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 233/10)

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

‘AJO MORADO DE LAS PEDROÑERAS’

EC No: ES/PGI/005/0228/12.03.2002

PDO ( ) PGI ( X )

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

1.   Responsible department in the Member State:

2.   Group:

3.   Type of product:

Class 1.6 — Fruit, vegetables and cereal, whether or not processed

4.   Specification:

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

4.1.   Name: ‘Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras’

4.2.   Description: The ‘Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras’ PGI will protect bulbs of the indigenous ecotype of species Allium sativum L. known as ‘Morado de Las Pedroñeras’ (of the ‘Morado de Cuenca’ variety) intended for delivery to the consumer in a dry state, as separate heads, of categories Extra or I, provided they have a minimum diameter — measured across the peeled bulb — of 45 mm for Extra and 41 mm for category I, and that they were harvested less than a year beforehand.

Physical properties: the bulb or head of Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras is spherical or round and of average size. The outer skin is white or slightly coloured and striated. The skin protecting the cloves is a characteristic violet or purple colour and is also striated. The cloves are small or of average size, crescent shaped and yellowish white in colour. There are no peripheral cloves.

Chemical properties: Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras is rich in organosulphurs, highly volatile and highly reactive compounds with a low molecular weight, a high sulphur, iodine and silica content and beneficial pharmacological properties. One of these compounds is allicin, the main source of the taste and smell of garlic.

Organoleptic properties: Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras has a strong smell and a sharp, stimulating taste. These properties are more evident when the cloves are cut, when the volatile compounds described above are released.

4.3.   Geographical area: The production area comprises two hundred and twenty-five localities in the districts of La Mancha, Mancha, Mancha Alta, Mancha Baja, Manchuela and Centro, in the provinces of Albacete, Ciudad Real, Cuenca and Toledo in the Autonomous Community of Castilla-La Mancha.

All the undertakings currently marketing Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras are located within the production area. However, the product could be prepared, packaged and marketed by other undertakings located elsewhere, provided that they meet all the requirements set out in the specifications and the specific requirements laid down by the authorised inspection body.

4.4.   Proof of origin: The origin of purple garlic covered by the Protected Geographical Indication is guaranteed as follows:

The cloves used to produce the next crop are taken only from clean bulbs of the ‘Morado de Las Pedroñeras’ purple garlic ecotype.

The garlic is grown within the production area indicated, on parcels recorded in registers supervised by the Certification Body.

The garlic is prepared and packaged by certified companies supervised by the Certification Body. When they arrive at the handling facilities' reception centres the consignments of bulbs are inspected one by one to check that they have all the required properties. At all times protected garlic is handled separately from other types of garlic.

Only garlic which passes all the inspections carried out during preparation is packed and placed on the market. The product must be sold in packaging which bears the distinctive Geographical Indication logo in such a way that it cannot be reused.

4.5.   Method of production:

Agricultural practice

Garlic is by nature a biennial herbaceous plant which, when grown for its bulbs, has become an annual, commercially speaking.

After the soil has been prepared and the rows marked for planting, the garlic is sown from early December to mid-January. The seed is prepared beforehand: the cloves are detached from selected bulbs, which have been cleaned. Most of the crop is grown on irrigated land; not many parcels of unirrigated land are used.

The harvesting of Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras begins at the end of June and is finished by the end of July. It only rarely carries on until the first days of August. The average yield is between 9-10 tonnes/ha, and can be as much as 13 tonnes/ha depending on external and internal production factors and the way the crop is handled during the growing cycle.

In the area where Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras is grown, harvesting is carried out in two stages: first, the tractor, appropriately equipped, digs up the bottom of the furrow, loosening the soil. In this way, the bulbs are deposited in the bottom of the furrow, with the foliage uppermost. Then, the bulbs are collected by hand and placed in the ‘surcos gavilleros’ (collection furrows) placed in such a way that the foliage protects the bulb from the sun. This work begins in the early hours of the morning and stops around midday.

The next step is tying. This consists of bunching the bulbs together, with a bunch on one side and the next on another, to form sheaves. These are tied with a special knot, which makes them more compact and easier to handle. They are then taken to the place where they will be dried. Although there are machines which can pull up the garlic, cut the roots and the leaves and put them in boxes or sacks, they are seldom used. Such machines damage the bulbs and reduce their commercial value.

Treatment after harvesting. Drying and packing

To eliminate excess humidity in the foliage (known as ‘porrinas’) and in the bulbs, the bunches or sheaves are piled up to dry in the sun or in air currents. Later the roots and foliage are cut off, and drying continues until the garlic is delivered to the preparation undertakings.

Preparation, packaging and storage

At the reception centres of the preparation facilities each consignment of bulbs is checked, to ensure that they are sufficiently dry and meet all the requirements of the marketing standards.

If the consignment is accepted, it is unloaded into a reception hopper, the garlic is graded and brushed, to remove bits of soil, dust and the outermost skin. Any remaining broken or detached skin is removed by hand at the end to give the bulbs a more attractive appearance.

When this work is finished, the garlic is packed in the various types of packaging in which it is sold. It can be stored at ambient temperature only until 30 September of the relevant marketing year.

After that date it must be stored in a room where the humidity and temperature are controlled (between – 2 and – 4 degrees centigrade). The containers or boxes must be arranged in such a way that there are passages and spaces between them allowing sufficient ventilation. At least 10 % of the volume of the rooms must be left free for this purpose.

The date of reception must be clearly marked on the containers or boxes. Garlic which has been stored for a year or more since the date of harvest cannot be marketed as ‘Ajo Morado de Las Pedroñeras’ PGI.

4.6.   Link: Garlic has an extensive reputation both at local and regional level, nationally and internationally. A multitude of factors directly related to history and culture, customs and festivals, gastronomy, etc. have all contributed to this.

One of the earliest historical references to the power of garlic is to be found in Volume XII of ‘Diccionario Geográfico-Estadístico-Histórico de España y sus posesiones de Ultramar’ (For the complete quotation, see Annex V ‘Historical and Cultural References’), where the lawyer, politician and writer Pascual Madoz Ibáñez (Pamplona 1805-Génova 1879), mentions garlic in connection with farming and trade in Las Pedroñeras. This attests to the fact that garlic was being grown and traded in the area at that time, showing that in the mid-nineteenth century the local people were already well known for their expertise in this field.

The fact that growing garlic was a popular activity is reflected in customs that have perdured, such as the garlic-stringing competitions; in folklore and in festivals, songs and stories, etc.

The influence of garlic growing can be seen in the region's cuisine and garlic is an essential ingredient of most dishes: atascaburras, caldereta, moje de pimientos, perdiz en escabeche, revueltos, migas, gachas, etc.

Purple garlic of the ecotype ‘Morado de Las Pedroñeras’ is a crop fully adapted to the soil types and characteristics of the land in La Mancha, well able to resist the adverse agro-climatic conditions prevailing in that area.

4.7.   Inspection body:

SIC is an organisation authorised by the competent authority and meets the requirements of standard UNE-EN 45011.

4.8.   Labelling: The label must contain the information required by the marketing rules in force.

All packaging used for marketing the protected product must bear the PGI logo in a prominent place and have a guarantee seal, a label or secondary label supplied by the Certification Body, which cannot be reused.

Logo to be used:

(1)  OJ L 93, 31.3.2006, p. 12.