Return of the ugly vegetable

Rules governing the size and shape of fruit and vegetables will be consigned to history after European Union Member States voted on Commission proposals to repeal specific marketing standards for 26 types of fruit and vegetables.

The Commission's initiative to get rid of these standards signifies efforts to streamline EU rules and cut red tape.

For 10 types of fruit and vegetables, including apples, strawberries and tomatoes, marketing standards will remain in place.

But even for these 10, Member States could for the first time allow shops to sell products that don't respect the standards, as long as they are labelled to distinguish them from 'extra', 'class I' and 'class II' fruit.

In other words, the new rules will allow national authorities to permit the sale of all fruit and vegetables, regardless of their size and shape.

Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development explained more: "This marks a new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the knobbly carrot. It's a concrete example of our drive to cut unnecessary red tape. And in these days of high food prices and general economic difficulties, consumers should be able to choose from the widest range of products possible. It makes no sense to throw perfectly good products away, just because they are the 'wrong' shape."

These standards will be repealed for 26 products: apricots, artichokes, asparagus, aubergines, avocadoes, beans, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflowers, cherries, courgettes, cucumbers, cultivated mushrooms, garlic, hazelnuts in shell, headed cabbage, leeks, melons, onions, peas, plums, ribbed celery, spinach, walnuts in shell, water melons, and witloof/chicory.

The Commission will now formally adopt the changes which, for practical reasons, will be implemented from 1 July 2009.

Words: Clare Riley

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