C 222/20 EN Official Journal of the European Union 26.6.2018 OTHER ACTS EUROPEAN COMMISSION Publication of an amendment application pursuant to Article 50(2)(a) of Regulation (EU) No 1151 /2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council on quality schemes for agricultural products and foodstuffs (2018/C 222/13) This publication confers the right to oppose the application pursuant to Article 51 of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council (1). APPLICATION FOR APPROVAL OF NON-MINOR AMENDMENTS TO THE PRODUCT SPECIFICATION FOR A PROTECTED DESIGNATION OF ORIGIN OR PROTECTED GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION Application for approval of amendments in accordance with the first subparagraph of Article 53(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 ‘CIDRE DE BRETAGNE’/‘CIDRE BRETON’ EU No: PGI-FR-02216 — 4.1.2017 PDO ( ) PGI ( X ) 1. Applicant group and legitimate interest Name: Organisme de défense et de gestion des cidres sous indication géographique protégée (Association for the protection and management of PGI ciders) Address: 123 rue Saint-Lazare 75008 Paris FRANCE Tel. +33 145222432 Fax +33 145222485 Email: [email protected] The group is an association governed by the Law of 1y Jul 1901. It comprises producers of cider apples and pro­ cessors, and therefore has a legitimate right to request amendments to the product specification. 2. Member State or Third Country France 3. Heading in the product specification affected by the amendment(s) — Name of product — Description of product — Geographical area — Proof of origin — Method of production — Link — Labelling — Other: updating of the contact details, causal link, inspection body, national requirements and annexes 4. Type of amendment(s) — Amendments to the product specification of a registered PDO or PGI not to be qualified as minor within the meaning of the third subparagraph of Article 53(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 (1) OJ L 343, 14.12.2012, p. 1. 26.6.2018 EN Official Journal of the European Union C 222/21 — Amendments to the product specification of a registered PDO or PGI for which a Single Document (or equivalent) has not been published and which cannot be qualified as minor within the meaning of the third subparagraph of Article 53(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1151/2012 5. Amendment(S) 5.1. Description of product — The paragraph ‘“Cidres de Bretagne” are made by fermenting musts obtained from fresh “cider fruits” grown and processed in Brittany’ has been replaced by: ‘“Cidre de Bretagne”/“Cidre Breton” is a sparkling cider made by fermenting musts obtained from fresh cider apples grown and processed in the geographical area defined in this specification.’ This definition specifies that the cider is sparkling and may only be made from cider apples. ‘Cidre de Bretagne’/ ‘Cidre breton’ has always been made exclusively from cider apples due to the orchards located in the geographi­ cal area. This restriction is referred to in the section on raw materials in the current specification. This clarifica­ tion, which removes the ambiguity regarding the presence of other fruits, has been made in the description of the product. — As apples are the raw material used, the current specification refers to a list of recommended apple varieties, which is annexed to it. This list contains around a hundred varieties, is not exhaustive and is no longer up to date with regard to the development of apple varieties. Nevertheless, all these varieties come under the same definition of cider apples. As a r esult, the indicative list of varieties has been replaced by a definition of cider apples, worded as follows: ‘Cider apples are defined as apples which are used to make cider and which produce a juice with a tannin (polyphenol) content of at least 0,6 g/l of the total tannic acids, native or oxidised.’ As ‘Cidre de Bretagne’/‘Cidre breton’ is always made from cider apples with the same characteristics, the causal link is not affected. — The paragraphs concerning the presentation of the product (‘particularly in champagne bottles, 1-litre or 1,5-litre bottles, smaller packaging (0,375 l, 0,33 l and 0,25 l) and kegs for draught cider’, ‘the bottles are closed by means of a mushroom-shaped cork, a screw cap or a crown cap’) have been deleted. This is because the packaging referred to is indicative and is the packaging most frequently used. Thus, all packaging is authorised. — The paragraph concerning the composition — in terms of varieties — of the orchards in Brittany (‘50 % of the varieties planted are bittersweet or bitter varieties and 24 % are acidic or sour varieties. The most planted vari­ eties in Brittany are Frequin Rouge, Kermerrien, Marie Ménard and Jeanne Renard’) has been replaced by the following paragraph: ‘As the orchards comprise a wealth of varieties, balances can be found between the different types of varieties in the geographical area. Since bitter and bittersweet apples account for just under half of the apples grown, acidic and sour apples a t hird and sweet apples the rest, the cider producers can manipulate the apples to find the most appropriate blends.’ The percentages of apple families planted and the list of the main varieties have been deleted as such informa­ tion may change. While the balances have not fundamentally changed, this data reflected the situation in the orchards of Brittany exploited by the producers in the original applicant group for the PGI. — The paragraph concerning the nature and characteristics of the ingredients (drinking water, sugar, additives, preservatives, sweeteners and CO2) has been deleted, apart from the sentence concerning caramel, which has been moved to the section on the production method. This sentence is as follows: ‘The only authorised colourant is caramel’. This information has been deleted as part of a tidy-up aimed at removing requirements laid down in general national and EU legislation from the specification. — The sentence ‘“Cidres de Bretagne” come in the form of a clear or cloudy drink with a fine foam and bubbles in the body of the liquid’ has been replaced by: ‘“Cidre de Bretagne”/“Cidre Breton” is a clear or cloudy drink made by fermenting musts obtained by pressing cider apple pulp, with or without added water. It has fine bubbles and a l ight foam.’ This wording includes information already contained in the specification (the fermentation of musts, the option to add water) and provides further details about the bubbles and foam. It does not alter the organoleptical characteristics of the cider. C 222/22 EN Official Journal of the European Union 26.6.2018 — The sentence ‘Quantities intended for industrial use and the production of composite products may be mar­ keted regardless of whether they are sparkling’ has been added. Indeed, cider may be intended for industrial use, e.g. in vinegar making, or for producing composite products such as juices. Although this use was not explicitly referred to in the current specification, non-sparkling ‘Cidre de Bretagne’ has been used consistently over time. Its inclusion in the specification is an acknowledgement of the practice, which will facilitate the monitoring of production. — The maximum levels of iron (10 mg/l), ethanal (100 mg/l for cidre bouché and 120 mg/l for other ciders) and total sulphur dioxide (150 mg/l for cidre bouché and 175 mg/l for other ciders) have been deleted. Their deletion is justified by the fact that these values are indicated in the general legislation. — The sentence ‘They are very thirst-quenching and often present very specific notes of bitterness’ has been replaced by ‘“Cidre de Bretagne” is known for its balance of bitter, acidic and sweet flavours’. The aim of this amendment is to remove subjective (‘thirst-quenching’) and imprecise (‘often’) elements. The sentence that has been opted for highlights the producers' know-how and does not call the characteristic bitterness of ‘Cidre de Bretagne’/‘Cidre breton’ into question. — The definitions and characteristics of the different types of ciders (bouché, doux, brut and demi-sec) have been deleted since they are covered by the general legislation applicable to ciders. 5.2. Geographical area — The paragraph ‘“Cidres de Bretagne” (ciders and concentrated musts) are produced exclusively in Brittany’ has been replaced by: ‘The harvesting of the cider apples and the production of “Cidre de Bretagne”, with the exception of packaging, are carried out in the geographical area made up of the municipalities specified below. The geographical area lies on the Armorican Massif and spans the departments of the administrative region of Brittany, plus part of the departments of Mayenne, Loire-Atlantique and Maine-et-Loire.’ The geographical area of ‘Cidre de Bretagne’ extends to several municipalities which produce cider apples and which, under the current specification, were able to supply cider apples to operators in the geographical area until 31 December 2015. Thus, until the end of the 2015, by way of derogation, there was an additional sourc­ ing area comprising 606 municipalities in the departments of Maine-et-Loire, Mayenne and Sarthe. The geographical area defined in the amended specification includes 120 of these municipalities, which are located in the east of the department of Mayenne. They cover an area of 2 342,6 km2, which equates to 6,55 % of the area defined in the current specification. Historically, the expansion of apple production beyond Brittany's administrative boundaries is linked to an increase in the production of ‘Cidre de Bretagne’. Indeed, the considerable rise in the consumption of cider in this region at the start of the 20th century created a great demand for cider apples, which could not be met locally. As a result, industrial undertakings and professional bodies were very quick to encourage this expansion of production.