Spanish fruit & veg growers, concerned about the new route from Western Sahara
The Spanish farmers’ organization COAG has expressed its concern regarding the new trade route consequences of the French shipping company CMA CGM, which will increase weekly shipments of fruits and vegetables from Dakhla, Western Sahara port, to Algeciras.
This organization reports that Morocco is reinforcing its logistical system to increase “fraudulent” agricultural exports from Western Sahara to the European market. On August 7, one of the main shipping and container transport companies in the world, the French CMA CGM, announced the launch of a weekly route, connecting Western Sahara with the main Moroccan ports of Agadir, Casablanca and Tangier and the Spanish port of Algeciras. This has now become a reality and the fist cargo ship left Dakhla on August 22.
According to COAG, these exports are “a fraud for EU consumers” as they will not have reliable information on the fruit and veg origin, because of the shipments arrive in Algeciras “as a Moroccan produce”.
The extension to Western Sahara of the commercial advantages of the agreement between Morocco and the EU, approved by both parties this year, has had a purpose of “favoring the economic interest of a handful of multinational agro-exporters”, COAG said.
COAG was in favor of the EU strengthening border controls to prevent agricultural products being introduced in the EU market “without the corresponding clarifications on their labelling”.
Source: agrodigital.com