The announcement concerns a batch of pears that were found by the KCB and the NVWA in October 2014. The Conference pears, 1480 colli at 12 kilograms, were in wooden crates. Class indication, sorting and country of origin were lacking. There was a trading company found in the CMR cargo's letters.
That trading company was fined 1000 Euro unconditionally and 2000 Euro conditionally. They appealed this. They believed the fine was too high, as they had never had to appear before a disciplinary court before and because the offence should be viewed with more nuance due to the difficult market conditions surrounding the Russian boycott. "The sector is the victim of incorrect political decisions," they believe and went to the judge to have the fine halved.
The Judiciary had no comment on this. When determining the fine the size of the batch of pears and their market value, as well as the preventative (deterring) role of the fine played a role. "The circumstances are no excuse for determining the offence to be less culpable or less severe."