The European Commission has approved this minor amendment in accordance with the third subparagraph of Article 6(2) of Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 664/2014 (1).

The application for approval of this minor amendment can be consulted in the Commission’s eAmbrosia database.

SINGLE DOCUMENT

‘Glückstädter Matjes’

EU No: PGI-DE-1112-AM01 – 21.4.2022

PDO ( ) PGI (X)

1.   Name

‘Glückstädter Matjes’

2.   Member state or third country

Germany

3.   Description of the agricultural product or foodstuff

3.1.   Type of product

Class 1.7 – Fresh fish, molluscs and crustaceans and products derived therefrom

3.2.   Description of product to which the name in (1) applies

‘Glückstädter Matjes’ (soused herrings) are mostly produced from filleted, but also unfilleted, mildly salted herrings (Clupea harengus) which have ripened on the bone due to enzymes in the body of the herring itself; the preparation is traditionally carried out by hand. The fillets are shiny and silvery-brown in colour – the topside being silvery due to the skin and the underside having reddish markings due to having been ripened on the bone. Depending on the size and weight of the herrings used, the fillets weigh between 30 g and 50 g and are between 14 cm and 17 cm long. ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ fillets are mainly eaten cold and are soft and tender; they have an atypical, characteristic and aromatic taste of cold, fresh but not raw fish with a mild saltiness. ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ are marketed to consumers, restaurants and retailers as fresh, refrigerated fillets. However, fishmongers and restaurant owners also buy them whole and fillet them on site.

3.3.   Feed (for products of animal origin only) and raw materials (for processed products only)

‘Glückstädter Matjes’ are produced exclusively from herrings (Clupea harengus). The herrings used as the raw material for ‘matjes’ are traditionally caught in the central and northern North Sea. They are deep-frozen immediately after being caught.

The catches of herrings used are those which, due to their natural life cycle from the end of May to the beginning of July, have sufficient fat to be processed as ‘matjes’ but have no visible signs of milt or roe.

3.4.   Specific steps in production that must take place in the defined geographical area

Gutting, ripening and subsequent processing into ‘matjes’ fillets must take place in the geographical area.

3.5.   Specific rules concerning slicing, grating, packaging, etc. of the product to which the registered name refers

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3.6.   Specific rules concerning labelling of the product to which the registered name refers

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4.   Concise definition of the geographical area

The town of Glückstadt in Schleswig-Holstein.

5.   Link with the geographical area

5.1.   Specificity of the geographical area

Glückstadt is a port on the lower Elbe in Schleswig-Holstein.

‘Glückstädter Matjes’ are a product with a long tradition. The specific production method, carried out by hand (ripening on the bone using only salt and the fish’s own enzymes, removal of the skin and bones and finishing the fillet), is part of the local tradition of producing ‘matjes’ in Glückstadt and is essential for the product characteristics of ‘Glückstädter Matjes’.

This tradition began in 1893 with the establishment of herring fishing in Glückstadt. On 15 July 1894 the town’s first herring boat, the Tümmler, returned to port for the first time after eight weeks with 150 barrels (kantjes) of salt herring (Detjens, Willy: ‘Unserem lieben Professor Detlefsen zum Gedächtnis’, in: 64. Jahresbericht der Vereinigung ehemaliger Primaner des Gymnasiums zu Glückstadt von 1887, Glückstadt 1957, p. 4, lines 52 et seq.). Further proof of this tradition is the presentation on 21 June 1957 of a small barrel of ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ to the then Federal President, Theodor Heuss, during the ‘Matjes Day’ festival then held in Glückstadt to celebrate Germany’s herring fishing fleet (Kaufholz, Heinz: ‘Ein Fässchen “Glückstädter Matjes” für Heuss’, in: Glückstädter Monatsspiegel, edition of June 2008, p. 15).

The maintenance of this traditional handicraft in Glückstadt and the local producers’ refusal to use machinery or ripening, colouring, flavouring or conservation agents is what gives ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ their special quality.

5.2.   Specificity of the product

‘Glückstädter Matjes’ are produced by hand using only herrings and salt, after removal of the entrails which are not required for enzymatic ripening, and without any other ingredients to aid ripening. The ‘round’ (ungutted) herrings are caught during the few weeks of the annual fishing season and immediately deep-frozen, thus enabling the local producers to process them into fresh ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ all year round. Once the herrings have been thawed out, the entrails are discarded during gutting or when the head is removed, but the enzyme-rich parts of the pancreas are left in the area of the gut and the pyloric appendages. The herrings are then placed into barrels, with only the addition of salt, and ripen into ‘matjes’ on the bone under the influence of their own enzymes. The bones are removed and the fish are filleted by hand. The flavour and consistency of these ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ fillets are different from industrially made ‘matjes’ and similar products. They have the strongly aromatic flavour of ‘matjes’ with a distinct mild saltiness. At the same time, they have a particularly soft and tender consistency to the bite (without being ‘mushy’). The underside of the fillets has reddish markings due to having been ripened on the bone. ‘Glückstädter-Matjes’ fillets are mainly eaten in a bread roll, on rye bread or as a meal with various accompaniments and sauces.

‘Glückstädter Matjes’ are well known, at least in the north of Germany, and have a special reputation based on their origin and the fact that they are still produced in the same way. Their special reputation is thus based on the decades-long tradition of ‘matjes’ production in the geographical area. They achieved their present high degree of popularity, which is still rising, as a result of the ‘Glückstädter Matjeswochen’, a four-day ‘matjes’ festival which takes place each June and which was initiated in 1968 by the then mayor Dr Manfred Bruhn (Kaufholz, Heinz, op. cit. and ‘Heringsfang, harte Knochenarbeit’, in: Glückstädter Monatsspiegel, edition of June 2005, p. 7). This festival’s opening ceremony draws not only visitors from Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg and Lower Saxony, but also ‘matjes’ enthusiasts from other parts of Germany. Competitions held during the ‘Glückstädter Matjeswochen’ have led to a great number of dishes and recipes for the preparation of ‘Glückstädter Matjes’.

‘Glückstädter Matjes’ are sold as a speciality, mainly in food stores in Schleswig- Holstein, Hamburg and Lower Saxony. More and more are also sent by mail order throughout the year to restaurants and private households. The great popularity and repute of ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ were proven in a representative consumer poll held in 2008 (Dr Adriano Profeta: ‘Gutachten zur Schutzwürdigkeit der Bezeichnung‚ Glückstädter Matjes’ gemäß der Verordnung (EG) Nr. 510/06 als g. g. A.’, Freising 2008). There is a strong correlation between the renown of Glückstadt and that of ‘Glückstädter Matjes’.

5.3.   Causal link between the geographical area and the quality or characteristics of the product (for PDO) or a specific quality, the reputation or other characteristic of the product (for PGI)

The flavour, consistency and appearance of ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ fillets are linked to the fact that producers in the town still traditionally process them by hand. The reputation is due to the fact that the ‘matjes’ are not produced using industrial, simplified processing and ripening methods, meaning that more time and effort goes into producing them purely by hand. In addition, the town of Glückstadt and its ‘matjes’ producers have for decades been taking measures to spread the word about the characteristics of this traditional speciality. ‘Glückstädter Matjes’ are an integral part of the town’s cultural life and are held in very high regard as a foodstuff. This product has therefore become a traditional mainstay of the region’s culinary culture and is seen as a regional and indeed supra-regional speciality.

Reference to publication of the product specification

https://register.dpma.de/DPMAregister/geo/detail.pdfdownload/42279

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(1)   OJ L 179, 19.6.2014, p. 17.