Brussels, 27/09/2007 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 26 September, the Agriculture Council adopted a package of new measures to improve the management of the dairy sector. The measures set a single aid rate for all categories of milk distributed in schools, standardisation of the protein content of European milk with the international norm, and indication on the milk packaging of the exact fat content of drinking milk.
Only France abstained from voting to protest against the decision to remove certain aids for private storage of cream or skimmed milk powder. “The future of these tools cannot be decided independently of broader reflection on the future of public intervention in the dairy sector and instruments for regulating the dairy market”, the French authorities said, saying that abolition of such rules is a political decision that should have been discussed in the context of the CAP health check.
The main changes foreseen, to take effect as of 2008 are: - single Community aid of €18.15 per kilo for milk distributed in schools (whatever the fat content of the milk for pupils); - three categories of drinking milk can be produced and marketed in the Community (skimmed milk with 0.5% fat or less, semi-skimmed milk between 1.5% and 1.8% fat, and whole milk with 3.5% fat or more); - alignment with international norms for the protein content of powdered milk produced in the EU (minimum content of 34% expressed in fat free dry matter); - simplification of the rules for purchasing intervention butter; - removal of certain aids for private storage of cream or skimmed milk powder; - Community definition of butter quality; - compulsory use of the system of import licences is no longer necessary (the DG TAXUD monitoring system); - and the abolition of disposal aid for military forces. (lc)