The Minister of Agriculture, Luis Planas, said he was optimistic about the revision of the European agreement for the importation of citrus from South Africa and called for reciprocity in third-country imports. He also said that no imported product can contain a product that isn't authorized in the EU; which seems elementary, but it is not.
The Minister of Agriculture made these statements during his visit to Valencia, where he met with Ximo Puig, the President of the Generalitat, on November 11. According to Planas, Spain and France promote this view within the European Union with support from other countries.
Planas said the products from outside the EU must meet the same requirements as the domestic products, in line with the EU's From farm to table strategy.
Planas also said that the letter he had sent to the European commissioners together with the Minister of Industry, Reyes Maroto, had been written with the revision of the South African agreement in mind. "I believe we can achieve this," he said.
Planas said that, despite the different interests, he was optimistic and believed that they could obtain a positive result from the revision of the agreement. He also stressed that they were not promoting an 'autarkic' policy and that they didn't want to close borders. All they want, he said, is for reciprocity in imports.
Source: castellonplaza.com
