Publication of an approved standard amendment to a product specification of a protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication in the agricultural products and foodstuffs sector, as referred to in Article 6b(2) and (3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014
Date: 2025-10-15
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_202505541EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/5541


15.10.2025






Publication of an approved standard amendment to a product specification of a protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication in the agricultural products and foodstuffs sector, as referred to in Article 6b(2) and (3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014
(C/2025/5541)

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


                     ‘Manteiga dos Açores’
                  


EU No: PDO-PT-02645-AM01 – 30.7.2025
                  


PDO (X) PGI ( )

1.   Name of product


               ‘Manteiga dos Açores’
            
2.   Member State to which the geographical area belongs

Portugal
3.   Member State authority communicating the standard amendment

DGADR – Direção-Geral de Agricultura e Desenvolvimento Rural [Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development]
—
4.   Description of the approved amendment(s)

Statement explaining why the amendment or amendments fall under the definition of a standard amendment as provided for in Article 24(4) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143:
This is a standard amendment because it does not include a change in the name or in the use of the name, does not risk voiding the link to the geographical area and does not entail further restrictions on the marketing of the product.
This amendment is being made to correct a typographical error in the value and unit of measurement for beta-carotene.

Characteristics of ‘Manteiga dos Açores’
               

Point 2.1 (Characteristics of ‘Manteiga dos Açores’) of the product specification says the following:


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

when it should say:


                  ‘... has a beta-carotene content of ≥ 2 mg/kg (measured using high-performance liquid chromatography), giving it a yellow to bright yellow colour’.

The unit of measurement and therefore the value for the beta-carotene content of the butter were found to have been incorrectly transcribed.
The method used to determine the beta-carotene content is high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), which is a technique used to analyse non-volatile or thermally unstable compounds and involves separating the components of the sample. It thus makes it possible to determine the concentration of the compound in the solution (mg/l or μg/l) or in a given product (mg/kg, μg/kg or %). It is therefore not possible for the beta-carotene content, as determined using HPLC, to be expressed in KOH/g, as that is used to quantify the acidity of the product.
Furthermore, the beta-carotene content of Manteiga dos Açores is 2,5 mg/kg on average, varying from 2 mg/kg to 6 mg/kg over the course of the year with the grass cycle.
The beta-carotene content of Manteiga dos Açores should therefore be greater than 2 mg/kg.
The amendment affects point 3.2 ‘Description of the product...’ of the single document.
The amendment affects the single document.
SINGLE DOCUMENT


                     ‘Manteiga dos Açores’
                  


EU No: PDO-PT-02645-AM01 – 30.7.2025
                  


PDO (X) PGI ( )

1.   Name(s) (of PDO or PGI)


               ‘Manteiga dos Açores’
            
2.   Member State or third country

Portugal
3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1.   Combined nomenclature code

04 – DAIRY PRODUCE; BIRDS’ EGGS; NATURAL HONEY; EDIBLE PRODUCTS OF ANIMAL ORIGIN, NOT ELSEWHERE SPECIFIED OR INCLUDED

                  0405  – Butter and other fats and oils derived from milk; dairy spreads
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 ≥ 2 mg/kg (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)

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, which are made up of nine islands in the North Atlantic.
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;










—


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










—


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 product specification


https://tradicional.dgadr.gov.pt/pt/cat/queijos-e-produtos-lacteos/1087-manteiga-dos-acores



(1)  
            OJ L 179, 19.6.2014, p. 17, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2014/664/oj.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/5541/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)