Commission Regulation (EC) No 105/2008 of 5 February 2008 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 as regards intervention on the market in butter

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in milk and milk products⁽¹⁾, and in particular Articles 10 and 40 thereof,

Whereas:

1. Commission Regulation (EC) No 2771/1999⁽²⁾ lays down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 as regards intervention on the market in butter and cream. Council Regulation (EC) No 1152/2007 of 26 September 2007 amending Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 on the common organisation of the market in milk and milk products⁽³⁾ amended the provisions concerning intervention and private storage for butter and cream. In view of those new arrangements and in the light of the experience gained, it is appropriate to amend and, where necessary simplify the detailed rules governing intervention on the market in butter and cream. In the interests of clarity Regulation (EC) No 2771/1999 should be repealed and replaced by a new Regulation.

2. Article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 lays down the criteria under which butter has to be bought at fixed price or through invitation to tender and under which circumstances buying-in is to be suspended. Practical arrangements should be provided concerning the buying-in process. To ensure compliance with the requirements as to the quality and presentation of the butter at the time when the offer is submitted, and after its entry into storage, sellers should be required to submit a written commitment to that effect together with their offer. Offers should also be accompanied by a security, in order to guarantee that the offer will be maintained and that the butter of the required quality will be delivered within time limits to be laid down.

3. To be eligible for intervention butter should meet the requirements laid down in Article 6 of Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 as well as the conditions of quality and presentation, which need to be defined. The methods of analysis and detailed rules governing quality control should also be specified and, if the situation so requires, provision should be made for checks of radioactivity in butter, the maximum levels of which need to be established, where appropriate, by Community legislation. However, it should be possible for Member States to authorise a system of self checking, subject to certain conditions.

4. To ensure that the intervention arrangements function smoothly, it is necessary to specify the conditions for the approval of manufacturing undertakings and verification of compliance therewith. To ensure that the arrangements are effective, provision should be made for action to be taken if these conditions are not complied with. Since butter may be bought in by a competent body belonging to a Member State other than that on whose territory it was produced, the competent body which does the buying-in should in such cases be able to verify that the conditions relating to quality and presentation are complied with.

5. Article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 stipulates that buying-in is to be carried out by tendering procedure. The Commission may decide to suspend intervention buying-in once a certain quantity offered for intervention has been reached. In order to put the Commission in the position to take such a decision, provisions should be adopted for the Commission to monitor the quantity of butter offered for public intervention.

6. Once these quantities have been reached, the Commission may also decide to carry on buying-in by way of a standing tendering procedure. Relevant detailed rules should be determined. To ensure that all interested parties in the Community are treated equally, invitations to tender should be advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union. The details of the tender, particularly the minimum quantity, deadlines for submission and the maximum buying-in price should be defined.

7. It should be possible to guarantee the quality of the butter, and the terms of buying-in by means of checks at different stages during storage. Failure to comply with the requirements should not impose an additional burden on the Community budget. Provision should therefore be made for sub-standard butter to be taken back by the operator, who should be obliged to bear the storage costs incurred.

8. The Member States' obligations should be specified with a view to the proper management of stocks in storage, by stipulating a maximum distance for the place of storage and the costs to be borne when that distance is exceeded, and requiring, in particular, that stocks be accessible, that batches be identified and that butter in storage be insured against risks. In order to ensure a uniform frequency and level of checks, it is necessary to specify the nature and number of inspections of storage premises to be performed by the national authorities.

9. Proper management of intervention stock requires the butter to be resold as soon as outlets become available. In order to better manage quantities and to avoid destabilising the market, the selling price should be set following a tendering procedure. Conditions for sale, entailing the lodging of a security should be laid down, particularly as regards the time limits for payment. Tenderers should have the possibility to distinguish between sweet cream and sour cream butter in their offer and the selling price fixed may vary according to the location of the butter offered for sale.

10. Article 6(3) of Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 provides for aid to be granted for the private storage of butter. To ensure that the arrangements can be monitored properly, provision should be made for a contract and a set of specifications regarding storage conditions. For the same reason, detailed rules should also be laid down regarding documentation, accounting and the frequency of checks and inspection procedures, particularly in respect of the requirements laid down in Article 6(3). To facilitate checks on the presence of the butter stored under private storage contracts, there should be provision for them to be removed from storage in whole lots unless the Member State authorises removal of a smaller quantity.

11. To ensure that the private storage scheme is properly managed, it is appropriate to fix annually the amount of the aid. The dates of entry into storage and the dates on which storers may remove from storage, storage periods and aid amounts may be changed to take account of the market situation.

12. The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for milk and milk products,

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