Trader Notice – Skimmed Milk Powder in APS 2014
Commission Regulation (EC) No 826/2008 as amended by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 501/2014 lays down common rules for the granting of private storage aid for certain agricultural products. Commission Regulation (EC) No 948/2014 lays down the rate of aid for SMP applicable to this scheme.
Introduction
This explanatory notice describes the arrangements which apply in Ireland for the payment of aid for SMP produced in the European Community and stored privately under contract with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine in the course of the 2014/2015 marketing year. The rules and obligations set out herein arise from the following sources:
· Council Regulation 1308/2013 establishing a common organisation of agricultural markets and on specific provisions for certain agricultural products (Single CMO Regulation)
·Commission Regulation No 826/2008 laying down common rules for the granting of private storage aid for certain agricultural products
· Commission Delegated Regulation No 501/2014 as amending Commission Regulation No 826/2008 and supplementing Council Regulation 1308/2013
·Commission Regulation No 948/2014 fixing the amount of aid in advance for private storage of SMP
·Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85, as amended, laying down common detailed rules for the system of securities for agricultural products.
In accordance with the provisions of Council Regulation 1290/2005, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine may publish on a website, details of the names, municipality of residence, and amounts received by beneficiaries of schemes funded or co-funded by the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) or the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). This data may be used by national and EU auditing and investigating bodies for the purpose of safeguarding the financial interests of the EU.
The rights of data subjects and how they may be exercised, in this respect, are laid down in the Data Protection Acts, 1988 and 2003. The publication of the details referred to above is a requirement of EU law and the data therein may not be used for direct marketing or other purposes and this will be made clear on the website.
Claimants for Aid to Private Storage have full responsibility for familiarising themselves with the regulations and for complying with the regulatory requirements as amended from time to time. Any advice, directions or guidance given by this Department either by way of Notices like this or in any other way does not alter that responsibility. While care has been taken to ensure that the information given in this Notice is accurate, the Department does not accept legal responsibility for any errors or omissions. Claimants should read this Notice in conjunction with the relevant Regulations.
Summary of Scheme
The scheme is operated by means of contracts between applicants for aid and the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
Part A STORAGE CONTRACTS
Contract Dates
The Scheme opens on 06 September to 31 December 2014 ie SMP may enter store between those dates and may not be withdrawn during that period, if SMP is withdrawn during that period no aid will be paid.
The first day of contractual storage is the next day following receipt of the SMP3 in the office subject to confirmation by the officer at the store. The date of application has to be a working day. The SMP3 can be faxed in to the secure fax 053 9142843 or sent in by post. Faxed copies received on non working days are deemed received from the next working day eg should the SMP3 be faxed in on a Saturday, the day of receipt would be Monday and the first day of contractual storage would be Tuesday.
Where the SMP3 is faxed in, the original SMP3 in triplicate should be received in APS Section within 5 working days. The first day of contractual storage shall be written on the SMP3 by APS staff, notification of this date will be faxed to contractor where they have submitted an acknowledgment slip. A supplemental contract, shall be deemed not to be received unless its receipt has been acknowledged by APS Section.
SMP must be stored for a minimum of 90 days and may be stored up to a maximum of 210 days. For the 2014 scheme, the earliest first day of storage would be 09 September 2014, last day of contractual storage is the day before it is physically removed from storage or the 210th day, whichever is the earlier
Application for a Contract
On receipt of the signed Main Contract SMP1, contract numbers will be granted in blocks to applicants. The assignment of these contract numbers are for association with the supplemental contracts for identifying purposes only and are in no way intended to be interpreted as implying approval of an application or entitlement to payment.
As soon as the Department has received a duly completed set of SMP3 forms for aided private storage the contract will be countersigned and dated on behalf of the Minister within 30 days. One copy of the SMP3 will be posted to the contractor, the second copy to the officer at the store and third copy is retained in the section. This is not an undertaking of entitlement to payment, that can only be established when the SMP is confirmed eligible - (APS/SMP4). If eligibility is not confirmed the contract shall be considered null and void.
PART B PRODUCTION AND STORAGE REQUIREMENTS
Manufacturing premises
SMP must be manufactured in premises approved under SI 432 of 2009. The contractor must email names of manufacturing premises that they intend to use to APS section[1].
Store
Premises in which APS SMP is stored must be registered under SI 432 of 2009. The contractor must email the names of stores along with the room numbers that they intend to use to APS Section[1].
Location of SMP in store
The front pallet of each lot or part thereof containing APS SMP must bear a label giving details of the contract number, lot number, number pallets in the lot and the letters "APS". The store must provide weighing equipment or weighing scales upon request by Departmental officers for weighing of pallets or bags including ‘big bags’ (see packaging section below). If the contract number is recorded in the store register, then the above labelling detail is not required.
The location of each lot of SMP in store must be noted in the stock records. In all cases SMP must be stored so that each lot is separate and accessible at all times. It is the responsibility of the Contractor to ensure that these requirements are met. Any extra store charges incurred as a result of non-compliance with this article shall be borne by the Contractor.
Access to the store
The contractor is responsible for ensuring that the storekeeper permits access by officers authorised by the Minister or by the Commission of the European Union to the store at all reasonable times with or without prior notification and to allow such authorised officers to inspect and examine the stocks being stored, and records relating thereto shall be kept for at least three calendar years starting from the end of the calendar year in which they were drawn up this refers to records of both the contactor and the store.
Records (store register/delivery dockets etc)
The storekeeper shall keep detailed records at the store, of all SMP subject to private storage aid arrangements, which cover:
Where the ‘date of entry into storage’ and ‘Contract No.’ is not marked on the bags, then the storekeeper shall maintain a Store Register containing the following:
(a) the number identifying the factory and the Member State of production;
(b) the date of production;
(c) the date of entry into storage;
(d) the production batch number;
(e) the net weight;
(f) Contract No.
Other Records:
Retain the weighing in documents ie delivery documents records:
Store Map: the location in store of all SMP which is the subject of private storage aid arrangements
PART C SMP ELIGIBILITY
SMP must be produced not more than 60 days before the date of application, date of application is not counted as day 1. The minimum quantity for applications for aid is 10 tonnes.
A lot of SMP has to be produced in a single factory, be of homogeneous composition and quality and taken into storage in a single warehouse on a single day weighing at least one tonne.
SMP offered into aided private storage must be manufactured exclusively from cow’s milk of European Union origin with records to support this claim. SMP must have the following composition according to type:
· contains no more than 1,5 % fat and 5 % water and has a protein content of the non-fat dry matter of at least 34 %
Packaging
The SMP shall be packed in new packages that are clean, free from odour and of such quality and strength as to be suitable for the long-term storage and transport of SMP. SMP should be stored in bags with a net content of 25 kg or in “big bags” weighing no more than 1 500 kg.
Markings
The packaging of the SMP shall show at least the following particulars, which may be encoded, where appropriate:
§ the number identifying the factory and the Member State of production
§ the date of production
§ the date of entry into storage(not applicable if store register is maintained)
§ the production batch number
§ the net weight
Verification of eligibility
On the entry of the SMP into the store the representatives of the Minister shall conduct checks to verify the eligibility of the product. The checks shall be conducted on a representative sample of at least 5% of the quantity concerned to ensure that, as regards the weight, identification, nature and composition of the product, the lot in its entirety physically conforms to the aid application.
Make unannounced checks to ensure the contractual quantity is present in the storage place.
A check at the end of the contractual storage period of at least one half of the number of contracts, by sampling, verify weight and identification of SMP in storage. There should be five working days notification by the contracting party to the officer at the store prior to removal.
If the inspection by the Minister's representatives shows that the packages or containers do not bear or contain all the necessary markings or information the Contractor shall be required, within a stated time at his own expense, to ensure that the missing details are marked on the packages/containers.
PART D PAYMENT OF AID
Aid is composed of two elements - fixed costs, storage costs. The fixed costs are determined by the quantity stored whereas the storage cost is determined by quantity and duration of storage.
After 60 days of storage an advance payment can be made following receipt of application providing a security equal to the advance plus 10% is submitted. The amount of the advance payment corresponds to a storage period of 90 days. The security will be released as soon as the balance of aid is paid.
The application for aid must be submitted to the APS Section of the Department within three months after the end of the contractual storage period. Payment of aid/balance is made within 120 days following receipt of application providing entitlement to aid has been verified and there are no outstanding administrative queries.
Verification
Officers nominated by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine or by any of the institutions of the European Union shall be permitted access to the store at all reasonable times, with or without prior notification, to inspect and examine the stocks being stored for aid purposes.
Commission Regulation (EC) 826/2008 as amended by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 501/2014 outlines the specifications and the documentation to be adhered to by the Contractor and store to ensure verification of entitlement to aid by the Department’s officers.
Removal
Removal from storage can take place providing the minimum 90 days storage has been met. Five working days notice of removal must be supplied in writing or by fax/email to the Department’s officers on the removal notification form.
This removal notification form must be completed for each contract even when the maximum storage period of 210 days has been reached.
Should the removal date change, the contractor must notify the inspector of the cancellation by fax/email and new removal notification date as above with the cancellation details where appropriate. On foot of this removal notification the officers complete their report.
The five working days excludes week-ends, bank holidays and any other official days of closure by the Department. If notice is not given, but within 30 days evidence is provided showing date and quantities of SMP removed, aid can be paid but with 15% reduction. If the evidence provided in the 30 days is not satisfactory, no aid will be paid and where applicable the security relating to the contract is forfeit.
The minimum quantity that can be withdrawn is 1 tonne and if a partial withdrawal leaves a balance in store of less than 1 tonne then that balance shall also be regarded as withdrawn from aided private storage on the date of the preceding withdrawal.
At the conclusion of the contractual storage period ie where all the SMP has been withdrawn or at the end of 210 days storage as appropriate, the contractor must complete final application form and send it directly to APS section where it will be associated with the relevant officers report.