EU-Morocco agri-food and fisheries agreement concluded

On 17 December 2009, after four years of negotiations, an agreement on trade in agri-food products and fisheries relations was concluded between the EU and Morocco. The EC argues that the agreement will ‘reinforce the position of European exporters on the Moroccan market, particularly exporters of processed agricultural products’. This is seen as ‘a major offensive interest for the EU with full liberalisation planned in stages over the next ten years, with the exception of pasta, for which a quantitative restriction is provided’. The agreement allows for ‘the immediate liberalisation of 45% of the value of EU exports and 70% in ten years’. Tinned food, dairy products (except liquid milk and whole-milk powder), oilseeds and the fruit-and-vegetable sector will benefit fully from total liberalisation. However, beans, sweet almonds, apples, tomato concentrate, meat, cured meat products, wheat and olive oil will remain subject to tariff quotas.

According to the EC press release, ‘Community exports for the [agriculture, food and fisheries] sectors reached almost €944 million during the years 2006-08 and will benefit from better access to a neighbouring market that is seeing strong demographic growth’.

Agreement has also been reached to open negotiations on the protection of geographical indications and on ‘provisions on the respect of international obligations with regard to health and plant health matters’.

Regarding the opening of the EU market to Moroccan agri-food exports, the agreement immediately liberalises 55% of imports from Morocco. However, concessions in the fruit-and-vegetable sector, which accounts for 80% of the EU’s imports, have been structured in ways designed to address EU ‘sensitivities’. To this end, import schedules and tariff-rate quotas (TRQs) ‘have been maintained for the products considered to be the most sensitive, tomatoes, strawberries, courgettes, cucumbers, garlic and clementines’, although these TRQs will still see expanded access for Moroccan exports (e.g. increasing from a TRQ of 233,000 tonnes to 285,000 tonnes for tomatoes over four years).

Following the ‘vocal opposition’ to the new trade deal and to poor enforcement of the existing deal from a number of Spanish farmers and producers, reported in late November 2009, French fruit-and-vegetable producers are now also reported to be strongly opposed to the deal, claiming that it will be ‘the beginning of the end’ for French cultivation, which has seen a 53% decrease in the proceeds from fruit production and a 34% decline in proceeds from vegetable production in the last year. The European farmers’ and agri-cooperatives’ organisation, COPA-COGECA, has also stated that it ‘regrets the conclusion’ of the agreement, arguing that the EC should first have ‘evaluated the socio-economic impact of such an increase and brought in compensatory measures for traditional EU production areas’. These criticisms need to be seen in the context of a decline of 7.7% in turnover in the fruit-and-vegetable sector in 2009, ‘representing a loss of €5.7 billion’ in farm income. In response to farmer pressure, the Director of Légumes de France cancelled a planned speech at a conference in Agadir, Morocco, in mid-December 2009.