Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products and repealing Council Regulations (EEC) No 922/72, (EEC) No 234/79, (EC) No 1037/2001 and (EC) No 1234/2007

PART I

INTRODUCTORY PROVISIONS

Article 1

Scope

Agricultural products as defined in paragraph 1 shall be divided into the following sectors as listed in the respective parts of Annex I:

(a) cereals, Part I;

(b) rice, Part II;

(c) sugar, Part III;

(d) dried fodder, Part IV;

(e) seeds, Part V;

(f) hops, Part VI;

(g) olive oil and table olives, Part VII;

(h) flax and hemp, Part VIII;

(i) fruit and vegetables, Part IX;

(j) processed fruit and vegetable products, Part X;

(k) bananas, Part XI;

(l) wine, Part XII;

(m) live trees and other plants, bulbs, roots and the like, cut flowers and ornamental foliage, Part XIII;

(n) tobacco, Part XIV;

(o) beef and veal, Part XV;

(p) milk and milk products, Part XVI;

(q) pigmeat, Part XVII;

(r) sheepmeat and goatmeat, Part XVIII;

(s) eggs, Part XIX;

(t) poultrymeat, Part XX;

(u) ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin, Part XXI;

(v) apiculture products, Part XXII;

(w) silkworms, Part XXIII;

(x) other products, Part XXIV.

Article 2

General common agricultural policy (CAP) provisions

Regulation (EU) 2021/2116 of the European Parliament and of the Council (¹) and the provisions adopted pursuant to it shall apply in relation to the measures set out in this Regulation.

Article 3

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation:

(a) "less developed regions" means those regions defined as such in point (a) of the first subparagraph of Article 90(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (³).

(b) "adverse climatic event which can be assimilated to a natural disaster" means weather conditions such as frost, hail, ice, rain or drought which destroy more than 30 % of the average annual production of a given farmer in the preceding three-year period or a three-year average based on the preceding five-year period, excluding the highest and lowest entry.

Article 4

Adjustments to the Common Customs Tariff nomenclature used for agricultural products

Where necessary in order to take into account amendments to the combined nomenclature, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 adjusting the description of products and references in this Regulation to the headings or subheadings of the combined nomenclature.

Article 5

Conversion rates for rice

The Commission may adopt implementing acts fixing the conversion rates for rice at various stages of processing.

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 229(2).

Article 6

Marketing years

The following marketing years shall be established:

(a) 1 January to 31 December of a given year for the fruit and vegetables, processed fruit and vegetables and banana sectors;

(b) 1 April to 31 March of the following year for the dried fodder and silkworm sectors;

(c) 1 July to 30 June of the following year for: (i) the cereals sector; (ii) the seeds sector; (iii) the flax and hemp sector; (iv) the milk and milk products sector;

(d) 1 August to 31 July of the following year for the wine sector;

(e) 1 September to 31 August of the following year for the rice sector and with respect to table olives;

(f) 1 October to 30 September of the following year for the sugar sector and with respect to olive oil.

Article 7

Reference thresholds

The following reference thresholds are fixed:

(a) as regards the cereals sector, EUR 101,31/tonne, related to the wholesale stage for goods delivered to the warehouse, before unloading;

(b) as regards paddy rice, EUR 150/tonne for the standard quality as defined in point A of Annex III, related to the wholesale stage for goods delivered to the warehouse, before unloading;

(c) as regards sugar of standard quality as defined in point B of Annex III, related to unpacked sugar, ex-factory: (i) for white sugar: EUR 404,4/tonne; (ii) for raw sugar: EUR 335,2/tonne;

(d) as regards the beef and veal sector, EUR 2 224 /tonne for carcasses of male bovine animals of conformation/fat cover class R3 as laid down in the Union scale for the classification of carcasses of bovine animals aged eight months or more referred to in point A of Annex IV;

(e) as regards the milk and milk products sector: (i) EUR 246,39 per 100 kg for butter; (ii) EUR 169,80 per 100 kg for skimmed milk powder;

(f) as regards pigmeat, EUR 1 509,39 /tonne for pig carcasses of a standard quality defined in terms of weight and lean meat content as laid down in the Union scale for the classification of pig carcasses referred to in point B of Annex IV as follows: (i) carcasses weighing from 60 to less than 120 kg: class E; (ii) carcasses weighing from 120 to 180 kg: class R;

(g) as regards the olive oil sector: (i) EUR 1 779 /tonne for extra virgin olive oil; (ii) EUR 1 710 /tonne for virgin olive oil; (iii) EUR 1 524 /tonne for lampante olive oil with two degrees of free acidity, this amount being reduced by EUR 36,70/tonne for each additional degree of acidity.

PART II

INTERNAL MARKET

TITLE I

MARKET INTERVENTION

CHAPTER I

Public intervention and aid for private storage

Section 1

General provisions on public intervention and aid for private storage

Article 8

Scope

This Chapter lays down rules on market intervention concerning:

(a) public intervention, where products are bought in by the competent authorities of the Member States and stored by them until disposed of; and

(b) granting of aid for the storage of products by private operators.

Article 9

Origin of eligible products

Products eligible for buying-in under public intervention or for the granting of aid for private storage shall originate in the Union. In addition, if they come from crops, those crops shall have been harvested in the Union, and if they come from milk, that milk shall have been produced in the Union.

Article 10

Union scales for the classification of carcasses

Union scales for the classification of carcasses shall apply in accordance with, respectively, points A and B of Annex IV in the beef and veal sector as regards carcasses of bovine animals aged eight months or more and in the pigmeat sector as regards pigs other than those that have been used for breeding.

In the sheepmeat and goatmeat sector, Member States may apply a Union scale for the classification of sheep carcasses in accordance with the rules laid down in point C of Annex IV.

Section 2

Public intervention

Article 11

Products eligible for public intervention

Public intervention shall apply in respect of the following products in accordance with the conditions laid down in this Section and any additional requirements and conditions that may be determined by the Commission, by means of delegated acts pursuant to Article 19 and implementing acts pursuant to Article 20:

(a) common wheat, durum wheat, barley and maize;

(b) paddy rice;

(c) fresh or chilled meat of the beef and veal sector falling within CN codes 0201 10 00 and 0201 20 20 to 0201 20 50 ;

(d) butter produced directly and exclusively from pasteurised cream obtained directly and exclusively from cow's milk in an approved undertaking in the Union of a minimum butterfat content, by weight, of 82 % and of a maximum water content, by weight, of 16 %;

(e) skimmed milk powder of top quality made from cow's milk in an approved undertaking in the Union by the spray process, with a minimum protein content of 34,0 % by weight of the fat free dry matter.

Article 12

Public intervention periods

Public intervention shall be available for:

(a) common wheat, from 1 October to 31 May;

(b) durum wheat, barley and maize, throughout the year;

(c) paddy rice, throughout the year;

(d) beef and veal, throughout the year;

(e) butter and skimmed milk powder, from 1 February to 30 September.

Article 13

Opening and closing of public intervention

During the periods referred to in Article 12, public intervention:

(a) shall be open for common wheat, butter and skimmed milk powder;

(b) may be opened by the Commission, by means of implementing acts, for durum wheat, barley, maize and paddy rice (including specific varieties or types of paddy rice), if the market situation so requires. Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 229(2);

(c) may be opened for the beef and veal sector by the Commission, by means of implementing acts adopted without applying the procedure referred to in Article 229(2) or (3), if, over a representative period determined pursuant to point (c) of the first paragraph of Article 20 the average market price in a Member State or in a region of a Member State, recorded on the basis of the Union scale for the classification of carcasses of bovine animals referred to in point A of Annex IV, is below 85 % of the reference threshold laid down in point (d) of Article 7(1).

Article 14

Buying-in at a fixed price or tendering

Where public intervention is open pursuant to Article 13(1), measures on fixing buying-in prices for the products referred to in Article 11 as well as, where applicable, measures on quantitative limitations where buying-in is carried out at a fixed price, shall be taken by the Council in accordance with Article 43(3) TFEU.

Article 15

Public intervention price

Public intervention price means:

(a) the price at which products shall be bought in under public intervention where this is done at a fixed price; or

(b) the maximum price at which products eligible for public intervention may be bought in where this is done by tendering.

Article 16

General principles on disposal from public intervention

Disposal of products bought in under public intervention shall take place in such a way as to:

(a) avoid any disturbance of the market,

(b) ensure equal access to goods and equal treatment of purchasers, and

(c) be in compliance with the commitments resulting from international agreements concluded in accordance with the TFEU.

Section 3

Aid for private storage

Article 17

Eligible products

Aid for private storage may be granted in respect of the following products in accordance with the conditions set out in this Section and any further requirements and conditions to be adopted by the Commission, by means of delegated acts pursuant to Article 18(1) or Article 19 and implementing acts pursuant to Article 18(2) or Article 20:

(a) white sugar;

(b) olive oil and table olives;

(c) flax fibre;

(d) fresh or chilled meat of bovine animals aged eight months or more;

(e) butter produced from cream obtained directly and exclusively from cow's milk;

(f) cheese;

(g) skimmed milk powder made from cow's milk;

(h) pigmeat;

(i) sheepmeat and goatmeat.

Point (f) of the first paragraph is restricted to cheese benefiting from a protected designation of origin or from a protected geographical indication under Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 that is stored beyond the period of maturation laid down in the product specification for the product referred to in Article 7 of that Regulation and/or a period of maturation that contributes to increasing the value of the cheese.

Article 18

Conditions for granting aid

In order to provide for market transparency, the Commission shall, where necessary, be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 laying down the conditions under which it may decide to grant private storage aid for the products listed in Article 17, taking into account:

(a) average recorded Union market prices and the reference thresholds and production costs for the products concerned; and/or

(b) the need to respond in a timely way to a particularly difficult market situation or economic developments having a significant negative impact on the margins in the sector.

The Commission may adopt implementing acts

(a) granting private storage aid for the products listed in Article 17, taking into account the conditions referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article;

(b) restricting the granting of private storage aid.

Those implementing acts shall be adopted in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 229(2).

Section 4

Common provisions on public intervention and aid for private storage

Article 19

Delegated powers

In order to ensure that products bought in under public intervention or subject to aid for private storage are suitable for long-term storage and are of sound, fair and marketable quality, and in order to take into account the specific characteristics of the different sectors for the purposes of ensuring the cost-effective operation of public intervention and private storage, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 laying down the requirements and conditions to be met by those products, in addition to the requirements laid down in this Regulation. Those requirements and conditions shall aim to guarantee, for the products bought in and stored:

(a) their quality with respect to quality parameters, quality groups, quality grades, categories, product characteristics and age;

(b) their eligibility with respect to quantities, packaging including labelling, preservation, previous storage contracts, approval of undertakings and the stage of the products to which the public intervention price and the aid for private storage applies.

In order to ensure appropriate storage capacity and the efficiency of the public intervention system in terms of cost-effectiveness, distribution and access for operators, and in order to maintain the quality of products bought in under public intervention for their disposal at the end of the storage period, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 laying down:

(a) the requirements to be fulfilled by storage places for all products subject to public intervention;

(b) rules on the storage of products inside and outside the Member State responsible for them and for the treatment of such products as regards customs duties and any other amounts to be granted or levied under the CAP.

In order to ensure that aid for private storage has the desired effect on the market, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227 laying down:

(a) rules and conditions applicable where the quantity stored is lower than the contracted quantity;

(b) the conditions for granting an advance payment of such aid;

(c) the conditions under which it may be decided that products covered by private storage contracts may be re-marketed or disposed of.

In order to ensure the proper functioning of the public intervention and private storage systems, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227:

(a) providing for the use of tendering procedures guaranteeing equal access to goods and equal treatment of operators;

(b) laying down the additional conditions to be fulfilled by operators in order to facilitate the effective management and control of the system for Member States and operators;

(c) laying down the requirement for operators to lodge a security guaranteeing the fulfilment of their obligations.

In order to take account of technical developments and of the needs of sectors referred to in Article 10, as well as of the need to standardise the presentation of the different products for the purposes of improving market transparency, price recording and the application of the market intervention measures, the Commission shall be empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 227:

(a) adapting and updating the provisions of Annex IV on the Union scales for the classification, identification and presentation of carcasses;

(b) laying down supplementary provisions relating to classification, including by qualified classifiers, to grading, including by automated grading techniques, to identification, weighing and marking of carcasses and to the calculation of average Union prices and to the weighting coefficients used in the calculation of those prices;

(c) laying down, in the beef and veal sector, derogations from provisions and specific derogations which may be granted by Member States to slaughterhouses in which few bovine animals are slaughtered, and additional provisions for the products concerned, including regarding the classes of conformation and fat cover and, in sheepmeat sector, further provisions as regards weight, colour of meat and fat cover and the criteria for the classification of light lambs;

(d) providing Member States with the authorisation not to apply the grading scale for classification of pig carcasses and the authorisation to use assessment criteria in addition to weight and estimated lean-meat content, or laying down derogations from that scale.

Article 20

Implementing powers in accordance with the examination procedure

The Commission shall adopt implementing acts laying down the measures necessary for the uniform application of this Chapter. Those measures may, in particular, concern the following:

(a) the costs payable by the operator where products delivered for public intervention do not meet the minimum quality requirements;

(b) the fixing of minimum storage capacity for intervention storage places;

(c) the representative periods, markets, and market prices necessary for the application of this Chapter;

(d) the delivery of the products to be bought in under public intervention, the transport costs to be borne by the offerer, the taking over of the products by paying agencies and the payment;

(e) the different operations connected with the boning process for the beef and veal sector;

(f) the practical arrangements for the packaging, marketing and labelling of products;

(g) the procedures for the approval of undertakings producing butter and skimmed milk powder for the purposes of this Chapter;

(h) any authorisation of storage outside the territory of the Member State where the products have been bought in and stored;

(i) the sale or disposal of products bought in under public intervention, regarding, in particular, selling prices, the conditions for removal from storage, the subsequent use or destination of products released, including procedures relating to products made available for use in the scheme referred to in Article 16(2), including transfers between Member States;