Fines Over Farm Stocks
- April 15th, 2007
- Posted by Emma Cillekens
Nine member states of the European Union have been fined following a crack down on stockpiling of agricultural products.
As Emma Cillekens reports from Brussels, the European commission is putting its money where its mouth is in terms of cutting back on surplus agricultural storage.
The EC has fined nine member states a total of over EU 41-million (A$66.5-million; dcerates.com), – for buying and keeping surplus product they said they would not hold on to.
Stockpiles of meat, dairy products, fruit and vegetables were located in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Cyprus and Malta.
The European Commission promised trading partners it would cut back on producing the surplus, and its newly instated fines have underlined its determination.
The nine countries which joined the EU in 2004 all agreed to do something about stocks they were holding but failed to comply by the agreed time.
The EU Commissioner for Agriculture, Mariann Fischer Boel, pointed out that firm action was always on the cards and was prepared to lay down the law.
.”I think we need to see more specified conditions from the member states …
“There is actually some homework to be done in this,” she said.
The nine countries have been given a period of four years to make the payments which will contribute to the EU budget.