Commission Regulation (EU) No 738/2010 of 16 August 2010 laying down detailed rules on payments to German producer organisations in the hops sector

This Regulation lays down detailed rules for the implementation of Article 102a of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 as regards the payment to producer organisations in the hops sector in Germany referred to in that Article.

Terms used in this Regulation shall have the same meaning as when used in Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007, unless this Regulation provides otherwise.

The producer organisation seeking to benefit from the payment referred to in Article 102a of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 shall submit an application to the German competent authority each year, by a date to be fixed by Germany and which shall not be later than 30 September.

When fixing the date referred to in paragraph 1, Germany shall take into account the period of time that is required to ensure the proper administrative and financial management of the payment, including the requirement to carry out effective checks.

Applications shall be accompanied by supporting documents showing:

1. the identity and proof of recognition of the producer organisation;

2. the total of the eligible areas referred to in Article 3;

3. the details permitting identification of the members of the producer organisation and the eligible areas they cultivate;

4. the measures implemented, completed or ongoing and the corresponding expenditure incurred or committed during the calendar year of the aid application with a view to achieving the aims referred to in Article 122(c) of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007.

The amounts paid to the producer organisations in the hops sector shall be committed in order to finance measures to achieve the aims referred to in Article 122 of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007.

The amount to be paid to each producer organisation shall be calculated pro rata based on the eligible hop areas of its members as specified in paragraphs 3 to 6.

Eligible hop areas are hop areas in Germany which are entirely planted and which have already undergone normal tending operations in accordance with local standards, at the moment of submission of the application referred to in Article 2.

The areas referred to in paragraph 2 shall be planted at a uniform density of at least 1 500 plants per hectare in the case of double stringing/wiring, or at least 2 000 plants per hectare in the case of single stringing/wiring.

The areas referred to in paragraph 2 shall only include areas bounded by a line joining the outer stays of the poles. Where there are hop plants on that line, an additional strip of a width corresponding to the average width of an alleyway within that parcel may be added to each side of that area. The additional strip shall not form part of a public right of way. The two headlands at the ends of the hop rows that are needed for manoeuvring agricultural machinery may be included in the area, provided that the length of neither headland exceeds eight metres and they are counted only once, and they do not form part of a public right of way.

The areas referred to in paragraph 2 shall not include areas planted with young hop plants grown chiefly as nursery products.

Germany shall pay the aid to the beneficiaries between 16 October of the year in which the application was made and 31 January of the following year at the latest for each application that was submitted in accordance with this Regulation and German legislation, but only after all compulsory checks referred to in Article 5 have been carried out.

Any amount paid by the German competent authority which has not been committed by a producer organisation within a period of three years from the date of payment shall be paid back to the paying agency and deducted from the expenditure financed under the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund.

Prior to granting the payment, the competent national authority shall carry out administrative checks on all aid applications as well as on-the-spot checks on a significant sample of applications.

Administrative checks on aid applications shall be exhaustive and shall include:

1. cross-checks of the eligible areas claimed with, inter alia, data from the integrated administration and control system provided for in Chapter 4 of Title II of Regulation (EC) No 73/2009;

2. a verification of the contribution of the measures implemented to the aims referred to in Article 122(c) of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007.

On-the-spot checks shall be conducted at each producer organisation and cover at least 5 % of the aid to be distributed. Such checks shall verify in particular:

1. the producer organisations’ compliance with the recognition criteria;

2. the eligibility of the hop areas claimed;

3. a representative sample of the measures implemented, completed or ongoing and the corresponding expenditure incurred or committed during the calendar year of the aid application with a view to achieving the aims referred to in Article 122(c) of Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007.

Provided that the purpose of the on-the-spot check is not jeopardised, advance notice, strictly limited to the minimum time period necessary, may be given.

In all appropriate cases, Germany shall make use of the integrated administration and control system.

In the event of undue payment, Article 80 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1122/2009⁽¹⁾ shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Where an undue payment has been made as a result of a false declaration, false documents or serious negligence, the applicant shall, in addition to the recovery of unduly paid amounts, repay an amount equal to the difference between the amount initially paid and the amount to which the applicant was actually entitled. These amounts shall be payable to the EU budget.

The competent control authority shall draw up a control report on each on-the-spot check. The report shall describe precisely the different items and aspects controlled, and provide sufficient detail to allow review of the control work performed and results achieved.

The German competent authority executing the payments shall send an annual report to the Commission on the producer organisations’ use of the amounts received, including a description of the measures that have been financed by means of the payments. The report shall include details of the number of the on-the-spot checks carried out and the related findings, and shall be sent at the latest by 30 June of each year.

The notification referred to in paragraph 9 shall be made in accordance with Commission Regulation (EC) No 792/2009⁽²⁾.