Spanish Lawmakers Push Bill to Combat Mislabeling of Imported Produce

Products (fruits and vegetables) of Moroccan, Egyptian or Turkish origin have been fraudulently labeled as being of Spanish origin and sold on the market at a competitive price. The Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) has introduced in Congress a proposal asking the government to implement measures to put an end to this fraud that harms local producers and the Spanish label, reports El País.

To read: Spanish Farmers Protest as Moroccan Produce Floods EU Market, Driving Prices Down

"Producers are threatened with bankruptcy and consumer health is also at risk, as after inspection, banned substances are detected in these products that end up on the shelves of our supermarkets," denounces David Sanchez, president of the National Association of the Primary Sector (ANSEPRIM). And he adds: "The economic advantage is huge. Producing a kilo of tomatoes in Morocco costs 6 or 8 cents due, among other things, to cheap labor, or the lack of environmental safety rules,... while in Spain it can cost at least 30 or 35 cents".

To read: Controversy Grows Over Moroccan Tomato Exports from Disputed Sahara Region

For Sanchez, this fraud has taken on alarming proportions because no control system has been put in place at the port of Algeciras or Motril through which these products generally pass. The association president also points to the lack of agents to carry out this daily control mission on thousands of trucks. But he is convinced that the change of label on the products takes place on site, on Spanish territory, particularly in industrial areas like El Ejido (Almeria).

To read: Spanish Farmers Demand EU Ban on Moroccan Produce Amid Price Concerns

"There have been very blatant cases. Before, they would directly put the fake Spanish label on top of the one indicating the Moroccan origin of the product," explains, for his part, Andrés Góngora, president of the Federation of Farmers and Ranchers Organizations of Almeria, raising the problem of the traceability of products that land in Spanish supermarkets, but also in the large distribution centers of Munich (Germany) or Perpignan (France). In Andalusia, where this fraud is very pronounced, 838 checks were carried out and 448,000 euros in fines were imposed between 2019 and 2021.