COUNCIL REGULATION concerning the Community scale for the classification of carcases of adult bovine animals (codified version) - Montesquieu Instituut

 

COUNCIL OF Brussels, 19 May 2006

(OR. fr)

THE EUROPEAN UNION

8445/06

Interinstitutional File:

2005/0171 (CNS)

CODIF 9 AGRI 135 OC 290

LEGISLATIVE ACTS AND OTHER INSTRUMENTS

Subject:

COUNCIL REGULATION concerning the Community scale for the classification of carcases of adult bovine animals (codified version)

COMMON GUIDELINES Consultation deadline for Bulgaria and Romania: 18.5.2006

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No ..../2006

of

concerning the Community scale for the classification of carcases of adult bovine animals

(codified version)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, and in particular Article 37

thereof,

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Parliament1,

Having regard to the Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee2,

Whereas:

(1) Council Regulation (EEC) No 1208/81 of 28 April 1981 determining the Community scale

for the classification of carcases of adult bovine animals1 has been substantially amended2.

In the interests of clarity and rationality the said Regulation should be codified.

(2) A Community grading scale for the classification of carcases of adult bovine animals

should be applied for recording prices and for intervention in the beef and veal sector.

(3) The classification of carcases of adult bovine animals should be made on the basis of

conformation and the degree of fat cover. The combination of these two criteria enables

carcases to be divided into classes. Carcases thus classified should be identified.

(4) In order to ensure the uniform application of this Regulation in the Community, provision

should be made for on-the-spot checks by a Community inspection committee,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

This Regulation provides for a Community classification scale for the carcases of adult

bovine animals.

Article 2

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) "carcase": the whole body of a slaughtered animal as presented after bleeding, evisceration

and skinning, presented:

• - 

  without the head and without the feet; the head shall be separated from the carcase at

the atloido-occipital joint and the feet shall be severed at the carpametacarpal or

tarsometatarsal joints,

• - 

  without the organs contained in the thoracic and abdominal cavities with or without

the kidneys, the kidney fat and the pelvic fat,

• - 

  without the sexual organs and the attached muscles and without the udder or the

mammary fat;

(b) "half-carcase": the product obtained by separating the carcase referred to in point (a)

symmetrically through the middle of each cervical, dorsal, lumbar and sacral vertebra and

Article 3

For the purpose of establishing market prices, the carcase shall be presented without the removal of

external fat, the neck being cut in accordance with veterinary requirements:

• - 

  without kidneys, kidney fat, or pelvic fat,
• - 

  without thin skirt or thick skirt,
• - 

  without the tail,
• - 

  without the spinal cord,
• - 

  without cod fat,
• - 

  without fat on the inside of topside,
• - 

  without jugular vein and the adjacent fat.

However, Member States shall be authorised to accept different presentations when this reference

presentation is not used.

In such instances, the adjustments necessary to progress from those presentations to the reference

presentation shall be determined in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 43(2) of

Council Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the common organisation of the market

Article 4

• 1. 

  Without prejudice to the intervention rules applying, the carcases of adult bovine animals

shall be divided into the following categories:

A. carcases of uncastrated young male animals of less than two years of age;

B. carcases of other uncastrated male animals;

C. carcases of castrated male animals;

D. carcases of female animals that have calved;

E carcases of other female animals.

Criteria shall be laid down for differentiating between categories of carcases in accordance

with the procedure referred to in Article 43(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999.

• 2. 

  The carcases of adult bovine animals shall be classified by successive assessment of:

(a) conformation, as defined in Annex I;

(b) fat cover, as defined in Annex II.

• 3. 

  The conformation class designated in Annex I by the letter S may be used by

Member States to take account, through the optional introduction of a conformation class

superior to the existing classes (double-muscled carcases), of the characteristics or

expected development of a particular form of production.

Member States which intend to make use of this possibility shall notify the Commission

and the other Member States accordingly.

• 4. 

  Member States shall be authorised to subdivide each of the classes provided for in

Annexes I and II into a maximum of three sub-classes.

Article 5

• 1. 

  Carcases or half-carcases shall be classified as soon as possible after slaughter and such

classification shall be carried out in the slaughterhouse itself.

• 2. 

  The classified carcases or half-carcases shall be identified.
• 3. 

  Before identification by marking, Member States shall be authorised to have the

external fat removed from the carcases or half-carcases if this is justified by the fat cover.

The conditions in which removal of the external fat will be applied shall be determined

in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 43(2) of Regulation (EC)

No 1254/1999.

Article 6

• 1. 

  On-the-spot inspections shall be carried out by a Community inspection committee

composed of experts from the Commission and experts appointed by the Member States.

This Committee shall report back to the Commission on the inspections carried out.

The Commission shall, if appropriate, take the measures necessary to ensure that the

classification is carried out in a uniform manner.

Those inspections shall be carried out on behalf of the Community, which shall bear the

resulting costs.

• 2. 

  The detailed rules for applying paragraph 1 shall be adopted in accordance with the

procedure referred to in Article 43(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1254/1999.

Article 7

Additional provisions specifying the definition of the classes of conformation and fat cover shall be

adopted in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 43(2) of Regulation (EC)

No 1254/1999.

Article 8

Regulation (EEC) No 1208/81 shall be repealed.

References to the repealed Regulation shall be construed as references to this Regulation and shall

be read in accordance with the correlation table given in Annex IV.

Article 9

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following its publication in the

Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels,

For the Council

The President

ANNEX I

CONFORMATION

Development of carcase profiles, in particular the essential parts (round, back, shoulder)

Conformation class Description

S All profiles extremely convex; exceptional muscle development (double-muscled carcase type)

Superior

E All profiles convex to super-convex; exceptional muscle development

Excellent

U Profiles on the whole convex; very good muscle development

Very good

R Profiles on the whole straight; good muscle development

Good

O Profiles straight to concave; average muscle development

Fair

P All profiles concave to very concave; poor muscle development

Poor

ANNEX II

DEGREE OF FAT COVER

Amount of fat on the outside of the carcase and in the thoracic cavity

Class of fat cover Description

1 None up to low fat cover

low

2 Slight fat cover, flesh visible almost everywhere

slight

3 Flesh, with the exception of the round and shoulder, almost everywhere covered with fat, slight deposits of fat in the thoracic cavity

average

4 Flesh covered with fat, but on the round and shoulder still partly visible, some distinctive fat deposits in the thoracic cavity

high

5 Entire carcase covered with fat; heavy fat deposits in the thoracic cavity

very high

ANNEX III

Repealed Regulation with its amendment

Council Regulation (EEC) No 1208/81 (OJ L 123, 7.5.1981, p. 3)

Council Regulation (EEC) No 1026/91 (OJ L 106, 26.4.1991, p. 2)

ANNEX IV

CORRELATION TABLE

Regulation (EEC) No 1208/81 This Regulation

Article 1 Article 1

Article 2(1) Article 2

Article 2(2) Article 3

Article 3(1) Article 4(1)

Article 3(2), first subparagraph Article 4(2)

Article 3(2), second and third subparagraphs Article 4(3), first and second subparagraphs

Article 3(3) Article 4(4)

Article 4 Article 5

Article 5, first, second and third subparagraphs Article 6(1), first, second, and third subparagraphs

Article 5, fourth paragraph Article 6(2)

Article 6, first paragraph Article 7

Article 6, second, third and fourth subparagraphs --