As of May 1st, the European Union has introduced a temporary ban on import of mango, aubergine, the taro plant, bitter gourd and snake gourd from India.
Reported in the newspaper, the Hindu Times, the ban has apparently sparked protests from “the Indian community, lawmakers and traders”.
DEFRA, the Department for Environment, food and rural affairs in the UK supports the ban which it states is due to harmful organisms found in consignments of food. They refer to a number of audits that have been carried out since 2010. According to the press release from EUROPA the harmful organisms found included non European fruit flies.
The ban will remain in place until the end of 2015 but “but may be revised in light of developments”.
Click here to read the story on the Hindu Times website.
Click here to read the press release on the DEFRA website.
Click here to read the press release on the EUROPA press release database.