ECJ decision excludes fruit and vegetable production from the region from Morocco’s Association Agreement with the EU
Spanish exporter federation Fepex has welcomed this week’s ruling by the European Court of Justice to ratify an earlier decision not to extend concessions granted to Morocco under its Association Agreement with the EU to Western Sahara.
The decision means agricultural products grown in the Sahara are excluded from the tariff benefits granted to Moroccan products and the establishment of identification and control measures on these productions.
Fepex has accused the North African country of marketing products grown in the Sahara as Moroccan, claiming this has a detrimental impact on Spanish products like tomatoes and berries.
“The EU Association Agreement with Morocco has therefore boosted Moroccan fruit and vegetable exports to both the EU and Spain. In the case of tomatoes, imports from Morocco to the EU have grown by 42 per cent in the last ten years, from 345,416 tonnes in 2014 to 491,908 tonnes in 2023 (compared to a preferential quota of 285,000 tonnes), while, in these ten years, Spanish tomato exports to the EU have fallen by 43 per cent, from 786,598 tonnes in 2014 to 448,004 tonnes in 2023, according to Eurostat data,” Fepex said.
Customs data shows that Spanish imports of fruit and vegetables from Morocco has grown by 224 per cent, from 135,000 tonnes worth €123mn in 2012, the year the agreement came into force, to 438,000 tonnes worth €899mn in 2023.
“This ruling means that that fruit and vegetable production from Western Sahara, which constitutes a growing part of Moroccan exports to the EU, is excluded from the tariff concessions made within the framework of the Association Agreement between the EU and Morocco, which allows Moroccan production to access the community market under conditions that generate unfair competition for community producers,” Fepex said.
