Leading Spanish fresh produce association Ava-Asaja has claimed that the lowering of European product standards could result in Europe becoming the 'rubbish dump of the world' for poor quality fruit and vegetables.
The Valencia-based organisation has claimed that the relaxation of the rules will “open the doors of the EU to cheap, low quality imports” and could lead to a greater risk of products with disease or pest problems entering Europe.
Ava-Asaja president Cristóbal Aguado said: 'The consequences will be bad not only for consumers, but also for Spanish producers, who would not be able to compete on price because the European Commission has insisted for decades that the Spanish fresh produce sector focuses on quality.'
Mr Aguado’s comments were echoed by Andalusia-based interprofessional fresh produce organisation Hortyfruta, which said that the regulation changes would harm the profitability of Spanish exporters as a result of the influx of low quality, non-EU products.
“These changes clearly contradict everything we have been promoting since the inception of Hortyfruta, which is the search for the best quality in all the products that we cultivate,” said Hortyfruta managing director María José Pardo.
Mr Aguado claimed that poor quality products were produced in a less controlled manner and for this reason were more vulnerable to being infected by aggressive diseases, some of which were not present in Europe.
Moreover, he said the European Commission's decision to end quality standards coincided with the start of a major import campaign from the Southern Hemisphere and for this reason he urged the tightening of phytosanitary inspections at ports of entry.
“The European Commission has taken the wrong decision and has begun to apply it at the most inopportune moment,” he said.
Mr Aguado claimed that the decision would “backfire” on the Commission, arguing that if European producers were forced out of the market, the EU would be obliged to rely on foreign imports, meaning that the inflation of fruit and vegetable prices “would be guaranteed”.
