As of 1st January 2018, Ghanaian farmers will be able to resume exports of all plant commodities to the European Union (EU) market.
This follows the European Commission's decision to lift the current ban on the exports of five plant commodities from Ghana to the European Union (EU) market on 31st October 2017, according to a statement from the EU.
The five Ghanaian plants (chilli pepper, bottle gourds, luffa gourds, bitter gourds and eggplants) will from 1 January 2018, have duty-free and quota-free access to the EU market like any other product from Ghana.
The five commodities will have to fulfil the EU phytosanitary legislation to ensure the freedom of quarantine pests.
This decision follows an audit undertaken from 12 to 21 September 2017 by the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety of the European Commission and the evolution of the numbers of import interceptions with quarantine pests notified by Member States for commodities not subject to the ban.
A statement from the European Union said, “Since the beginning of the ban in October 2015, the Ghanaian authorities have taken significant corrective measures to improve the inspection and control system for plant health at exit points, in particular at Kotoka International Airport.”
“The European Commission congratulates Ghana for reaching this important milestone and encourages Ghana to consolidate the upgraded system and to continue further improvements in the phytosanitary certification system to obtain full compliance with the EU phytosanitary requirements.”
Source: myjoyonline.com