French Sticker Ban to Hurt US Exports of Fruit, Vegetables
An upcoming French ban on sales of fruit and vegetables with certain “identifying stickers” is poised to affect a range of U.S. agricultural exports, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in a report last week. The ban,…
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which takes effect Jan. 1, 2022, aims to “eliminate disposable plastic” and will particularly restrict exports of U.S. sweet potatoes and grapefruits, which bear stickers for traceability and marketing purposes, USDA said. The agency said the restrictions are especially “problematic” for grapefruits because the U.S. is the fourth-largest grapefruit supplier to France. “U.S. exporters will only be able to ship grapefruits without stickers, creating logistical and marketing difficulties,” USDA said, adding that products shipped to other European Union countries can’t be rerouted to France. The provisions in France’s ban will also eventually affect U.S. exports of cranberries, lingonberries and blueberries, although the implementation of those measures takes effect later, USDA said.