Publication of the communication of an approved standard amendment to a product specification of a geographical indication in accordance with Article 5(4) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/27
Date: 2025-12-15
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, European Commission
Subjects: Italy, Sicily, consumer information, designation of origin, labelling, product designation, quality control of agricultural products, tropical fruit




C_202506672EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/6672


15.12.2025






Publication of the communication of an approved standard amendment to a product specification of a geographical indication in accordance with Article 5(4) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/27 (1)

(C/2025/6672)

COMMUNICATION OF APPROVAL OF A STANDARD AMENDMENT
(Article 24 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143)


                     ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’
                  


EU reference number: PDO-IT-0241-AM01 – 11.9.2025
                  

1.   Product name


               ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’
            
2.   Geographical indication type







☐


PGI










☑


PDO










☐


GI




3.   Sector







☑


Agricultural products










☐


Wine










☐


Spirit drinks




4.   Country to which the geographical area belongs

Italy
5.   Member State authority communicating the standard amendment


Name

Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry – Promotion of Agri Food Quality (PQA) 1
6.   Qualification as a standard amendment

The amendments are standard amendments within the meaning of Article 24(4) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 as they do not include a change in the name, do not risk voiding the link and do not entail further restrictions on the marketing of the product.
7.   Description of the approved standard amendment(s)


Title

Article 1 of the product specification. Change of title and legal reference

Description

The title of Article 1 of the product specification has been changed from ‘Name of the product’ to ‘Designation’. The reference to Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 has also been updated.






☐


The amendment affects the single document.





Title

Article 2 of the product specification and point 4.2 of the single document. Change of title and revision of text

Description

The title of Article 2 of the product specification has been changed from ‘Varietal range’ to ‘Description of the product’.
In addition, the following text has been added to Article 2, having been moved in full from Article 6 of the product specification:
The fruit are differentiated by their ripening period:






—


Agostani or Latini (first flowering),










—


Scozzolati (second flowering).




Cultivars: yellow, red, white.

               ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’, when released for consumption, must comply with the usual quality standards and have the following characteristics:






—


Weight of each fruit not less than 90 g;










—


Percentage of pulp not less than 60 % of the weight of the whole fruit when fresh;










—


No malformations;










—


Colour and shape, characteristic of the cultivar (fruit harvested during the onset of ripening are accepted);










—


Refractometry index not less than 11 %.




The following values have also been changed: weight of the fruit (from not less than 95 g to not less than 90 g) and the refractometry index (from not less than 13 to not less than 11 %).






☑


The amendment affects the single document.





Title

Article 4 of the product specification. Change of title and complete change of text

Description

The title of Article 4 of the product specification has been changed from ‘Origin of the product, history, importance and dissemination’ to ‘Origin of the product’.
The wording of the Article has been entirely replaced by the following:
Each stage in the production process is monitored, with all inputs and outputs being recorded. This ensures product traceability, as does the fact that the control body keeps lists of the land registry parcels where production takes place, and of producers and packagers, and is notified of the quantities produced. All natural and legal persons entered in the relevant lists are subject to checks by the control body in accordance with the product specification and the associated control plan.






☐


The amendment affects the single document.





Title

Article 5 of the product specification. Change of title and two figures

Description

The title of Article 5 of the product specification has been changed from ‘Soils, planting, cultivation techniques, harvest, processing’ to ‘Production method’.
The density of planting has also been changed from 400 to 600 plants per hectare, and a yield limit of 35 tonnes of product per hectare has been introduced.
Finally, changes have been made to the forecast time of ‘scozzolatura’ (removal of first blossom), which must take place between the end of May and the first half of June, and the date of the start of the harvest of the first flowering fruit (‘Agostani’), which can start as of August.






☐


The amendment affects the single document.





Title

Article 6 of the product specification. Change of title and complete change of text

Description

The title of Article 6 has been changed from ‘Characteristics of the product’ to ‘Link’.
The content of Article 6 of the product specification has been moved, as already mentioned, to Article 2, whilst the following text, no longer relevant, has been removed:

               ‘Traceability: in order to allow the certifying bodies to perform their monitoring and supervisory work, the PDO product must be that of producers operating within the territory outlined in Article 3, entered in the appropriate list.’
            
The new text of Article 6 reproduces in full that of the former Article 4.






☑


The amendment affects the single document.





Title

Article 7. Change of title and legal reference

Description

The title of Article 7 of the product specification has been changed from ‘Controls and monitoring’ to ‘Controls’, and the references to Articles 39 and 40 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 have been updated.






☐


The amendment affects the single document.





Title

Revision of Article 8 of the product specification and of points 4.5 and 4.6 of the single document

Description

The update of the text has introduced conditions for the packaging and labelling of the product when sold loose, the possibility of displaying on the packaging the words ‘Prickly Pear from Etna’ and the characteristics of the designation logo to be used on the packaging or directly on individual fruit in the case of products sold loose.






☑


The amendment affects the single document.




SINGLE DOCUMENT

Designations of origin and geographical indications of agricultural products



                     ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’
                  


EU reference number: PDO-IT-0241-AM01 – 11.9.2025
                  

1.   Designation


               ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’
            
2.   Geographical indication type







☑


PDO










☐


PGI










☐


GI




3.   Country to which the defined geographical area belongs

Italy
4.   Description of the agricultural product

4.1.   Classification of the agricultural product in accordance with the Combined Nomenclature heading and code, as referred to in Article 6(1) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143


                  0810  – Other fruit, fresh
08 – EDIBLE FRUIT AND NUTS; PEEL OF CITRUS FRUIT OR MELONS
4.2.   Description of the agricultural product to which the registered name applies

The Opuntia ficus-indica cultivars in the area in question are: the yellow, also known as Sulfarina or Nostrale, the red, also known as Sanguigna and the white, also known as Muscaredda or Sciannarina. Other ecotypes are permitted, up to a limit of 5 %. The varieties named Trunzara and Pannittera of the white, red and yellow cultivars are especially prized.
The fruits are differentiated by their ripening period:






—



Agostani or Latini (first flowering),










—



Scozzolati (second flowering).




Cultivars: yellow, red, white.


                     ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna
                  ’, when released for consumption, must comply with the usual quality standards and have the following characteristics:






—


Weight of fruit: not less than 90 g;










—


Percentage of pulp not less than 60 % of the weight of the whole fruit when fresh;










—


No malformations;










—


Colour and shape, characteristic of the cultivar (fruit harvested during the onset of ripening are accepted);










—


Refractometry index not less than 11 %.




4.3.   Derogations on sourcing of feed (for products of animal origin designated by a Protected Designation of Origin only) and restrictions on sourcing of raw materials (for processed products designated by a Protected Geographical Indication only)

—
4.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the identified geographical area

All steps in production of ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’ PDO must take place in the identified geographical area.
4.5.   Specific rules concerning packaging, slicing, grating etc. of the agricultural product the registered name refers to

Once it has been washed and its spines removed, the product is made available for consumption in various types of new packaging made of wood, cardboard or plastic, in accordance with the legislation in force. Service packaging intended to contain loose product is allowed.
The three different kinds of cultivar can traditionally be presented in the same container.
4.6.   Specific rules concerning the labelling of the agricultural product the registered name refers to


                  ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’ may be released for consumption with the European symbol for PROTECTED DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN on each piece of packaging. The packaging must clearly bear the logo of ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’ in clear indelible letters and distinguishable from any other wording. The wording ‘
                  Prickly Pear from Etna
                  ’ is allowed. The packager’s name, company name and address and the original gross weight must also appear on the packaging, as well as the names of the holdings from which the fruit has come, if available. Indicating the product’s week of harvest and the terms ‘Agostani’ or ‘Latini’ and ‘Scozzolati’ or ‘Bastardoni’ referring to the ripening period are optional additions. The designation logo bears the words ‘D.O.P. DENOMINAZIONE D’ORIGINE PROTETTA’, with an image of Mount Etna immediately below, two cladodes bearing four fruit and the words ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’ immediately below that, and the letters ‘D.O.P.’ [PDO] to the right.





The use of a monochromatic black and white version is permitted.
The loose product must be sold using adhesive stickers showing the designation logo, as shown below, to be affixed to at least 70 % of the individual pieces of fruit present in the service packaging. The size of the sticker must be at least 2 cm × 2 cm.





4.7.   Concise definition of the geographical area

The ‘Ficodindia dell’Etna’ production area is located in the province of Catania (CT). It covers an area lying between 150 and 750 metres above sea level in the municipalities of Bronte, Adrano, Biancavilla, Santa Maria di Licodia, Ragalna, Camporotondo, Belpasso and Paternò.
5.   Link with the geographical area


Summary of the link

The historian Denis Mark Smith in his History of Sicily – Medieval Sicily 800-1713 notes that ‘in the late sixteenth century the Spanish introduced new and important plants to Sicily, such as the tomato from Peru, and maize and tobacco from Mexico. The most commonly used plant was the prickly pear from tropical America (the “West Indies” according to Christopher Columbus). The prickly pear, (Indian fig, or prickly pear cactus) transformed the Sicilian countryside and, because it was able to withstand long periods without water and spread easily in crevices of the rocks, it was deliberately planted to break down the lava on the fertile slopes of Mount Etna. This admirable hedge plant and its fruit contributed to the daily diet of rich and poor Sicilians alike’. In his Pictures from Sicily (1853), W. H. Barlett says that ‘of all the plant production on the lower slopes of Etna, the prickly pear was perhaps the one that grew best and reproduced surprisingly quickly.’ References to prickly pears (fichi opunzia) ‘in the cultivated area of Etna’ as defined in Spallanzani’s time (1792) can also be found in the works of P. Bembo, Borelli, Stoppani, Brydone etc. They are also referred to in S. Coppoler’s Del ficodindia, sua coltivazione in Sicilia e modo di ottenere i frutti tardivi (scuzzulari), Saggio storico-agrario (The prickly pear, its cultivation in Sicily and method for obtaining late-season fruit (scuzzulari), an historical-agricultural essay) (1827). In Notizie economico-statistiche (Economic and statistical notes), Mortillaro compiled the areas under ‘Ficheti d’India’ based on the Sicilian land registers for 1853. Jacini’s Atti della Giunta per l’Inchiesta Agraria (Governmental documents for the agricultural survey) (1884) sets out the area under ‘Ficheti d’India’ cultivation in Sicily.

Link with the geographical area

On the south-western slopes of Mount Etna the prickly pear has found the ideal conditions for becoming a characteristic feature of the landscape. The environmental conditions for its cultivation must be those traditional and typical of the area around Mount Etna. The production area enjoys a semi-arid, subtropical Mediterranean climate, with long, dry summers, rains concentrated in the autumn and winter and significant diurnal fluctuations in temperature. The volcanic soils, the dominant winds, the humidity and in particular the long exposure to the sun all endow the fruit with quality characteristics (colour, preservability and texture) that are hard to achieve in other production areas or elsewhere on Etna.

Electronic (URL) reference to the publication of the product specification


https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeAttachment.php/L/IT/D/1%252F8%252F2%252FD.81fd1f8ecc8307f89b80/P/BLOB%3AID%3D3343/E/docx?mode=download



(1)  Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2025/27 of 30 October 2024 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council with rules concerning the registration and the protection of geographical indications, traditional specialities guaranteed and optional quality terms and repealing Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014 (OJ L, 2025/27, 15.1.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2025/27/oj).


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/6672/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)