At its last meeting, which was held between April 18 to 21, the UNECE reviewed, among other things, the commercial classification standard of different types of tomatoes, as well as the definition of certain tomato varieties, such as the cherry tomato. Regarding the standard for pepper, they analyzed the German proposal to develop a non-exhaustive list of pepper varieties. Additionally, they propounded significant changes for eggplant, endive, cabbage, leeks, and table grapes.
The UNECE commercial quality standards for agricultural products are developed and approved by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. These international standards, which are voluntary or mandatory depending on the destination country, are the basis on which the European Commission develops its own standards. The EC has the power to establish commercial quality standards for fruit and vegetables in the framework of the CMO through regulations that are binding throughout the EU. FEPEX advocates maintaining these commercial quality standards because they facilitate trade, encourage high-quality production, improve profitability, and protect consumer interests.
French and Italian producers spoke in favor of the standards in the plenary of the Hispanic-French-Italian Joint Committee on Fruit and Vegetables, which was held in Paris on May 4. The three countries have agreed to defend the importance of the commercial quality standards for fruit and vegetables as part of the legislative review launched by the European Commission, which aims to further reduce these standards; just like in 2009 when 26 of the 36 existing commercial quality standards at the time were eliminated.
Apart from the rules set by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe agency, which is based in Geneva, and the standards of the European Commission, there are two bodies that legislate on commercial quality standards: the CODEX Alimentarius, which involves countries from all the world, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which makes brochures interpreting the standards from Geneva.
Source: fepex.es