No C 338/8 Official Journal of the European Communities 15.12.83
Proposal for a Council Regulation amending Regulation (EEC) No 337/79 on the
common organization of the market in wine
COM(83) 639 final
(Submitted by the Commission to the Council on 30 November 1983)
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN
COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the
European Economic Community, and in particular
Article 43 thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,
Having regard to the opinion of the European Par-
liament,
Whereas, although the Council recently made major
changes to the rules governing the wine sector,
further alterations to those provisions are required in
connection with the rationalization of the common
agricultural policy;
Whereas the system of short-term private storage aid
for table wine and must, which was intended to
stabilize the market at a period when supply and
demand were more or less in balance, plays
practically no role in the situation of constant
surpluses which has prevailed in the wine sector since
1979; whereas the measure's effectiveness no longer
justifies the appreciable financial burden it entails and
the measure should therefore be abolished;
Whereas the provisions concerning the minimum
natural alcoholic strength and the enrichment of wine
affect the balance of production between the different
wine-growing regions and the extent of the
production potential of Community wine-growing as
a whole; whereas the system at present in force,
which consists in authorizing the use of sucrose in
certain regions of the Community and simultaneously
granting aid for the use of concentrated must and
rectified concentrated must, while intended to place
producers on an equal footing, could encourage them
to make systematic use of enrichment, thus helping to
increase wine-growing potential artificially and
aggravate the problem of surpluses; whereas the
encouragement to increase yields should therefore be
removed, while safeguarding the balance between
producers; whereas for this purpose it is necessary, in
the medium term, to prohibit enrichment by the
addition of sucrose and to terminate the system of aid
to musts used for enrichment and, in the short term,
to raise the minimum natural alcoholic strength in the
different wine-growing zones and limit and
differentiate the abovementioned aid system on the
basis of objective enrichment requirements; whereas
provision should be made for the whole problem to
be re-examined on the basis of a Commission report
before the new system is applied;
Whereas, in view of the abundant quantities available
and the need to improve further the quality of the
wines offered on the market, the maximum quantity
of alcohol contained in the products delivered for
distillation under Article 39 of Council Regulation
(EEC) No 337/79 (l), as last amended by Regulation
(EEC) No 1595/83 (2), should be raised;
Whereas application of the provisions governing the
activation of compulsory distillation and the fixing of
the quantities of wine to be distilled is likely to give
rise to difficulties which might interfere with disposal
of all the year's surpluses; whereas, in order to
resolve such difficulties, the criteria for determining
the quantity of wine which must be distilled should be
laid down; whereas on this occasion some technical
adjustments to improve management of the measures
should be introduced in Articles 15 and 41 of the said
Regulation,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Regulation (EEC) No 337/79 is hereby amended as
follows:
1. Article 7 is replaced by the following:
'Article 7
1. A system of aid is hereby instituted for the
private storage of:
— table wine,
— grape must, concentrated grape must and
rectified concentrated grape must.
2. The aid referred to in paragraph 1 shall be
granted subject to the conclusion with
intervention agencies, between 16 December and
15 February of the following year and on
conditions to be determined, of a long-term
storage contract.
3. Long-term storage contracts for table wine
shall be concluded for a period of nine months.
(1) O J N o L 5 4 , 5. 3. 1979, p. 1.
(2) OJ No L 163, 22. 6. 1983, p. 48.
15.12. 83 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 338/9
Long-term storage contracts for grape must,
concentrated grape must and rectified
concentrated grape must shall be concluded for a
period ending on 15 September following their
conclusion.
4. Long-term storage contracts may be
concluded if the estimates for a wine-growing
year show that the quantity of table wine
available at the beginning of that year exceeds by
more than four months' consumption the normal
utilization for that year.
It may be decided that:
(a) long-term storage contracts for table wine
may be concluded only for table wines to be
determined;
(b) grape must covered by a long-term storage
contract may be processed, wholly or in part,
into concentrated grape must or rectified
concentrated grape must during the period of
validity of the contract;
(c) grape must and concentrated grape must
intended for the manufacture of grape juice
may not be the subject of long-term storage
contracts.
5. Decisions to permit the conclusions of long-
term storage contracts shall be taken in
accordance with the procedure laid down in
Article 67.
The same procedure shall be followed:
(a) for deciding, if justified by the development
of the market situation and in particular by
the rate at which contracts are concluded,
that long-term storage contracts may no
longer be concluded, even before 15
February;
(b) for adopting other detailed rules for the
application of this Article.'
2. Article 8 is deleted.
3. The second subparagraph of Article 9 (4) is
deleted.
4. Article 10 is replaced by the following:
'Article 10
1. Where the foreseeable size of stocks held by
producers at the end of the marketing year and
the prospects for the following harvest indicate
that difficulties may arise in storing that harvest,
it may be decided to grant aid for the re-storage
of table wines which are the subject of long-term
storage contracts.
2. Detailed rules for the application of
paragraph 1, in particular as regards the period of
application, the amount of aid and the conditions
of re-storage shall be adopted in accordance with
the procedure laid down in Article 67.'
5. Article 14 is replaced by the following:
'Article 14
1. A system of aid is hereby instituted for the
use of:
— concentrated grape must,
— rectified concentrated grape must,
produced in the Community, when they are used
in order to increase the alcoholic strengths
referred to in Article 32 of this Regulation and in
Article 8 (2) of Regulation (EEC) No 338/79.
2. In order to avoid disturbing the production
potential, the grant of aid may be restricted:
— to producers who can prove, in respect of the
grapes or grape must used, that the yield per
hectare was not more than a figure to be
determined, differentiated if necessary
according to wine-growing zone,
— to the use of the products referred to in
paragraph 1 to achieve a maximum increase in
alcoholic strength to be determined, differen-
tiated if necessary according to wine-growing
zone by reference to the characteristics of the
products to be produced.
3. The amount of the aid shall be fixed in
ECU per % vol potential alcoholic strength and
per hectolitre of concentrated grape must or
rectified concentrated must, taking into account
the difference between the cost of enrichment by
means of those products and by means of
sucrose.
In order to avoid disturbing the market or
distorting trade, the amount referred to in the
first subparagraph may be differentiated
according to the wine-growing zone where the
grapes used to make the products referred to in
paragraph 1 originated.
4. The procedure laid down in Article 67 shall
be followed:
— to fix the amount of the aid each year before
31 August
— to determine the conditions for granting the
aid, the limitations and differentiations
referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3 and any
other arrangements for applying this Article.
5. The system referred to in paragraph 1 shall
apply until the 1988/89 marketing year.'
No C 338/10 Official Journal of the European Communities 15.12.83
6. In Article 15:
(a) paragraph 6 is replaced by the following:
'6. If the situation on the market in table
wine so requires, the measures referred to in
this Article may be restricted:
— to certain table wines determined
according to type,
— to one or more wine-growing zones or
parts of wine-growing zones.';
(b) paragraph 8 is replaced by the following:
'8. The Council, acting by a qualified
majority on a proposal from the Commission,
shall
t adopt general rules concerning the
distillation referred to in this Article, in
particular:
— the conditions under which distillation is
to be carried out,
— the criteria for fixing the amount of the
aid, so as to enable the products obtained
to be disposed of.'
7. In Article 32:
(a) the second subparagraph of paragraph 1 is
replaced by the following:
'The products referred to in the first sub-
paragraph may not have their natural
alcoholic strength by volume increased unless
their minimum natural alcoholic strength by
volume is not less than:
— 6 % vol in wine-growing zone A, with the
exception of that part of the zone
corresponding to the specified regions
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Ahr, Mittelrhein and
Moselle luxembourgeoise, for which the
alcoholic strength is fixed at 5,5 % vol,
— 7 % vol in wine-growing zone B,
— 8 % vol in wine-growing zone C I a),
— 8,5 % vol in wine-growing zone C I b),
— 9 % vol in wine-growing zone C II,
— 9,5 % vol in wine-growing zones C III a)
and C III b).';
(b) the following paragraph is added:
'5. Before 1 January [1987] the
Commission shall present the Council with a
report on:
(a) the wine production conditions resulting,
from 1989/90 onwards, from the termi-
nation of the aid system referred to in
Article 14 and the prohibition of the
operation referred to in Article 33 (3);
and
(b) the conclusions to be drawn from this as
regards the alcoholic strengths by volume
of products in the wine sector aftd the
rules governing increases in natural
alcoholic strength by volume.
Where necessary, the report referred to in the
first subparagraph shall be accompanied by
appropriate proposals.'
8. Article 33 (3) is replaced by the following:
'3 . The addition of sucrose referred to in
paragraph 1 (a) and (b) may be made only:
— by addition of dry sucrose,
— in wine-growing regions where it is
traditionally or exceptionally practised in
accordance with legislation existing on 8 May
1970,
— until 15 March 1989.'
9. Article 39 (2) is replaced by the following:
'2. Any natural or legal person or group of
persons, with the exception of the persons
and groups referred to in paragraph 4, who has
made wine shall be required to deliver for
distillation all the by-products of the winemaking
and, if necessary, wine from their own pro-
duction.
The quantity of alcohol contained in the products
delivered for distillation shall be at least equal to
a percentage to be determined of the volume of
alcohol contained in the wine produced. The
assessment of that volume shall be made on the
basis of a standard natural minimum alcoholic
strength by volume laid down for each wine-
growing year in each wine-growing zone.
The percentage mentioned in the second sub-
paragraph may not be more than:
— 10 % if the wine has been obtained by direct
vinification of grapes,
— 5 % if the wine has been obtained by
vinification of grape must, partially fermented
grape must or new wine still in fermentation.
This paragraph may be waived for categories of
producers to be determined, for certain
production regions and for wines subject to the
distillation referred to in Article 40.'
10. In Article 41:
(a) the second subparagraph of paragraph 1 is
replaced by the following:
'However, compulsory distillation shall be
decided on only if such distillation does not
entail a disproportionate administrative
burden, taking into account the quantity of
wine to be distilled calculated in accordance
with paragraph 2.';
15.12. 83 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 338/11
(b) paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:
'2. The total quantity to be distilled must
be such as to leave foreseeable end-of-year
stocks at a level corresponding to five
months' normal utilization calculated for the
wine-growing year in question.';
(c) the second indent of the second subparagraph
of paragraph 3 is replaced by the following:
'— shall be varied, in order to curb the
increase in Community production,
according to the yield per hectare of each
producer in relation to the normal yield
for the various Community wine-growing
zones or parts of zones, taking into
account the information provided by
each Member State, and the type of table
Article 2
Short-term storage contracts which are being
performed on the date of entry into force of this
Regulation shall expire on the date fixed when they
were concluded.
Article 3
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 September
1984.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and
directly applicable in all Member States.
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