The Association of European Banana Producers (APEB) held its general assembly this week. In it, it became clear that the multilateral and bilateral agreements reached between the European Union (EU) and some Latin American countries are having a negative impact on them.
At the meeting, held in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, the General Assembly showed that such agreements are leading to a reduction of tariffs for bananas from third countries in the European market, thus affecting the product's performance in the traditional markets.
The assembly, formed by the executive committees of the UGPBAN Association of Martinique and Guadeloupe, chaired by Eric de Lucy, the Madeira GESBA organization, directed by Jorge Dias, and the Association of Banana Producer Organizations of the Canary Islands, ASPROCAN, chaired by Santiago Rodríguez, proceeded to approve the appointment of the entity's new governing bodies, whose presidency went to the Martinique-based producer Laurent de Meillac, who will be assisted by Santiago Rodríguez of ASPROCAN and Jorge Dias of GESBA, both as vice presidents.
The council will also include Bally Gérard as administrator and expert on all EU issues, while each of the three organizations that make up the APEB will incorporate a manager in order to timely follow all news related to bananas and make sure of the enforcement of all APEB actions.
Outgoing President Leopoldo Cólogan presented a brief summary of APEB's activities since its founding in November 1989 up to the present and thanked the support he has always received over the years by the different regions.
He also recalled that one of the greatest achievements of the APEB has been the protection of banana productions in European regions, thanks to the union of all producers.
In this sense, APEB's producers highlighted the "extraordinary work" carried out by Leopoldo Cólogan to defend the interests of the European banana sector during the 26 years that he has been at the helm of the entity.
During the general assembly, an overview was given of the different activities carried out by the APEB over the past year, both with the European Commission and the European Parliament, as well as with the respective national and regional governments.
There was also an analysis of the current status of the studies looking at the impact of the tariff reductions and their serious repercussions on the marketing of EU-produced bananas.
Moreover, the meeting served also to announced the positions regarding bananas of the autonomous governments of Madeira and the Canary Islands, with the presence of the Councillor and Deputy Councillor of Agriculture of the Canarian Executive, Narvay Quintero and Abel Morales, respectively, and the regional Secretary of Agriculture of Madeira, José Humberto de Sousa Vasconcelos.
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