Foods containing substances, such as pesticides, banned by the EU will no longer be allowed to enter France.
In particular, any foods containing residues of herbicides and fungicides such as mancozeb, glufosinate, thiophanate-methyl, and carbendazim will be banned from the country, France’s Prime Minister, Sebastien Lecornu, announced on Sunday. A decree will be issued shortly.
Affected products include mangoes, avocados, guavas, grapes, citrus fruits and apples. These products, when imported from territories such as South America, will no longer be allowed to enter France, explained Lecornu.
Enhanced checks will be carried out on produce to ensure that it complies with these standards.
The measure is “a first step to protect our supply chains and our consumers and to fight against unfair competition, a real issue of justice and fairness for our farmers,” said Lecornu.
France has been one of the strongest critics of the EU-Mercosur deal, a trade deal between the EU and countries in the Mercosur bloc (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay).
Once the deal is signed, tariff barriers between the two blocs will be greatly reduced, prompting concerns that French farmers will experience unfair competition from countries with different agricultural standards. Measures have been introduced into the agreement to mitigate these risks.
