(1)

Article 23a of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (2) lays down the overall amount of Union aid per school year under the school scheme for the Union as a whole and objective criteria for the allocation of that overall amount among the Member States.

(2)

Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 1370/2013 sets out the annual indicative allocations of Union aid, per Member State, for school fruit and vegetables and for school milk for the period from 1 August 2017 to 31 July 2023. After that 6-year transitional period, from 1 August 2023, the Commission is to fix the indicative allocations of Union aid to each Member State on the basis of the criteria referred to in Article 23a(2), first subparagraph, of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013. When fixing the indicative allocations, account is to be taken of the minimum amount of Union aid to which Member States are entitled, so that the Member States with a limited demographic size can implement a cost-effective scheme.

(3)

In accordance with Article 23(8) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 and Article 2(3) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/40 (3), Member States are to draw up their strategies covering the 6-year period from 1 August 2023 to 31 July 2029 and notify them to the Commission by 30 April 2023. In order to allow Member States to efficiently plan the implementation of the scheme during the period covered by their strategies, the indicative allocations of Union aid should cover the same period of time. These indications allocations are without prejudice to the future decisions related to the Union’s Multiannual Financial Framework for the period beyond 2027.

(4)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee for the Common Organisation of the Agricultural Markets,