Information communicated by Member States regarding State aid granted under Commission Regulation (EC) No 1857/2006 on the application of Articles 87 and 88 of the Treaty to State aid to small and medium-sized enterprises active in the production of agricultural products and amending Regulation (EC) No 70/2001

2009/C 104/03

Aid No: XA 378/08

Member State: Spain

Region: Comunitat Valenciana

Title of aid scheme or name of company receiving an individual aid: Entidad interprofesional citrícola Intercitrus

Legal basis: Ayuda individual nominativa: Presupuestos de la Generalitat 2008, programa 714.60, Línea T2679000-‘Promoción agroalimentaria de cítricos’.

Annual expenditure planned under the scheme or overall amount of individual aid granted to the company: EUR 1 502 000,00

Maximum aid intensity: 100 %

Date of implementation: From the date on which the registration number of the exemption request is published on the website of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development.

Duration of scheme or individual aid award: Until November 2008

Objective of aid: Information campaigns to promote oranges and clementines, so as to increase their consumption by promoting their nutritional qualities and the associated health benefits, without any making any reference to enterprises, trademarks or origin; promotion campaigns in schools targeting school children; participation in Euroagro, contributing to a database of images and producing a collection of recipes, posters and leaflets etc.; reviewing and analysing the scientific information so as to submit proposals for inclusion in the lists that are being compiled pursuant to Community Regulation 1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims made on foods; improving knowledge of market developments in these products.

Activities laid down in Article 15 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1857/2006 of 15 December 2006.

Sector(s) concerned: Intercitrus, an interprofessional association, is the technical assistance provider, and the final beneficiaries are the farmers.

Name and address of granting authority:

Website: http://www.agricultura.gva.es/especiales/ayudas_agrarias/pdf/INTERCITRUS.pdf

Other information: —

Aid No: XA 400/08

Member State: France

Region: Bourgogne

Title of aid scheme: Accompagnement au développement des produits relevant du régime de qualité ‘Agriculture biologique’.

Legal basis: Code Général des collectivités territoriales, notamment son article L 1511-2

Délibération du Conseil régional de Bourgogne.

Annual expenditure planned under the scheme: EUR 500 000

Maximum aid intensity: 80 % of the eligible costs (engineering, documentation and communication costs) of the following operations:

market research for organic products;

advice for farmers about organic farming pratices;

promotion of organic products (publications in accordance with the conditions set out in Article 15(f) of the agricultural exemption regulation).

Date of implementation: 2009

Duration of scheme: until 2013

Objective of aid: This aid scheme comes under Articles 14 and 15 of Regulation (EC) No 1857/2006 of 15 December 2006. It is aimed at developing the production of organic products in Burgundy: increasing production, surface area and the number of farmers.

This aid scheme will make it possible to fund the specific costs of the various measures implemented by collective structures in the agricultural sector. In accordance with Article 15 (3) and (4) of the agricultural exemption regulation, no aid will be paid to farmers and any person who is eligible will be able to have access to measures implemented by collective structures without being forced to be affiliated to those structures.

Sector concerned: organic farming

Name and address of the granting authority:

Website: http://www.cr-bourgogne.fr/documents/gda/2008-12/etude_marche_produit_AB.doc

http://www.cr-bourgogne.fr/documents/gda/2008-12/conseils_agri_pratiques_prod_AB.doc

http://www.cr-bourgogne.fr/documents/gda/2008-12/promotion_produits.doc

Aid No: XA 402/08

Member State: France

Region: Bourgogne

Title of aid scheme: Aide à l'organisation de manifestations agricoles

Legal basis: Code Général des collectivités territoriales, notamment son article L 1511-2

Délibération du Conseil régional de Bourgogne.

Annual expenditure planned under the scheme: EUR 400 000

Maximum aid intensity: 50 % of eligible costs (wage costs in the case of international operations, other direct costs related to the scheme), external services (excluding reception and travel costs).

Date of implementation: 2009

Duration of scheme: until 2013

Objective of aid: This scheme, which is aimed at supporting the organisation of agricultural events intended in particular to encourage and promote high-quality regional production, comes under Article 15 of Regulation (EC) No 1857/2006 of 15 December 2006.

The scope of the aid will exclude all expenditure relating to tasting sessions and to the distribution of free samples, as well as all operations taking place at points of sale or which generally fall under advertising within the meaning of point 152 of the Community guidelines for State aid in the agriculture and forestry sector 2007 to 2013.

This aid scheme will make it possible to fund the specific costs of the various measures implemented by collective structures in the agricultural sector. In accordance with Article 15 (3) and (4) of the agricultural exemption regulation, no aid will be paid to farmers and any person who is eligible will be able to have access to measures implemented by collective structures without being forced to be affiliated to those structures.

Sector(s) concerned: Agricultural sector

Name and address of the granting authority:

Website: http://www.cr-bourgogne.fr/documents/gda/2008-12/manif_agri.doc

Aid No: XA 403/08

Member State: France

Region: Bourgogne

Title of aid scheme: Aide au remplacement des agriculteurs

Legal basis: Code Général des collectivités territoriales, notamment son article L 1511-2

Délibération du Conseil régional de Bourgogne.

Annual expenditure planned under the scheme: EUR 250 000

Maximum aid intensity: 80 % of the costs relating to the organisation of replacement services and flat-rate aid of EUR 6/day of effective replacement.

Date of implementation: 2009

Duration of scheme: until 2013

Objective of aid: This aid scheme comes under Article 15 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1857/2006 of 15 December 2006.

The aid is aimed at improving working conditions by meeting part of the costs arising from the use of replacement services for whatever reason, with the exception of maternity leave, paternity leave, trade-union responsibilities and leave conferring an entitlement to tax credit. The organisational costs concern specific measures and bear no relation to operating costs: development of qualifications, introduction of quality control, communication projects.

This aid scheme will make it possible to fund the specific costs of the various measures implemented by collective structures in the agricultural sector. In accordance with Article 15 (3) and (4) of the agricultural exemption regulation, no aid will be paid to farmers and any person who is eligible will be able to have access to measures implemented by collective structures without being forced to be affiliated to those structures.

Sector concerned: Agriculture

Name and address of the granting authority:

Website: http://www.cr-bourgogne.fr/documents/gda/2008-12/services_remplacement.doc

Aid No: XA 404/08

Member State: France

Region: Bourgogne

Title of aid scheme: Aide au remplacement des agriculteurs

Legal basis: Code Général des collectivités territoriales, notamment son article L 1511-2

Délibération du Conseil régional de Bourgogne.

Annual expenditure planned under the scheme: EUR 250 000

Maximum aid intensity: 30 % of the investment (excluding tax), subject to an upper limit depending on the type of investment: maximum aid of EUR 20 000/project

Date of implementation: 2009

Duration of scheme: until 2013

Objective of aid: This aid scheme comes under Article 4 of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1857/2006 of 15 December 2006.

The aid is intended to reduce production costs and is aimed at the modernisation of machinery as part of an incentive-based approach to the establishment of environmentally sound cultivation practices (water quality, preservation of hedgerows, maintenance of the natural environment, use of renewable sources of energy and of joint schemes).

This aid scheme concerns CUMAs (Coopératives d’Utilisation du Matériel Agricole – farm machinery user cooperatives). In accordance with Article 4(5) of the agricultural exemption regulation, CUMAs in difficulty are not eligible for this scheme.

Sector concerned: agriculture

Name and address of the granting authority:

Website: http://www.cr-bourgogne.fr/documents/gda/2008-12/CUMA.doc