Yesterday, the European Commission pledged to take into consideration the package of extraordinary measures that the Council of Agriculture Ministers presented for different agricultural sectors in crisis, including the fruit and vegetables sector . Regarding this sector and assuming the position defended by MAGRAMA, the Commission announced its commitment to extend the exceptional measures taken because of the Russian veto, which were going to expire on June 30, for one year. The Council also agreed to increase the efforts that the European Union was doing to normalize trade relations with Russia, specially in the sectors affected by the Russian veto on EU imports.
The measures adopted because of the Russian veto include removal operations, non-harvesting and green harvesting, for producers members of producer organizations and individual producers with different levels of Community financial aid.
The Council also agreed with the proposal of MAGRAMA of requesting that the European Commission studies how to improve the system of withdrawals in the fruit and vegetable sector. Withdrawals are part of the crisis management measures established by the CMO and their effectiveness is limited by the minimum levels of the withdrawal aid amounts and their quantitative limits. FEPEX proposed a substantial increase in these. Improving crisis management measures would be incorporated into the CMO Implementing Regulation Reform (EU) No 543/2011 that is currently in progress and that would be implemented in the fruit and vegetable sector.
