EU dismisses reports of ban on Ghanaian cereal exports

0
Wpid Export
It’s Time Gov’t Encourages Foreign Inflows

The European Union Delegation to Ghana on Wednesday dismissed reports in the local media that it was considering banning cereals and groundnuts from Ghana over their quality. export
In a release issued by Helene Champagne, the Political Officer of the Delegation, the EU clarified that there was neither an existing ban nor an intention to ban exports of cereals, groundnuts and related products from Ghana to the European Union.
Champagne said the European Union was taking sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) issues seriously and was working together with Ghanaian authorities to prevent adverse health risks posed by possibly contaminated products.
She said since 2013, special import regulations governed the export of peanuts and certain products derived from peanuts (such as peanut butter) from Ghana and a number of other countries to the EU due to findings of high levels of aflatoxins in peanuts and peanut products originating from these countries.
Aflatoxin are toxic metabolites produced by certain fungi in and on foods and feeds, which reduces the quality of the host crop and is associated with various diseases.
The conditions are laid down in Regulation (EU) No 884/2014 stipulating that specified products, such as groundnuts, can only enter the EU through specific ports and airports as designated points of entry, and sampling of consignments has to be done at designated points of imports.
Supporting Ghana to improve compliance with international SPS standards, including in the area of aflatoxins, to reduce health risks in Ghana and beyond, is a key objective of European Union development cooperation, she said.
According to her, the EU, through the Trade Related Assistance and Quality Enabling (TRAQUE) Programme, is jointly with the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA) providing capacity building to export-oriented value chain operators which includes local producers, traders and exporters. Enditem

-Xinhua

Send your news stories to [email protected] Follow News Ghana on Google News

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here