The General Court of the European Union has ruled the European Commission (EC) was right to introduce compulsory labeling for citrus fruits that are subject to postharvest processing using chemicals or preserving agents.

Spain had brought an action before the General Court claiming the practice was discriminatory and should be scrapped.

But a release announces that a judge has dismissed the action.

The Spanish case claimed the EC was being unfair against citrus producers - mainly in lemons, mandarins and oranges -because only they are subject to the labeling obligations and consumers could be misled into thinking that only citrus fruit was being treated with chemicals post-harvest. This could then have a detrimental impact on marketing, sales and overall consumption.

"In that regard, the General Court observes that the objective of the compulsory labelling is to ensure that consumers of the citrus fruits concerned are better informed, by drawing, where appropriate, their attention to the fact that those fruits have been treated post-harvest with preserving agents or other chemical substances," the release says.

"This is necessary because citrus fruits have particular characteristics in relation to post-harvest processing. As a general rule, the peel of citrus fruit is not consumed with the flesh, but is thrown away, as in the case with many other fruits (bananas, watermelons, melons)."

The release explains how citrus fruit is different because the peel has a specific purpose in cooking and can be used in the preparation of many dishes, so it therefore needs a different kind of labeling approach.

"As regards the objective of providing consumers with information concerning the substances used during post-harvest, citrus fruit producers are thus in a different situation to that of producers of other fruit and vegetables.

"Consequently, the principle of equal treatment and non-discrimination is not infringed."

However, the court ruling has angered some in the Spanish citrus sector.

"Many of us feel the practice of forcing Spanish citrus growers to use the labeling in this way is discriminatory and puts us at an unfair disadvantage commercially against other fruit growers because it draws a person’s attention to the use of chemicals. The reality is many fruits and vegetable farmers all over Europe use chemicals post-harvest," said a source from the Valencian Farmers Association (AVA-ASAJA)

"Europe says it is a different case for citrus because people often use the peel to cook, but many growers feel this makes no difference and this is just another example of the bullies of Europe telling everyone what to do when they do not know what they are talking about."

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