The government of France has said it will officially move to suspend imports of plant products that are grown with substances banned in the EU.
French agriculture minister Annie Genevard said in a post on social media that she has decided to suspend the entry into French territory of foodstuffs containing residues of several substances banned in Europe.
The substances concerned include the fungicides mancozeb, thiophanate-methyl, carbendazim, and the herbicide glufosinate.
The minister’s statement (translated from French), said: “We cannot accept that substances banned here reappear indirectly through imports. It’s common sense.
“Wherever they come from in the world, imported products must comply with our standards. France is setting an example in Europe by adopting this unprecedented decree, which covers more than a dozen food products,” she added.
Several products, including melons, apples, apricots, cherries, strawberries, grapes, and potatoes will only be sold in France if they contain no residues of substances banned in the EU. However, this is conditional on the move from the French government getting approval from the EU.
“Protecting our farmers, guaranteeing the health and safety of the French people, and firmly combating all forms of unfair competition by enforcing our rules: this is a non-negotiable requirement,” Minister Genevard said.
“It is up to the European Commission to make it universal,” she added.
French Prime Minister Lecornu
On his own social media French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu posted an ‘open letter’ to the farmers of France, in which he said that it is not acceptable to tolerate the presence of substances prohibited in France in imported products.
He claimed to do so is economically unjust and a consumer health issue.
The prime minister said that decrees would be issued by the government this week to suspend the importation of the food stuffs containing the banned substances.
He said that the decision is a first step, and that the government will continue to use legal means to control the importation of other products, including meat, that do not respect the EU’s sanitary and phytosanitary standards.
“Controls on imports will be massively reinforced, at the borders and within the territory…It is now up to the EU to rapidly amplify these actions across the entire European market. In the meantime, we assume the responsibility of acting now and initiating this movement,” Prime Minister Lecornu said.
