The European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture will convene this Thursday to discuss a proposed amendment by the European Commission regarding marketing standards. The central issue is the accurate labeling of origin for products imported into the European Union from outside its borders, specifically those originating from the occupied territory of Western Sahara.
The European Commission has put forward an amendment to the marketing standards regulation concerning the origin labeling of fruits and vegetables sourced from the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara, a region awaiting decolonization. This amendment proposes using the administrative division imposed by the Moroccan occupation in Western Sahara instead of indicating the true country of origin. Critics argue this is a blatant circumvention of rulings by the European Court of Justice, which affirmed the necessity of proper labeling for products originating from Western Sahara.
Abi Bouchraya Bachir, advisor to the Sahrawi President on natural resources and legal matters, stated that the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture will examine the nature and implications of the new agreement between the European Union and Morocco. He added that the committee will question the European Commission on the basis upon which it negotiated and signed an agreement that, in its current form, disregards the European Court of Justice’s rulings.
According to Bachir, the agreement between Morocco and the European Union not only violates the European Court of Justice’s rulings of October 4, 2024, by failing to ensure the consent of the Sahrawi people and adhering to strict conditions, but also breaches established procedural rules. He emphasized the exclusion of the Parliament from the provisional signing phase by imposing a fait accompli without any discussion.
The issue of labeling products imported and marketed in Europe is expected to be a significant point of contention between the Committee and the Commission. The signed agreement allegedly fails to respect the court’s decisions, which require products to bear a distinct label reflecting the reality that Western Sahara and the Kingdom of Morocco are two separate and distinct territories, and to adhere to the internationally recognized code ‘+Western Sahara EH+’. Critics argue that the new agreement attempts a clear circumvention by adopting designations that obscure the true origin of the products.
