, with the addition of more recent material concerning the reputation of the designation ‘Cecina de León’, thereby harmonising the content of both documents: the specification and single document. The order of some sections has also been changed to improve readability.
(This amendment also applies to point 5 of the single document.)
5.7.   Amendments removing redundant, unnecessary or superfluous material

The applicable legislation section has been removed because it is no longer required in the specification.
(This amendment does not concern the single document.)
5.8.   Amendment to the single document only

5.8.1.   Drafting amendment

Amendments to the layout/presentation

In the section on labelling in the current Spanish version of the single document, there is text missing from one paragraph, rendering it incoherent. It says ‘The product intended “Protected Geographical Indication” and “Cecina de León”.’ It should be a transcription of the corresponding paragraph in the ‘Labelling’ section of the current specification, which says: ‘The product intended for consumption must bear labels on which the terms “Protected Geographical Indication” and “Cecina de León” are clearly visible.’
                     
That said, this text has in fact been rewritten by means of amendments 5.2.3. and 5.3.1.g. in this document.
SINGLE DOCUMENT


                     ‘Cecina de León’
                  


EU No: PGI-ES-0103-AM02 – 7.9.2021
                  


PGI (X) PDO ( )

1.   Names(s) [of PDO or PGI]


               ‘Cecina de León’
            
2.   Member state or third country

Spain
3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1.   Type of product

Class 1.2. Meat products (cooked, salted, smoked, etc.)
3.2.   Description of the product to which the name in (1) applies


                  ‘Cecina de León’ is a cured meat product made from the beef muscle cuts known in Spanish as the tapa [centre leg], contra [round], centro de contra [bottom round], babilla [stifle] and cadera [sirloin] from the hindquarters of adult cattle. These are subject to a production process lasting over seven months, which consists of salting, washing, resting and drying.

                  ‘Cecina de León’ has the following characteristics:






—


Typical external appearance: the cecina is a toasted, brown colour, a little dark, as a result of the production process.










—


Colour and appearance when cut: the colour of the cut cecina ranges from shades of cherry red to crimson, with this deeper shade becoming more intense at the edges at the end of the maturation process. It has a light marbling of fat, providing its characteristic succulence.










—


Weight: the minimum weight for each of the cured cuts and the muscles that constitute them is as follows:






—



Tapa: 4 kg; Fleshy, conical mass but flattening at the edges. Made up of the medial muscles of the thigh and the extra-pelvic portion of the external obturator muscle.










—



Contra: 5 kg; Made up of the centro de contra and the redondo, which is a somewhat cylindrical, triangular prism shape. The redondo is formed exclusively of the semitendinosus muscle, and the centro de contra of the gluteobiceps muscle.










—



Centro de contra: 4 kg; Rectangular in shape and formed exclusively of the gluteobiceps muscle.










—



Babilla: 3.5 kg; Ovoid cut, formed of the muscles that constitute the quadriceps of the thigh (rectus femoris, vastus lateralis, vastus medialis and vastus intermedius).










—



Cadera: 3 kg; Triangular cut, formed of the gluteus maximus muscle, the gluteus medius muscle, the gluteus minimus muscle and the twin muscles of the hip.














—


Taste and aroma: meat with a characteristic taste, not notably salty in flavour or fibrous in consistency. Smoking lends a characteristic aroma to the maturation process, accentuating the mixture of flavours.




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

The beef cuts used in the production of the protected cecina must come from adult cattle. There is no restriction as to the provenance of the cuts.
3.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

The process of making the cecina takes place exclusively in the demarcated geographical area. It consists of the following procedures: shaping the cuts of meat, salting, washing with water, resting, smoking (optional) and drying.
3.5.   Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product the registered name refers to

Not applicable
3.6.   Specific rules concerning labelling of the product the registered name refers to

The cuts are presented whole, wrapped or packaged, in portions or vacuum-packed slices.
The product intended for consumption must bear numbered labels including the EU’s PGI symbol and the name ‘Cecina de León’ in the same visual field, together with the PGI’s own logo.
The term ‘Reserva’ can be also used for products subjected to a production process lasting a minimum of 12 months.
These labels must be affixed in such a way that they cannot be reused.
The logo of the Protected Geographical Indication is:





4.   Concise definition of the geographical area

The geographical area in which ‘Cecina de León’ is made consists solely and exclusively of the province of León.
5.   Link with the geographical area

The link between the geographical area and the product ‘Cecina de León’ is based on its reputation and the specific characteristics of the product.
It is a meat product with characteristic colour, marbling, succulence and flavour, not notably fibrous and with a distinctive smoky aroma that sets it apart from cecina from other areas. Its specific characteristics have brought it significant fame and reputation over many years of traditional production in the demarcated geographical area.
The following examples are evidence of the reputation of ‘Cecina de León’.
On 28 October 2013, the Spanish state television channel RTVE broadcast the programme Un país para comérselo [A country good enough to eat] (36 minutes) about Leon and its agri-food products. The programme featured various recipes using ‘Cecina de León’ as an ingredient, highlighting the specific characteristics of the product. On 29 June 2021, another RTVE programme España Directo [Spain live] described the production process and the characteristics of the product. Both programmes are available at https://www.rtve.es/
Other magazines dedicated to travel and gastronomy, such as Traveler and Cocina y vino highlight the reputation of ‘Cecina de León’ both nationally and internationally. An article in Traveler entitled ‘Why Leon should be the Capital of Gastronomy 2018’, published 13 October 2017, says: ‘It is the case that the “Leon brand” has been known outside of Spain for some time. Products such as chorizo, cecina and certain cheeses from Leon have triumphed in far-flung corners of the globe as diverse as Hong Kong, Rome and even the Caribbean.’ Another article in Cocina y vino entitled ‘What do they eat in Spain at Christmas?’, published 20 December 2020, talks about traditional Spanish foods, including ‘Cecina de León’: ‘For starters, there are cheeses or beef cecina, which is so typical of Leon’.
In 2018, when Leon was the Spanish Capital of Gastronomy, ‘Cecina de León’ entered the Guinness Book of Records with ‘The world’s biggest piece of cecina
               ’.
Furthermore, for two years running, ‘Cecina de León’ received the highest award in the prestigious international competition Great Taste Awards, gaining two and three stars in 2020, and three stars in 2021.
Producers of ‘Cecina de León’ take part in national and international fairs, where they promote the reputation of the cecina. These include the Food Fair in Barcelona, the Gourmet Salon and Meat Attraction in Madrid, and also the SIAL exhibition in Paris and Anuga fair in Germany.
The product’s reputation is also confirmed by its inclusion in official lists of quality foods, for example the Inventario Español de Productos Tradicionales [Spanish Inventory of Traditional Products] of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1996); and the Inventario de Productos Agroalimentarios de Calidad de Castilla y León [Inventory of Quality Agri-food Products of Castile and Leon] of the Regional Government of Castile and Leon (2001).
In addition, the book Recetas de la Biosfera [Recipes from the Biosphere] (Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment, 2017) celebrates various dishes made with ‘Cecina de León’. It says: ‘
               “Cecina de León” is probably the best beef charcuterie in Spain and the world. It is produced throughout the Montes de León mountain range, and especially in the Alto Bernesga Biosphere Reserve.’
            
The importance of ‘Cecina de León’ and its reputation can also be seen at international level. There is a doctoral thesis by an anthropology student, Alessandra Sartori McCormack, of the Catholic University of America in Washington DC, entitled: Cecina de León: The Production, Consumption and Cultural Representation of a Spanish Traditional Food in a Global Economy (2003). In it, the doctoral candidate discusses how the worldwide consumption and sale of a traditional Spanish product, ‘Cecina de León’, has contributed to building and strengthening a local and regional identity.
In addition, there are many references to ‘Cecina de León’ throughout history.
In Chapter 55 of his agricultural treatise, Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella (4th century BC) makes an early reference to cecina. In Gabriel Alonso de Herrera’s Tratado de Agricultura General [General agricultural treatise] of 1513, cecina and meat salting receive special attention, and in Chapter XL the possibility of salting other types of meat, including beef, is mentioned.

La Pícara Justina is an elucidating work of great literary value from the early part of the 17th century. The work is set for the most part in the province and capital of Leon, where we follow the misadventures of the main character, Justina. Justina’s parents run an inn in Mansilla de las Mulas. Muleteers and travellers stop there. Amongst the meats on offer, the dried beef cecina is highlighted above the other meat products and sausages. La Pícara Justina is a faithful portrayal of the rural society of Leon at the time.
In the work Fray Gerundio de Campazas (1758), Father Isla makes the first mention of ‘Cecina de León’ in his description of Antón Zotes, detailing the quality and variety of this quirky character’s meals: ‘
               machorra [mutton from sterile ewes], cecina and half wheat/half barley bread on normal days, with onion or leek for dessert; beef and chorizo on holidays. His habitual torrezno [slice of fried pork belly] for his mid-day and evening meals’.
Félix María de Samaniego (1745-1801) also mentions cecina in his fable El ratón de la corte y el del campo [The Court Mouse and the Country Mouse]: ‘Their senses found great pleasure there; the walls and ceilings were decorated with a thousand delicacies for mice, with salami sausages, hams and cecinas. They jumped for pure pleasure. Oh, what joy! From ham to ham, from cheese to cheese’.
According to the Leon historical archive (1835 to 1839), in those times the city of Leon consumed, over a five year period, 4 800 arrobas [one arroba being equivalent to 11,502 kg] of cecina and in a normal year, 972 arrobas. According to the statistics provided by the Madoz dictionary, the consumption per inhabitant per year was estimated as follows: ‘the quantity consumed by an individual in one year is 0,137 arrobas.’ This documentary information from the Madoz dictionary shows how the product was considered separately from other, fresh, meats. It also shows how cecinas from the villages contributed to municipal trade.
Enrique Gil y Carrasco, a poet and writer born in 1815, paints a picture of the customs in the province of Leon in his numerous reports and articles. In one article, El pastor trashumante [The Wandering Shepherd], he describes shepherds taking leave of their families before setting off up the slopes with the merino sheep: ‘The shepherd’s basket of provisions, generously filled with cecina and ham, will already be prepared for the next day’.
In the 1885 the Diccionario Enciclopédico de Ganadería e Industrias Rurales [Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Stockbreeding and Rural Industry], edited by López Martínez, Hidalgo Tablada and Prieto, distinguished and renowned agronomists describe beef cecina at the fairs and markets of León in the mid-19th century: ‘The province of Leon has livestock of notable quality. In the pastures of Leon graze many cattle which, after working in the fields – because mules are only used for labour in the south – provide meat in the markets of the provinces of Leon, Valladolid and Palencia. The cows and calves are sold to produce cecina at the fairs of Los Santos and San Andrés in León and the fairs of San Martín in Mansilla.’
            
On 30 January 1886, El Porvenir de León, a newspaper containing items of general interest, news and advertisements, published the following notice: ‘It is forbidden, on pain of confiscation, to bring into this city the meat of dead animals for public consumption, An exception is made to this rule in the case of pig carcasses, hams and offal, or cecinas.’
            
In his book Los Maragatos, su estirpe, sus modos [The people of the Maragatería region, their stock and customs] (1980), Luis Alonso Luengo cites sources from the Marques de la Ensenada which record the number of muleteers, carts and mules assigned to each village in the region and describe other particular features of this trade: ‘It was a system which functioned perfectly. Each journey started in the village of origin and from there went to A Coruña, Madrid and other places in Spain, transporting from town to town goods of all kinds, including beef cecina.’
            
Matías Rodríguez Díez, in his Historia de la Muy Noble, Leal y Benemérita Ciudad de Astorga [History of the Very Noble, Loyal and Praiseworthy City of Astorga], published in 1909 and republished in 1981, describes habits, customs, history, fairs and industry. Luis Alonso Luengo, official chronicler of the city of Astorga, was responsible for continuing the original text produced by Matías Rodríguez Díez, who was the city’s chronicler in his time. In the chapter about weddings in the Maragatería region, the food is described as follows. ‘The food served later at lunch must be as good as the wedding breakfast: the turkeys, hens, chickens and other farmyard poultry pay the price for allowing themselves to be fattened up; and then there are chops, cecina, chorizo and veal; and countless slices of ham’.
On 31 December 1922, the Leon magazine Renacimiento published an article entitled ‘Prehistoric survivals in the region of León: funeral meals’ by Julián Sanz Martínez. The article describes the funeral customs of certain regions of León which were still practised at the beginning of the 19th century. These involved holding a banquet in honour of the deceased, at which ‘Cecina de León’ played an important role.
The collection ‘Tierras de León’ [The Region of Leon] (1990-1991) includes a study, by Patrocinio García Gutiérrez, of the marginalised members of Leonese society living in the Casa de Expósitos and Hospicio de León in the early 19th century. In it, the author states that contemporary documents mention cecina as having featured in people’s diets.

Reference to publication of the specification

https://www.itacyl.es/documents/20143/342640/2022_04_01+PCC+Cecina+de+Le%C3%B3n+IGP.pdf/3d8bfe8c-0ec7-9b6d-1e20-6e3a4c3c0f5d?t=1648804554571


(1)  
            OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1.