Publication of an approved standard amendment to a product specification of a protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication in the sector of agricultural products and foodstuffs, as referred to in Article 6b(2) and (3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014
Date: 2025-01-24
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: Basilicata, Italy, consumer information, designation of origin, dried product, fresh vegetable, labelling, leguminous vegetable, product designation, quality control of agricultural products




C_202500505EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/505


24.1.2025






Publication of an approved standard amendment to a product specification of a protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication in the sector of agricultural products and foodstuffs, as referred to in Article 6b(2) and (3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014
(C/2025/505)

This communication is published in accordance with Article 6b(5) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014 (1).
COMMUNICATING THE APPROVAL OF A STANDARD AMENDMENT TO THE PRODUCT SPECIFICATION OF A PROTECTED DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN OR PROTECTED GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION ORIGINATING IN A MEMBER STATE


                     ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’
                  


EU No: PDO-IT-0683-AM01 - 25 October 2024
                  


PDO (X) PGI ( )

1.   Name of product


               ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’
            
2.   Member State to which the geographical area belongs

Italy
3.   Member State authority communicating the standard amendment

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE, FOOD SOVEREIGNTY AND FORESTRY - PROMOTION OF AGRI FOOD QUALITY (PQA) 1
—
4.   Description of the approved amendment(s)

Explanation of why the amendment(s) fall under the definition of a standard amendment as provided for in Article 53(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012
The amendments to the product specification and the single document are standard amendments under Article 53 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 as amended by Regulation (EU) 2021/2117 for the following reasons:






(a)


they do not include a change in the name of the protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication, or in the use of that name;










(b)


they do not risk voiding the link referred to in Article 5(1), point (b), for protected designations of origin or the link referred to in Article 5(2), point (b), for protected geographical indications;










(c)


they do not concern a traditional speciality guaranteed; or










(d)


they do not entail any further restrictions on the marketing of the product.




1.   Amendment to the penultimate paragraph of Article 2 of the product specification and point 3.2 of the single document
The amendment removes the reference to the weight of the tegument as a maximum percentage of the total weight and replaces it with a qualitative definition.
The sentence ‘The tegument of “Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda” must not exceed 6 % of the total weight’ is replaced by ‘Particularly thin, imperceptible tegument after cooking’.
The quantification of the tegument percentage is problematic as there is currently no accredited control body/laboratory for the certified measurement of this parameter.
The requested amendment does not affect the quality of the product marketed, nor is it to the detriment of the consumer, since it does not detract from the characteristics of the beans placed on the market. The emphasis on the link between the characteristics of the soil and the tegument of the seed remains unchanged, as does the low tegument percentage, i.e. its thinness.
The use for the tegument of a qualitative statement in place of a quantitative assessment that highlights the low tegument percentage is supported by research on ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ and other local varieties from Basilicata carried out in past years and published in scientific publications. As reported in a study published in 2000 (1) 1. A.R. Piergiovanni, D. Cerbino, C. Della Gatta., 2000. Diversity in seed quality traits of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) populations from Basilicata (Southern Italy). Plant Breeding 119: 513-516), which investigated the compositional characteristics of the seeds of no fewer than 21 local varieties of beans from Basilicata grown in their traditional environment, the tegument percentage varied very little between different crop years and for many varieties this variation was lower than for some commercial varieties included in the study as comparisons.
This amendment affects the single document.
2.   Amendment to the last paragraph of Article 2 of the product specification
The amendment removes reference to the classes ‘Extra’ and ‘I’.
The indication of the product classes ‘Extra’ and ‘I’ is not mandatory for legumes under Regulation (EU) No 543/2011, (which came after the product specification was originally drafted).
As no other criteria for a precise and unambiguous definition of those classes have been found in either qualitative, organoleptic and/or chemical/physical terms, it is believed that requiring them to be present as a condition for certification could lead to uncertainty and interpretation issues.
This amendment does not affect the single document.
SINGLE DOCUMENT


                     ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’
                  


EU No: PDO-IT-0683-AM01 — 25 October 2024
                  


PDO (X) PGI ( )

1.   Name(s) (of PDO or PGI)


               ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’
            
2.   Member State or Third Country

Italy
3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1.   Combined Nomenclature code







—


07 - EDIBLE VEGETABLES AND CERTAIN ROOTS AND TUBERS
0708 - Leguminous vegetables, shelled or unshelled, fresh or chilled
070820 - Beans (Vigna spp., Phaseolus spp.)




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


                  ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ protected designation of origin (PDO) are obtained from the Fagiolo Bianco and Tondino (or Poverello) Bianco ecotypes of the Phaseolus vulgaris L. species. When released for consumption as waxy pods, ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ must have the following characteristics: pod: maximum length, 20 cm; maximum width, 20 mm; colour: white tending towards light yellow or ivory; waxy pod with a fresh, healthy and swollen appearance; clean, practically free of any visible foreign matter; free of any foreign smell and/or taste; free of external moisture. When released for consumption as dried beans, ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ must have the following characteristics: bean: maximum length, 18 mm; maximum width, 15 mm; no veining; white in colour; medium sheen; cubic or round in shape; weight of 100 beans: maximum 90 g; clean bean, practically free of any visible foreign matter; free of any foreign smell and/or taste; free of external moisture. The moisture content of the waxy bean must not be less than 60 % while that of the dry bean must not be less than 10 %. The protein content must be greater than or equal to 9 % (on a wet basis) for the waxy bean and greater than or equal to 24 % (of dry matter) for the dry bean. Particularly thin, imperceptible tegument after cooking.
3.3.   Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

The seed used for reproduction must come from fields within the municipalities of the defined area.
3.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

All production steps for ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ are carried out within the area indicated in point 4.
3.5.   Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product the registered name refers to


                  ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ PDO must be released for consumption in accordance with the following procedures: the fresh product must be sold in the following types of sealed packages: nets weighing a maximum of 10 kg, crates weighing a maximum of 15 kg, the dry product must be sold in the following types of sealed packages: cardboard boxes or bags made of jute or another recyclable material weighing a maximum of 5 kg.
3.6.   Specific rules concerning labelling of the product the registered name refers to

The labels affixed to the packaging must bear, in clear and legible print, the following wordings: ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ and ‘denominazione di origine protetta’ (‘protected designation of origin’) and the acronym ‘DOP’ (‘PDO’) in larger print than that used for the other wordings, i.e. the name, business name and address of the packager or producer; the quantity of product actually contained in the package, expressed in accordance with the rules in force; the logo of the product as shown below. It is forbidden to add any description other than those provided for, including the following adjectives: tipo (‘type’), gusto (‘taste’), uso (‘use’), selezionato (‘selected’), scelto (‘selected’) or similar. However, the use of wordings referring to companies, names, business names and private trademarks which are not laudatory in nature and are not likely to mislead the purchaser are permitted. Such wordings may appear on the label in smaller print than that used to indicate the protected designation of origin.





4.   Concise definition of the geographical area

The production area of ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ PDO includes the entire territory defined by the irrigation area of the Basilicata side of the Valle del Mercure valley, incorporating the following municipalities in Potenza Province: Rotonda, Viggianello, Castelluccio Superiore and Castelluccio Inferiore.
5.   Link with the geographical area

Specificity of the geographical area: The land on which ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ are grown is situated in the Valle del Mercure and surrounded by mountains. The valley’s basin is of lacustrine origin and dates back to the Quaternary Period. Accordingly, the land is of alluvial origin, sandy, loamy/clayey, fresh, deep and fertile with good exposure and good water storage capacity. It is rich in nitrogen and sulphur and has no calcium. The growing area is marked by average temperatures that exceed 20 °C only for a brief period in July that coincides with the sowing season. The climate is basically mild with temperatures that are not very high during the production period and temperature ranges between day and night that favour the fertilisation of the pods and a high number of beans. Rainfall is abundant in the period from October to May. The area is very rich in fresh, unpolluted water from the springs of the Pollino National Park. The growing techniques used to produce ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ are characterised by the significant human input in the production process and the use of tools that are specific to the Valle del Mercure, such as the exclusive use of chestnut-wood stakes to support the beans obtained from the valley’s woods. The technique used to grow ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ is that which has been handed down over the years and involves a series of cultivation operations carried out entirely by hand, such as the construction of the support structure for the climbing beans, weeding and harvesting of the product. The structure used to support the beans uses chestnut-wood stakes that vary in size depending on whether the ‘dibbling’ or ‘net’ system is used to allow the climbing beans to grow.
Specificity of the product: The main quality characteristics of ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ are the high protein content of the dried beans, the very thin tegument and the appearance of the pods, which are completely white, with large beans with a characteristic round/oval shape and no veining. Historically, the high protein content meant that the beans were used particularly often in the production area, to the extent that they were known as the ‘meat of the poor’ precisely because they contributed vegetable protein to the daily diet at a low cost. In addition, the fineness of the tegument, which greatly reduces cooking time, and the absence of veining on the pods — another characteristic that is highly appreciated by consumers because it leads to the cooking liquid being coloured less — mean that ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ are particularly appreciated for use in cooking.
Causal link between the geographical area and the quality or characteristics of the product (for a PDO) or a specific quality, the reputation or other characteristic of the product (for a PGI):
The main characteristics of ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ that make their quality stand out, such as the high protein content of the dried beans, the low tegument percentage as compared to total weight (shown by the work carried out by the National Research Council in Bari and published in ‘Gli agro-ecotipi di fagioli della Basilicata’ [‘The Agro-ecotypes of Beans in Basilicata’]), the colour and the lack of veining are enhanced by the particular climatic conditions of the area that have favoured the spread of this product. The high nitrogen and sulphur content and the lack of calcium of the soil in which ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ are grown are directly linked to the production of beans with a high protein content and the formation of a very thin tegument. The fact that the area is rich in water has always allowed farmers to correctly irrigate the fields. This abundance of water not only allows the accumulation of starch but also helps to reduce the thickness of the beans’ tegument. The growing system, which is used exclusively by producers in the Valle del Mercure, differs greatly from the other systems used in Italy. Besides making it easy to harvest the pods, it allows good aeration, which prevents the accumulation of moisture between the rows that would lead to darkening and stains on the very delicate white pods. In this area of the Pollino, ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ are a fundamental element of local history and gastronomy. Nowadays, dishes with these beans are not only still consumed in homes, they are also served in restaurants and farm tourism establishments and during festivals such as the annual ‘Sagra del Fagiolo Bianco di Rotonda’ (Annual Festival of Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda), which has reached its twentieth year. This event continues to attract thousands of people to Rotonda in the Pollino National Park and clearly illustrates the close link between this product and the area in which it is grown. ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ have thus become popular in all culinary contexts, in particular in the world of local and regional quality catering, and their reputation is fully borne out by their appearance on various television programmes, in specialised magazines and in cookery books. In 2004, ‘Fagioli Bianchi di Rotonda’ were added to the list of traditional products of the Region of Basilicata.

Reference to publication of the product specification


Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry - Product specifications of approved PDO, PGI and TSG products - 1.6 Fruit, vegetables and cereals, fresh or processed (in Italian)


(1)  
            OJ L 179, 19.6.2014, p. 17.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/505/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)