55 dress the lack of transparency of prices and improve the knowledge of the impact of regulation along the food supply chain. the commission will present a follow-up report on this roadmap at the end of 2009. in addition, a fast-track survey of dairy markets was recommended to the european competition network food sub-group meeting in early july 2009, to stimulate and coordinate simultaneous monitoring and data collection by national competition authorities. furthermore, as part of the retail market monitoring exercise, the commission is also examining best practices across member states in terms of contractual relations between suppliers and retailers. the work will be completed by the end of 2009. at the moment, concentration is much more important at the retail level than at the processing level. • The Commission has been looking at the problems of less-favoured areas since 2005, taking account inter alia of the court of auditors' special report no 4/2003. the discussion has already resulted in amendments to the legislative framework for these areas and is still ongoing (see the recent communication from the commission com(2009) 161 of 21 april 2009). the specific situation of mountain areas will be addressed by a commission working paper to be presented in november 2009. replies of tHe commission with regard to the environmental consequences of any territorial concentration of production, the commission is convinced that action should be taken at two levels: (i) the legislative level, while monitoring compliance with environmental protection standards and good agricultural and environmental practices that are requirements for direct aid and aid under the second rural development axis; (ii) the incentive level, through aid for introducing greener agricultural practices, such as agro-environmental measures under rural development. • The Commission agrees that providing value and satisfaction to consumers and users of european dairy products is essential to securing a sustainable income for producers. it recognises the importance of satisfying consumer needs for a range of high-value and basic products, the need to exploit all milk constituents, including protein and fat, and takes account of the diversity of milk production conditions throughout the community special report no 14/2009 – Have the management instruments applied to the market in milk and milk products achieved their main objectives? 56 introduction 3. first indent it should be pointed out, as the commission did in the european court of auditors’ special report no 6/2001 on milk quotas, that it is clear from the council's decisions that adapting milk production to the level of internal consumption was neither a political nor an economic objective (see the commission's reply to paragraphs 68–69 of special report no 6/2001). third indent in light of the expiry of milk quotas, the commission has proposed and the council and the european parliament have accepted a gradual and planned increase in quotas. this will allow milk producers to adapt to the new situation during the transitional period in order to ensure a soft landing by 1 april 2015. in addition, the adjustment of farm structures to new market opportunities or changes in policies is supported to a great extent via rural development funding. fourth indent price is one of the factors that can improve the competitiveness of eu products on international markets, but in many product segments other factors, including product innovation and high quality, are critical to satisfying consumer and user needs. replies of tHe commission 8. the change in policy not only influences the eu budget and the farmers receiving direct aid. as institutional prices decrease, market prices will also adjust, depending on supply and demand, and consumers should also benefit from lower market prices, dependent on the efficiency of price transmission. furthermore, this has reduced the cost not only for member states but also for industries selling the products and/or using the supported products. moreover, the policy change offers a better negotiating position in the multilateral context. 
56 inledning 3. Första strecksatsen det bör framhållas att anpassningen av mjölkproduktionen till den inhemska konsumtionen aldrig utgjort vare sig ett politiskt eller ekonomiskt mål, vilket kommissionen påpekade i svaret på europeiska revisionsrättens särskilda rapport nr 6/2001 om mjölkkvoter (se kommissionens svar på punkterna 68–69 i särskild rapport nr 6/2001). tredje strecksatsen eftersom mjölkkvoterna kommer att avskaffas, har kommissionen föreslagit en gradvis och planerad ökning av kvoterna som godkänts av rådet och europaparlamentet. denna ökning kommer att göra det möjligt för producenterna att anpassa sig till den nya situationen under övergångsperioden för att garantera en mjuklandning den 1 april 2015. dessutom bidrar medel för landsbygdens sutveckling i hög grad till anpassningen av gårdsstrukturerna till de nya marknadsmöjligheterna eller till den ändrade politiken.