Introductory text

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1785/2003 of 29 September 2003 on the common organisation of the market in rice^f1, and in particular Article 7(4) and (5) thereof,

Whereas:

Commission Regulation (EEC) No 75/91^f2, lays down the procedures and conditions for the disposal of paddy rice held by intervention agencies.

The Greek intervention agency has held some paddy rice for a long time. A quantity of approximately 7 783 tonnes should be disposed of on the Community market. Such disposal should be carried out in accordance with Regulation (EEC) No 75/91.

However, in view of the long storage period and the resulting deterioration in the quality of the product, provision should be made for a derogation from Article 5(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 75/91 and the minimum selling price of each of the lots concerned should be determined on the basis of its specific characteristics, in accordance with Article 2(3)(d) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3597/90 on the accounting rules for intervention measures involving the buying-in, storage and sale of agricultural products by intervention agencies^f3.

Given the quality and characteristics of the rice to be disposed of, measures must be taken to enable tenderers to assess the quality of the rice before bids are submitted. Provision should also be made for tenders to cover an entire lot.

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

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: