
Article 1 
Regulation (EC) No 1622/1999 is hereby amended as follows:

1.. In Article 2, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:
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2. The products shall be delivered to the storage agencies in stackable plastic crates. However, on a transitional basis, unprocessed dried grapes may be delivered in suitable containers until the end of the 2001/02 marketing year, and unprocessed dried figs until the end of the 2004/05 marketing year.The delivered products must:
— in the case of unprocessed dried grapes, meet the minimum requirements laid down in the Annex to Regulation (EC) No 1621/1999,
— in the case of unprocessed dried figs, meet the minimum requirements laid down in Annex II to Commission Regulation (EC) No 1573/1999 and have a minimum size of 180 fruits per kg up to the end of the 2004/05 marketing year and 150 fruits per kg for subsequent marketing years.'
2.. Article 4 is amended as follows:

((a)) In paragraph 1, point (a) is replaced by the following:
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((a)) unprocessed dried figs shall be sold for a specific industrial use or a use as referred to in paragraph 3, to be specified in the notice of invitation to tender;'
((b)) The following paragraph 3 is added:
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3. After notifying the Commission of the justified reasons why the uses provided for in paragraph 2 were not possible, Member States may authorise the storage agencies to permit the following uses for unprocessed dried figs:
(a) distribution to animals;
(b) use in composting and biodegrading processes respecting the environment, in particular water quality and the countryside.'
3.. Article 10 is amended as follows:

((a)) In paragraph 1, the following subparagraph is added:
'In the event of the uses referred to in Article 4(3), the checks provided for in points (b) and (c) of the first subparagraph of this paragraph shall cover 100 % of each consignment removed from storage during the marketing year. After those checks the products removed from storage shall be denatured under the conditions laid down by the Member State and in the presence of the competent authorities.'
((b)) Paragraph 2 is replaced by the following:
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2. The competent authority shall withdraw approval where any of the conditions for approval are no longer met. No storage aid or financial compensation shall be paid in respect of the marketing year in progress and amounts already paid shall be reimbursed, plus interest for the time elapsing between payment and reimbursement.The rate of interest shall be that applied by the European Central Bank to its transactions in euro, as published in the “C” series of the Official Journal of the European Union and in force on the date of the wrong payment, plus three percentage points.'
Article 2 
This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.Done at Brussels, 5 July 2005.
For the Commission
Mariann FISCHER BOEL
Member of the Commission