Unions of vegetable producers in France have denounced competition from Moroccan tomatoes in the midst of tomato production in France. The members of the unions are asking that the origin “France” be better highlighted to encourage consumers to buy their tomatoes rather than those from Morocco.
Tomato producers who are members of the “Légumes de France” union, as well as the Fédération des Syndicats Agricoles en France, even organized last Friday “a labeling action aimed at denouncing the over-representation of Moroccan imported tomatoes on the stalls supermarkets in the middle of the French production period”, indicates the French site Réussir.
French tomato producers have printed fluorescent yellow “Origin Maroc” labels and stuck several of them in the center of trays of cherry tomatoes sold on promotion.
action of #producers of tomatoes to denounce the massive imports of 🍅 Moroccans while the season 🇨🇵 is in full swing.
unidentifiable indication of origin, underpaid labor, competition is unfair.@tomccb #labeling #origin @Agri_Gov #workforce pic.twitter.com/hdLs8AIba5– Vegetables from France (@LegumesdeFrance) June 2, 2023
“Action by tomato producers to denounce the massive imports of Moroccan tomatoes while the season in France is in full swing. Indication of unidentifiable origin, underpaid labor, competition is unfair”, they denounce on Twitter.
They believe that when the supply of certain fruits and vegetables produced in France is available, vegetables from Morocco should disappear from the shelves of large retailers, so that, according to their logic, they do not compete with their products. .
This campaign by tomato growers affiliated with the Légumes de France union only targeted Moroccan tomatoes, and did not mention tomatoes produced in neighboring countries such as Spanish tomatoes.
Trade unionists recall that Morocco has become the third exporter of tomatoes, while being the producer with the highest rate of increase in exports. They highlight the largest increase in exports in one year (+17%) among all producing countries in Morocco.
A striking fact when in Morocco the price of tomatoes has tripled in recent months, and the reasons given were the lack of production due to drought.
In France, Moroccan tomatoes represent 63% of imported volumes, according to Réussir. In 2022, tomato exports to France experienced an “exponential increase of 19.16% year on year” from 425,552 tonnes against 357,118 in 2021, the French union said.
Vegetable producers believe that the French public authorities should print the flag of the producing country at least 15 mm high, in addition to mentioning the origin of the product marked on the upper side of the packaging.