Strasbourg, 07/07/2016 (Agence Europe) - Czeslaw Adam Siekierski (EPP, Poland) asked in an oral question on Thursday 7 July what the European Commission intended to do to resolve the issue of non-tariff barriers put up by some member states against food exporters.
Speaking on behalf of the agriculture and rural development committee, Siekierski argued that such barriers called into question the freedom of movement of goods, one of the four fundamental freedoms on which the Union is based, condemning “protectionist” measures.
Discriminatory measures such as these have an effect, too, on the competitiveness of imported foods in the EU internal market and could have a detrimental effect on the economy and contribute to the decline in cross-border trade in the internal market.
At a press conference, a representative of the Polish agri-food sector said that some countries imposed additional health checks or specific certification or slowed procedures before approving the exports. According to Polish exporters, the Czech Republic, Germany and the United Kingdom are the three worst offenders on non-tariff barriers. With the Commission sometimes taking two to three years to intervene, exporters of agricultural products would like to see faster action. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)