BOTH FEPEX AND COAG HAVE ACCUSED THE ALAUÍ COUNTRY OF NOT RESPECTING THE ESTABLISHED MINIMUM PRICE.

According to the Spanish Federation of Fruit and Vegetable Exporters, FEPEX, from the past 1 November, Morocco is not respecting the entry price of tomatoes established in the Association Agreement with the EU. This fact has meant that the global import value has fallen below the entry price established in said Agreement., causing serious damage to the Spanish sector.

 

The entry price of tomatoes established in the agricultural protocol of the Association Agreement between the EU and Morocco is 46,1 euros per hundred kilos. If the import price is lower than this value, The importer should pay a customs duty of 29,8 euros each 100 kilos to prevent the low prices of the imported product from sinking the community market.

From the 1 November the import value is below 42,4 euros 100 kg, with a historic low of 36 euros per hundred kilos. This would imply the payment of customs duty. However, The strong import volume in recent days shows that the specific customs duty is not being paid, nor is it expected to pay in the future because, according to FEPEX, at that price level paying the corresponding fee, Importation would be economically unviable.

In this situation, FEPEX has urged the European Commission to require customs authorities to effectively control the entry price regime, in order for importers to pay the corresponding customs duties, considering also that the 1 In September, the modification of the entry price regime came into force to allow effective customs control, as provided in the recital 8 of the implementing regulation (EU) NO. 701/2012 of the Commission.

For FEPEX, the high volume of imports at low prices, facilitated because the corresponding customs duties are not paid, has caused the collapse of the community tomato market, threatening the viability of this crop. The Spanish sector considers it a priority to recover the normality of the community market because tomato production constitutes the main economic activity in regions where the unemployment rate exceeds 35%.

The new agricultural protocol of the Association Agreement between the EU and Morocco has entered into force on 1 October. Its approval was rejected by the majority of the sector because it implies the practical liberalization of exports of Moroccan fruits and vegetables to the community market., in which they compete with the advantages generated by wage costs of 60 cents/hour.

On the other hand, the Coordinator of Agrarian Organizations, COAG, has described the attitude of the European Commission as shameful. The provincial secretary of this organization in Almería, Andres Gongora, remember that it is also “a product without phytosanitary controls and a production model where labor is not respected as there is a known and aberrant exploitation of both adults and children continues to put the national market in check, which sees prices plummet.”.

Góngora recalls that “when we took a stand against the agricultural protocol between the European Union and Morocco, it was not by choice.”, and we denounce, actively and passively, the situation of defenselessness that our farmers are experiencing when third countries do not comply with the signed agreements.. History repeats itself and the Administration crosses its arms allowing everything. When entry prices are not met, Morocco should pay customs duty, something that is being overlooked”.

For the Agrarian Organization, it is vital that “the customs authorities effectively control the entry prices of tomatoes and other fruit and vegetable products.”. When it's not the tomato, Is it cucumber or zucchini?. We are seeing how tomatoes are being sold at Perpignan market 30 cents/kilo while Spanish farmers do not even have to cover production costs”, Góngora asserted.