Introductory text

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation No 136/66/EEC of 22 September 1966 on the establishment of a common organisation of the market in oils and fats^f1,

Having regard to Commission Regulation (EC) No 528/1999 of 10 March 1999, laying down measures to improve the quality of olive oil production^f2, and in particular Article 3(2) thereof,

Whereas:

Regulation (EC) No 528/1999 lays down, for each Member State and for each 12 month production cycle beginning on 1 May, the financial arrangements for measures to improve the quality of olive-oil production and its environmental impact.

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1807/2004^f3 fixes for the 2003/04 marketing year the estimated production of olive oil, including the estimated production of table olives expressed as olive oil equivalent, at 2 714 450 tonnes. This corresponds to 343 356 tonnes for Greece, 1 591 330 tonnes for Spain, 3 335 tonnes for France, 741 956 tonnes for Italy and 34 473 tonnes for Portugal. The amount withheld from production aid for this olive oil marketing year serves as the basis for financing measures to improve the quality of oil during the production cycle commencing on 1 May 2004.

The financial ceilings for the measures that are eligible for reimbursement from the Guarantee Section of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund should be fixed.

As the measures have relatively fixed minimum costs, the ceilings on total financing laid down in Article 3(3) of Regulation (EC) No 528/1999 for some Member States may therefore prove to be too low. Appropriate limits should therefore be established in those cases.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Oils and Fats,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: