Brussels, 12/10/2004 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, the European Commission adopted measures intended to prevent crises in the Community cauliflower sector. The aim of the regulation is to allow part of the cauliflower production to be used for processing when price conditions on the fresh produce market are bad. Aid of 50 euros per tonne is granted to producer organisations (PO) when the price is low.
This provision, which is totally new in the history of common market organisation (CMO) for fruit and vegetables, will last for just one year and will not concern over 50,000 tonnes, or 2.5% of Community production. According to the provisions of the regulation, quantities eligible for processing aid must be subject to contracts between the PO and the processor, and POs must submit a request to the relevant Member State authorities beforehand.
Quantities benefiting from this measure, together with quantities benefiting from withdrawal aid (in the context of the fruit and vegetable CMO), cannot exceed 15% of quantities marketed by the PO. A reference quotation will be defined in each region of production, as well as an average price corresponding to the average of this quotation over the last five harvest years (excluding, however, the highest average price in one year and the lowest price in one year). Aid will then be paid out when prices are below 80% of the average price defined. Eleven Member States out of 25 produce cauliflower: Italy (620,000 tonnes), Spain (490,000 tonnes), France (425,000 tonnes), Poland (190,000 tonnes), United Kingdom (175,000 tonnes), Germany (165,000 tonnes), Belgium (90,000 tonnes), Netherlands (53,000 tonnes), Portugal (50,000 tonnes), Ireland (8,500 tonnes) and Malta (5,000 tonnes).