Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 has repealed and replaced Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007. Section 1 of Chapter I of Title I of Part II of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 contains rules on public intervention and aid for private storage, including the classification of beef, pig and sheep carcasses and the reporting of prices thereof, and empowers the Commission to adopt delegated and implementing acts in that respect. In order to ensure the smooth functioning of the Union scales for the classification of beef, pig and sheep carcasses and to establish comparable market prices for carcasses and live animals in the new legal framework, certain rules should be adopted by means of such acts. The new rules should replace Commission Regulations (EC) No 315/2002, (EC) No 1249/2008 and (EU) No 807/2013. Those Regulations are repealed by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2017/1182.

In order to ensure transparency towards the suppliers, the slaughterhouse, the classification agency or the qualified classifier who have carried out the classification of bovine animals aged eight months or more, or of pigs or sheep should inform the supplier of the result of the classification of the animals delivered for slaughter. That communication should include elements such as classification result, carcass weight, carcass presentation and, where applicable, information that classification has been carried out by automated grading technique.

The reliability of the classification of carcasses of bovine animals aged eight months or more, pigs and sheep should be verified by regular on-the-spot checks carried out by bodies that are independent from the inspected establishments, the classification agencies and the qualified classifiers. The conditions and minimum requirements for these checks should be laid down, including the reporting of the on-the-spot checks carried out as well as the follow-up actions. In order to give more flexibility to the Member States to carry out on-the-spot checks depending on their needs, it is necessary to provide for the possibility of carrying out a risk assessment.

In order to obtain comparable market prices in the Union, it is necessary to define a reference carcass presentation that influences the weight and the correct price of the carcass. To adjust the presentations used in some Member States to the Union reference carcass presentation certain corrective factors should also be determined.

For the purpose of the recording of prices, Member States should decide whether their territory is divided, and if so, into how many regions. As the United Kingdom has expressed its intention to keep the division of its territory into two regions, for reason of transparency it is appropriate to provide that price recording for the United Kingdom should relate to two regions, namely Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

In order to ensure that the prices of carcasses and live animals are representative of the Member States' production in the beef, pig and sheep sectors, it is necessary to define the categories, classes and types as well as to set out the criteria defining establishments or persons for which the price recording should be compulsory.

The practical method to be used by Member States to calculate average weekly prices should be laid down. These prices should be reported and notifications should be made to the Commission in accordance with Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/1185 except for those notifications that are necessary for the organization of on-the-spot inspections or that serve a basis for having a complete overview of the meat market.

In order to ensure a uniform application of the Union scales for the classification of beef, pig and sheep carcasses, provisions should be made for on-the-spot inspections to be carried out by a Union Inspection Committee composed of experts from the Commission and experts appointed by the Member States. Rules should be laid down regarding the composition and functioning of that Committee.

In view of the need to allow Member States to adapt to the new legal framework, this Regulation should apply 12 months after its entry into force.

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee for the Common Organisation of the Agricultural Markets,