Antaletriangle
11-12-2008, 09:08 PM
Crazy-i was unaware of this-misshapen veg. and fruit was banned from shelves!!??
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/13/world/europe/13food.html?ref=dining
BRUSSELS — Misshapen fruit and vegetables won a reprieve Wednesday from the European Union as it scrapped rules banning overly curved, extra knobbly or oddly shaped produce from supermarket shelves.
Ending regulations on the size and shape of 26 types of fruit and vegetables, the European authorities killed off restrictions that had become synonymous with bureaucratic meddling.
The rising cost of commodities also persuaded the European Commission that there was no point in throwing away food just because it looked strange.
Starting in July, when the changes come into force, standards for 26 products, ranging from peas to plums, will disappear altogether. European shoppers will then be able to chose their produce whatever its appearance.
For 10 other types of fruit and vegetables, including apples, citrus fruit, peaches, pears, strawberries and tomatoes, shape standards will remain. However, items that do not meet European norms will still be allowed onto the market providing they are marked as being sub-standard or intended for cooking or processing.
“This marks a new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the knobbly carrot,” said Mariann Fischer Boel, European Commissioner for Agriculture, who argued that regulations were better left to market operators.
“In these days of high food prices and general economic difficulties, consumers should be able to choose from the widest range of products possible,” Mr. Fischer Boel said. “It makes no sense to throw perfectly good products away, just because they are the ‘wrong’ shape.”
That sentiment was not shared by 16 of the European Union’s 27 nations – including Greece, France, the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy and Poland – which tried but failed to block the changes at a meeting of the Agricultural Management Committee. Several countries worried that the abolition of European standards would lead to the creation of national ones, said one official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions.
cont.on link above.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/13/world/europe/13food.html?ref=dining
BRUSSELS — Misshapen fruit and vegetables won a reprieve Wednesday from the European Union as it scrapped rules banning overly curved, extra knobbly or oddly shaped produce from supermarket shelves.
Ending regulations on the size and shape of 26 types of fruit and vegetables, the European authorities killed off restrictions that had become synonymous with bureaucratic meddling.
The rising cost of commodities also persuaded the European Commission that there was no point in throwing away food just because it looked strange.
Starting in July, when the changes come into force, standards for 26 products, ranging from peas to plums, will disappear altogether. European shoppers will then be able to chose their produce whatever its appearance.
For 10 other types of fruit and vegetables, including apples, citrus fruit, peaches, pears, strawberries and tomatoes, shape standards will remain. However, items that do not meet European norms will still be allowed onto the market providing they are marked as being sub-standard or intended for cooking or processing.
“This marks a new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the knobbly carrot,” said Mariann Fischer Boel, European Commissioner for Agriculture, who argued that regulations were better left to market operators.
“In these days of high food prices and general economic difficulties, consumers should be able to choose from the widest range of products possible,” Mr. Fischer Boel said. “It makes no sense to throw perfectly good products away, just because they are the ‘wrong’ shape.”
That sentiment was not shared by 16 of the European Union’s 27 nations – including Greece, France, the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy and Poland – which tried but failed to block the changes at a meeting of the Agricultural Management Committee. Several countries worried that the abolition of European standards would lead to the creation of national ones, said one official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions.
cont.on link above.