No L 154/10 Official Journal of the European Communities 25.6.93 COUNCIL REGULATION (EEC) No 1548/93 of 14 June 1993 amendmg Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81 on the common organization of the markets in the sugar sector THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, and in particular Articles 42 and 43 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (%), Having regard to the opinion of the European Parliament (), Having regard to the opinion of the Economic and Social Committee (%), Wheras Article 23 of Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81 (%) lays down, on the one hand, that the system of production. quotas for sugar is to apply for the 1991/92 and 1992/93 marketing years and, on the other hand, that the Council is to determine, in good time, the system to be applied from 1 July 1993; Whereas the year 1993/94 will be the first year of transition towards the full application of the major reform decided by the Council in 1992 for the majority of the major arable crops; Whereas sugar, although it too is a major arable product, is not included in the reform; Whereas national authorities and producers should be allowed to concentrate on the application of the new regime for arable products without being confronted at the same time by the choices to be made for the long term future of the sugar regime; Whereas the sugar regime as.it exists at present is such as to preclude the risk of a sudden change in the area planted and that it is, therefore, possible for it to coexist, at least for a time, with the new regime for other arable products; Whereas it is, therefore, desirable to provide for the prolongation of the existing price and products regime for the 1993/94 marketing year; Whereas Article 303 of the Act of Accession of Spain and Portugal provides for a preferential system for the ) O] No C 30, 3. 2. 1993, p. 12. ) O] No C 150, 31. 5. 1993. 3 O] No C 161, 14. 6. 1993, p. 13. ) OJ No L 177, 1. 7. 1981, p. 4. Regulation as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 3814/92 (OJ No L 387, 31. 12. 1992, p. 7). adequate supply of raw sugar to the Portuguese refineries during a seven-year period following accession; whereas this involves the application of a reduced levy for imports of raw sugar from third countries for that purpose and the use of available supplies of raw cane and beet sugar harvested in the Community eligible under the arrangements laid down in Council Regulation (EEC) No 2225/86 of 15 July 1986 laying down measures for the marketing of sugar produced in the French overseas departments and for the equalization of the price conditions with preferential raw sugar (°), together with available supplies of preferential raw sugar as referred to in Article 33 of Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81; whereas the abovementioned transitional period ended on 31 December 1992; whereas the system for the supply of Portuguese refineries has been extended until 30 June 1993 by Regulation (EEC) No 3484/1992 (%} pending the establishment of the definitive arrangments for the supply of the Community’s refineries in general; whereas the reasons pointing to a continuation of the existing price and production arrangements in the sugar sector are equally valid for a further extension until 30 June 1994 of the existing system for the supply of Portuguese refineries in view of the fact that the definitive system to be determined for the refining industry is closely linked to that remaining to be determined for the production of sugar; Whereas technical progress and recent industrial developments in the production of natural sweeteners obtained from agricultural products in the Community have led to a new generation of product, hereinafter referred to as ‘inulin syrup’, the characteristics and uses of which are closely comparable with those of isoglucose and liquid sugar which are governed by the common organization of the markets in the sugar sector provided for in Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81; whereas, although inulin syrup is a product which is very close in nature to isoglucose in particular, it is not covered by the definition of the latter in Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81, because it is neither obtained from glucose nor made by isomerization of glucose but instead by hydrolysis of inulin, a compound composed of chains of fructose molecules; whereas production of inulin syrup is consequently not subject to the constraints deriving from the quota and self-financing arrangements applying under the common organization of the markets in the sugar “sector although it benefits indirectly from the guarantees provided by the market organization for the products covered by it; Whereas inulin syrup is a direct substitute for isoglucose and liquid sugar and as such is in direct competition with (%) OJ No L 194, 17. 7. 1986, p. 7. %) OJ No L 353, 3. 2. 1992, p. 8.