L 12326 Official Journal of the European Communities 9.5.2002 COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 777/2002 of 7 May 2002 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 as regards the granting of private storage aid for certain cheeses in the 2002/03 marketing year THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 of 17 May 1999 on the common organisation of the market in milk and milk products ('), as last amended by Commission Regula- tion (EC) No 509/2002 (3), and in particular Article 10 thereof, Whereas: (1) Under Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 private storage aid may be granted for long-keeping cheeses and for cheeses which are manufactured from sheep's andfor goat's milk and require at least six months to mature, if for those cheeses price develop- ments and the stock situation indicate a serious imbal- ance of the market which may be eliminated or reduced by seasonal storage. The seasonal nature of the produc- tion of certain long-keeping cheeses and Pecorino Romano, Kefalotyri and Kasseri cheese is aggravated by the fact that the seasonality of consumption is the inverse of the seasonality of production. The fragmented production of such cheeses further aggravates the consequences of that seasonality. Therefore, provision should be made for recourse to seasonal storage in respect of a quantity corresponding to the difference between summer and winter production. (2)  The types of cheeses eligible for aid and the maximum quantities which may benefit from it should be laid down, as well as the duration of the contracts in relation to the real requirements of the market and the keeping qualities of the cheeses in question. (3) It is necessary to specify the terms of the storage contract and the measures to enable the cheese covered by a contract to be identified and subjected to checks. The amount of aid shall be fixed with reference to storage costs and the balance to be maintained between cheeses for which aid is granted and other cheeses coming on the market. (4)  Detailed rules should also be laid down regarding docu- mentation, accounting and the frequency and nature of checks. In this connection, it should be laid down that the Member States may provide that the costs of controls be fully or in part charged to the contractor. (5)  The Management Committee for Milk and Milk Products has not delivered an opinion within the time limit set by its chairman, 160, 26.6.1999, p. 48. () 9] 0J L 79, 22.3.2002, p. 15. = HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: Article 1 Purpose This Regulation lays down the detailed rules for the application of Regulation (EC) No 1255/1999 as regards the granting, under Article 9 of that Regulation, of private storage aid for certain cheeses (hereinafter referred to as ‘aid) in the 2002/03 marketing year. Article 2 Definitions For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply: (a) ‘storage lot’ means a quantity of cheese weighing at least two tonnes, of the same type and taken into storage in a single storage depot on a single day; (b) ‘day of commencement of contractual storage’ means the day following that of entry into storage; (c) ‘last day of contractual storage’ means the day before that of removal from storage. Article 3 Cheeses eligible for aid 1. Aid shall be granted in respect of certain long-keeping cheeses and Pecorino Romano, Kefalotyri and Kasseri cheese under the terms laid down in the Annex. 2. The cheeses must have been manufactured in the Community and satisfy the following conditions: (a) be indelibly marked with an indication of the undertaking in which they were manufactured and of the day and month of manufacture; this may take the form of a code; (b) have undergone quality tests which establish their classi- fication after maturing in the categories laid down in the Annex. Article 4 Storage contract 1. Contracts relating to the private storage of cheese shall be concluded between the intervention agency of the Member State on whose territory the cheese is stored and natural or legal persons, hereinafter called ‘contractors’. 2. Storage contracts shall be drawn up in writing on the basis of an application to draw up a contract.