EU imposes stricter rules on fruit imports from RP

The European Union (EU) has imposed stricter phytosanitary measures on cutflowers, fruits and leafy vegetables coming from the Philippines.

Government sources said the EU would only permit the entry of cutflowers, fruits and leafy vegetables if they have a phytosanitary certificate issued by the concerned agency of the exporting country.

The stricter phytosanitary measures were imposed by the EU starting April 1, 2003, following rising global concern for consumer health and environmental safety.

But Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel Roxas II sees no cause for alarm from the new measures, saying that the new measures are aimed at making sure that imports of cutflowers, fruits and leafy vegetables are free of organisms identified as harmful by the EU.

These harmful organisms which may be subject to quarantine include several species of liriomyza and spodiptera, arebesimisia tabasi, thrips palmi, heliotis zea, as well as other fungi, viruses and bacteria.

Cora Canlas, DTI trade assistant at the Philippine Trade and Investment Center in the Netherlands, said the EU decided to issue stricter measures because many Q-organisms are still detected on cutflowers and vegetables coming from other countries including the Philippines.

Canlas warned that as an added measure, the products will be systematically inspected upon arrival in the EU even if these were already covered by phytosanitary certificates.

The DTI is advising exporters of cutflowers, fruits and leafy vegetables to secure a phytosanitary certificate first with the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Plant Industry (DA-BPI) before shipping any of these products to EU countries.

"Rising global concerns for consumer health and environmental safety has prompted legislation and strict enforcement by foreign countries like the EU of certain standards on labeling, marking and certification," Roxas said.

Roxas gave his assurance that the new EU-imposed standards, regulations and other market access requirements "should not limit our exporters from market penetration."

"Instead, these concerns should pose a challenge to exporters to further improve the quality of their products considering EU’s very lucrative market."

The EU has 375 million consumers with a gross domestic product (GDP) higher than that of the US and Japan.

Fresh fruits and cutflowers are major Philippine exports to the EU with a combined income of around $1.4 million annually.

Shipments of fresh fruits, on the other hand, rose by 131 percent while cutflower exports grew by 299 percent. – Marianne Go