Outrage forces EU into U-turn on olive oil ban

BRUSSELS bureaucrats were forced into a humiliating U-turn yesterday after public outrage at their plans to ban restaurants from serving olive oil in unlabelled jugs and bowls.

The EC announced that olive oil from next year must be served in factory packed labelled bottles The EC announced that olive oil from next year must be served in factory-packed labelled bottles

Last week the European Commission announced that olive oil from next year must be served in factory-packed labelled bottles with tamper-proof “hygienic” nozzles.

Yesterday David Cameron said the ban was “exactly the sort of thing the EU should not even be discussing”.

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson welcomed the U-turn saying: “Common sense has prevailed.”

EC officials had proposed the move because of fears customers were being cheated or endangered by substandard oil.

The plans were agreed under a process which allows Brussels to pass laws without support from a majority of EU countries.

Yet even some European Commission officials said there was no hard evidence that customers were being defrauded.

Now following a public outcry, EU Agriculture Commissioner Dacian Ciolos said he accepted the proposed ban on refillable flasks was “not formulated in such a way as to assemble widespread support”.

eu, european union, u-turn, olive, oil, unlabelled, jugs, restaurants, public, outrageEC officials propsed the move because of fears customers were being cheated

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Consumers and restaurateurs across Europe had pressed for a rethink at Wednesday’s summit of EU leaders in Brussels.

Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte urged Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso, the son of an olive oil producer, to have the move quashed.

Originally Britain had not opposed the ban as it was part of a package of measures designed to improve olive oil labelling, which the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs supported.

But a British spokeswoman added: “We argued against the ban and encouraged other member states to do the same.”

EU olive oil farming association Copa-Cogeca condemned the European Commission for bowing to “political pressure”.

It criticised scrapping a move that had been discussed for more than a year and passed through all the correct legal procedures.

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