Publication of an application pursuant to Article 6(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 on the protection of geographical indications and designations of origin for agricultural products and foodstuffs

(2007/C 135/10)

This publication confers the right to object to the application pursuant to Article 7 of Council Regulation (EC) No 510/2006 (1). Statements of objection must reach the Commission within six months from the date of this publication.

SUMMARY

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 510/2006

‘GURKEN VON DER INSEL REICHENAU’

EC No DE/PGI/005/0320/27.10.2003

PDO ( ) PGI ( X )

This summary sets out the main elements of the product specification for information purposes.

1.   Responsible department in the Member State:

2.   Group:

3.   Type of product:

Class 1.6: Fruit, vegetables and cereals, fresh or processed

4.   Specification

(Summary of requirements under Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 510/2006)

4.1   Name: ‘Gurken von der Insel Reichenau’

4.2   Description: Snake cucumber — Cucumis sativus; between 300 g and 900 g in weight; the cucumbers are long and straight, dark green in colour, and firm.

4.3   Geographical area: The island of Reichenau in Lake Constance, Germany.

4.4   Proof of origin: All packages are labelled with batch numbers as part of the IMS certification for Reichenau Gemüse e.G. This batch number identifies the production holding. All holdings are located on the island of Reichenau and only cultivate land on the island. Land management is documented using the hydrographic chart. This traceability system irrefutably links the product with the geographical area.

4.5   Method of production: Gurken von der Insel Reichenau are produced in accordance with the Richtlinien für den integrierten und kontrollierten Anbau zur Verwendung des Qualitätszeichens Baden-Württemberg ‘Gesicherte Qualität mit Herkunftsangabe’ (Guidelines on integrated and controlled cultivation for the purposes of using the Baden-Württemberg origin and quality label), and exclusively on organic substrate. Weeds are controlled largely by hoeing, steaming or flaming, i.e. they are mechanically controlled. The soil is analysed each year to optimise fertiliser use. Beneficial insects are used in the glasshouses to combat pests. Cucumbers are harvested year-round on the island of Reichenau. The cucumbers are harvested in the early hours of the morning exclusively by hand. Directly after harvest the cucumbers are packed into crates and transported to the sorting plant located on each production holding. Harvesting the cucumbers early in the morning and sorting them in shaded premises means they are almost entirely protected from the heat of the day, thereby considerably enhancing product quality. Before being sorted, each cucumber is washed individually. They are sorted by weight: 300-400 g; 400-500 g; 500-600 g; 600-750 g; over 750 g. Cucumbers sorted by weight in this way comply with the requirements of commercial grade 1. Cucumbers which are too bent to comply with commercial grade 1 are packed separately as commercial grade 2. The various weight categories are packed on the production holding in different colour-coded, mainly two-part boxes. The cucumbers are packed into boxes while still damp. The boxes are, as a rule, completely closed which further promotes product quality by producing a certain cooling effect.

4.6   Link: Natural link: The island of Reichenau is virtually made for growing vegetables. Positioned as it is in Lake Constance, the island is distinguished from other vegetable-growing regions by its special geographical and climatic conditions (humidity, warmth, light). Growing under cover on the island of Reichenau meets all the basic conditions for cucumber growth: high temperatures, high air humidity and a regular water supply. Optimal growing conditions are guaranteed by the lake surrounding the island, which acts as a light and thermal heat store, the humidity in the glasshouses, which can be precisely regulated, and a water supply which can be 100 % tailored to the plants' needs. Producers' specialist knowledge of growing in glasshouses/plastic tunnels also contributes to this. The cucumbers are grown exclusively on organic substrate.

Reputation: These natural and human influences impact so positively on the quality of Gurken von der Insel Reichenau that they are renowned even beyond the region. A trade and consumer survey carried out in 2000 shows that consumers associate the island of Reichenau with horticulture (the island is also called the ‘Gemüseinsel’ — vegetable island), and have particularly positive opinions of the freshness, appearance and origins of the products. Gurken von der Insel Reichenau are products of traditional horticulture going back to the monastery culture on the island of Reichenau. Abbot Walafrid Strabo launched the island of Reichenau's market-garden tradition in AD 840 with the description of his garden ‘De cultura hortorum’, known as ‘Hortulus’. Cucumber-growing on the island of Reichenau is first documented in 1900, and by 1932 it had already increased to over 300 ares (see Glönkler, ‘Vom Weinbau zum Gemüsebau’ (from winegrowing to vegetables), 1991, pp. 61 and 70). Now cucumbers are grown under cover on around 32 ha.

4.7   Inspection body:

4.8   Labelling: Gurken von der Insel Reichenau g.g.A.

(1)  OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12.