Duty-free halloumi for Australia?
Cyprus’ Minister for Agriculture Petros Xenophontos told the European Union’s Agriculture and Fisheries Council on Tuesday that halloumi cheese should be exported to Australia duty-free. He was participating in a discussion on negotiations toward an EU-Australia Free Trade Agreement.
A ministry press release said the Swedish Presidency of the Council briefed ministers on the progress in talks for an EU-Australia Free Trade Agreement for agricultural products. Xenophontos requested that halloumi be included in the list of products that can be exported to Australia without tariffs.
He also noted that future revisions of the list of Geographical Indications should include flagship products of member-states that strengthen local agricultural economies.
The debate on trade in agricultural products between the EU and Ukraine opened with an intervention by Ukrainian Minister of Agriculture Mykola Solskyi. He described the difficult situation faced by the country and Ukrainian agriculture since the Russian invasion. Member-states also referred to the impact of the invasion on their own markets and called on the European Commission to propose relevant measures.
