Moroccan Health Authorities Warn of Pesticide-Laden Chinese Teas

Thus, reports the newspaper Al Akhbar, brands currently marketed in the kingdom and therefore consumed by Moroccans contain pesticide residues that greatly exceed the authorized limit. Chinese companies are accused of not cleaning the tea immediately after harvesting or even during its preparation.

To counter this, the National Office of Food Safety (ONSSA) has just published new standards and has sent a circular to all importers of Chinese teas so that they implement strict controls and comply with national legislation.

ONSSA threatens to take action in case of non-compliance and will ban access to the national territory for all teas that do not comply with the Moroccan standard, the newspaper specifies.

To appease tensions with professionals, meetings are held regularly with ONSSA officials to try to find economically viable solutions, the importers’ association fearing a substantial increase in prices and therefore a loss of interest from consumers.

It should be noted, still according to the newspaper, that Morocco imports 25% of Chinese tea and is the world’s largest beneficiary.