The EU’s import tariffs for bananas break global trade rules, according to a ruling this week from the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The WTO believes the regulations put some Latin American countries at an unfair disadvantage against former French and British colonies, it emerged on Wednesday.
As reported on Associated Press, the ruling bears out a decision taken in April by the WTO that called on the EU to change its duties in line with global commerce rules.
The WTO was forced to intervene after a complaint from Ecuador, where banana growers are claiming the barrier offers preferential conditions to some African and Caribbean states.
This latest decision comes after more than a decade of WTO rulings against the EU’s banana regime, stipulating the bloc is in breach of free trade obligatons.
The US has also complained about the European tariffs, seeking compensation that would allow it to levy retaliatory taxes on European goods equal to the damage incurred by American companies such as Chiquita.
Next month will se a round of negotiations in Geneva to attempt to reach a deal with WTO members.
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