2003/597/EC: Commission Decision of 4 August 2003 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Directive 93/25/EEC as regards the statistical surveys on sheep and goat population and production (notified under document number C(2003) 2801)

Commission Decision
of 4 August 2003
laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Directive 93/25/EEC as regards the statistical surveys on sheep and goat population and production
(notified under document number C(2003) 2801)
(2003/597/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Directive 93/25/EEC of 1 June 1993 on the statistical surveys to be carried out on sheep and goat stocks(1), as last amended by Directive 97/77/EC(2), and in particular Article 1(4), Article 2(2), Article 3(2) and (3), Article 7, Article 10(1) and (2) and Article 13(3) thereof,
Whereas:
(1) Commission Decision 94/434/EC of 30 May 1994 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Directive 93/25/EEC as regards the statistical surveys on sheep and goat population and production(3) has been substantially amended several times(4). In the interests of clarity and rationality the said Decision should be codified.
(2) Precise definitions are required in order to carry out the surveys provided for in Directive 93/25/EEC. This first requires the definition of the agricultural holdings covered by the survey. The individual categories into which the survey results are to be broken down should also be precisely defined, and the herd size classes and regions according to which the Member States draw up the survey results at regular intervals should be determined. A single definition of carcass weight is necessary for the drawing-up of slaughtering statistics.
(3) According to Directive 93/25/EEC, the Member States may, at their request, be authorised to use administrative sources instead of statistical surveys on sheep and goat stocks and the prescribed breakdown by herd size classes for the final results of even-numbered years.
(4) Applications have been made by the Member States for the various types of authorisation.
(5) This Decision is in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Agricultural Statistics,