Members of European Parliament have accused Morocco of going over their export quota and consequently affecting the market price of tomatoes in Europe. The rumour is that an Italian MEP was the one to question Moroccan imports, and that Morocco is said to have doubled their import volume, going way over their authorised quota.
Phil Hogan, European Agriculture and Rural Development Commissioner quickly put these rumours to rest saying that “the European imports of Moroccan tomatoes have not gone over the monthly quota agreed upon in the Agricultural Agreement between the two partners”. Mr Hogan presented the official statistics from the last 3 months which proved that the quota reached 88% in November 2015, 82% in December 2015 and 97% in January 2016.
According to Mr Hogan, the problem that explains the current tomato prices lies in the high temperatures this season, compared to previous seasons, which has led to an increase in the offer.