91997E3158

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3158/97 by Jan Mulder (ELDR) to the Commission (13 October 1997)

Subject: Introduction of a zero refund for the export of cheese to effective export markets

The current problems with the system of awarding export certificates for cheese are increasingly having negative consequences for the export opportunities of the European dairy sector, particularly since milk prices are already on the decline. One possible way of overcoming these problems would be to reduce or even set at zero the export refunds on cheese for certain destinations with a high level of purchasing power. The Commission clearly endorses this view, since it has reduced some export refunds in the past.

Why, in spite of the fact it has been urged to do so from many sides, has the Commission not (yet) taken the decision to reduce to zero the export refunds on cheese for the United States?

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission (17 November 1997)

The principal destination for exports of Community cheese, both in volume and in value, is indeed the United States. However, as the US market is considerably more important to some Member States than to others, views on the desirability of a zero refund for cheese exported to the United States are far from unanimous. This explains the caution, which the Honourable Member apparently regrets, of the Community's approach: traders on both sides of the Atlantic must be able to plan their future activities in the context of increasingly less advantageous refunds.

Moreover, the Commission is responsible for ensuring that the quotas available following successive multilateral negotiations (the Uruguay and Tokyo Rounds) are used to best advantage; this means avoiding any measure that might lead the US authorities to offer the Community quotas to other countries in the framework of their 'globalisation' system.