AREFLH, the assembly of European fruit, vegetable and plant-producing regions has voted in a new president.

Josep Maria Pelegrí, was voted in at the 14th general meeting of the assembly held in Nantes, France on Tuesday. Some 100 representatives of the different associations and producer organisations in Belgium, France, Italy and Spain were present to elect Pelegrí, who is also agriculture minister of the Catalonia regional government in Spain.

Pelegreí has called for AREFLH to establish itself as a forum for ideas and joint projects and to also bring together producers from northern and eastern Europe.

The general meeting reaffirmed AREFLH’s commitment to continue lobbying in Brussels in favour of the smaller volume speciality fresh produce lines which are sometimes forgotten in major negotiations at EU level.