28.12.2000 Official Journal of the European Communities L 332/63 COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 2860/2000 of 27 December 2000 amending Regulation (EC) No 2316/1999 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1251/1999 establishing a support system for producers of certain arable crops, to include flax and hemp grown for fibre, specifying the rules on set-aside areas and amending the base areas for Greece and Portugal THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1251/1999 of 17 May 1999 establishing a support system for producers of certain arable crops (!), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1672/2000 (3, and in particular Articles 9 and 12 thereof, Whereas: 1) Regulation (EC) No 1672/2000 included flax and hemp grown for fibre in the support system for producers of certain arable crops established by Regulation (EC) No 1251/1999. Commission Regulation (EC) No 2316/ 1999 (*), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1454/ 2000 (%, lays down detailed rules for the application of Regulation (EC) No 1251/1999 with respect to the conditions for granting area payments for certain arable crops. Regulation (EC) No 2316/1999 should therefore be amended to take into account the inclusion of flax and hemp. Article 5a of Regulation (EC) No 12511999 lays down, on the one hand, that the tetrahydrocannabinol content of varieties used must not exceed 0,2 % and, on the other hand, that the Member States are to establish a system for verifying the tetrahydrocannabinol content of the hemp grown. To enable such checks to be imple- mented, special measures should be laid down in partic- ular with respect to the continued cultivation of hemp until a certain date. Article 5a subjects the area payment for flax and hemp grown for fibre to the conclusion of a contract or to a commitment as referred to in Article 2(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1673/2000 of 27 July 2000 on the common organisation of the markets in flax and hemp grown for fibre (°). Provision should be made for a copy of the contract or the commitment to be sent to the competent authorities of the Member responsible for the administration of payment applications. It must be ensured that the varieties of flax and hemp grown for fibre are those listed in the Common Cata- logue of Varieties of Agricultural Plant Species as fibre 160, 26.6.1999, p. 1. 193, 29.7.2000, p. 13. , 30.10.1999, p. 43. 163, 4.7.2000, p. 28. 193, 29.7.2000, p. 16. () 0] 0] plants and, in the case of flax in particular, as ‘fibre flax’ Moreover, in the case of hemp, the tetrahydrocannabinol content of the authorised varieties may not exceed 0,2%. A list of eligible varieties should therefore be drawn up. In the case of hemp, to facilitate the transition from the arrangements in force to those established by Regulation (EC) No 1251/1999, a list should also be drawn up of varieties of hemp temporarily authorised for the 2001/02 marketing year which must be subject to further analyses during that marketing year. To provide firmer guarantees in the case of hemp, the use of certified seed should also be required. To allow checks on the seed used, the labels contained on packaging or, in the case of flax, any other equivalent document, should be transmitted to the competent authorities of the Member State. To reinforce administrative checks on hemp, additional information should be requested and given in the ‘area’ aid applications as referred to in Article 4 of Commis- sion Regulation (EEC) No 3887/92 of 23 December 1992 laying down detailed rules for applying the inte- grated administration and control system for certain Community aid schemes (¢) as last amended by Regula- tion (EC) No 2801/1999 (). In accordance with the eighth indent of the first subparagraph of Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 1251/ 1999, the method for determining tetrahydrocannabinol levels of hemp grown for fibre must be laid down and provision must be made for the results of analyses carried out in accordance with this method to be communicated to the Commission. Article 5a(2) lays down that Member States shall check at least 30 % of the areas of hemp grown for fibre for which area payment applications have been made, and at least 20 % of areas if a Member State introduces a system of prior approval for such cultivation. The exact requirements relating to these checks should be speci- fied. Annex X to Regulation (EC) No 23161999 fixes 15 June as the latest date for sowing in specific cases. Since hemp is sometimes sown up to 15 June, hemp grown for fibre should be added to this Annex. L 391, 31.12.1992, p. 36. L 340, 31.12.1999, p. 29.