Banana war
The EU's banana tariff provides some degree of protection from
competition to two groups of producers. One is foreign suppliers mainly in Africa
and the Caribbean, which are usually former colonies of EU states. They have
tariff free access for about three quarters of a million tones of their bananas.
The other group is producers inside the EU, in Spain, Greece, Portugal and
French territories in the Caribbean. The single tariff on bananas from elsewhere -
mainly Latin America - was introduced in January to replace a more complex
system of tariffs and quotas which the WTO decided was incompatible with its
rules. The EU was told to introduce a system that at least preserved the previous
market access for other suppliers.
Ecuador has apparently decided that it does not do that and is reported to
have made a complaint to the WTO. Several other Latin American countries
were involved in early stages of this long running quarrel. So was the United
States, because many plantations in South and Central America are run by US
companies such as Chiquita. The EU has long been internally divided over the
issue. Some countries, such as Germany would prefer an almost unrestricted
market so that their consumers could get the best bananas at the lowest prices.
Andrew Walker, BBC
Essay topic: Should we invest more in agriculture products or industry?