Improvement of the Community production of apples, pears, peaches and nectarines

OBJECTIVE: to continue actions to improve the Community production of apples, pears, peaches and nectarines in order to redress the imbalance between supply and demand on the market for these products. COMMUNITY MEASURE: Council Regulation (EC) No 2200/97 on the improvement of the Community production of apples, pears, peaches and nectarines. CONTENT: the regulation contains a single measure to improve 10 000 hectares of apple and pear orchards and 10 000 hectares of peach and nectarine orchards for the 1997/1998 marketing year. These areas will be divided on the basis of the orchard area, production and withdrawals of each Member State. Provision is made for a premium fixed by the Commission, taking account of the costs and estimated loss of earnings, to be paid once to producers who grub up all or part of their orchards, provided that a minimum of 0.5 hectares of apples or pears are grubbed up and a minimum of 0.4 hectares of peaches or nectarines are grubbed up and the minimum density of the orchards is 300 apples per hectare (with the exception of Annourca apples). ENTRY INTO FORCE: 9 November 1997.�