The fruit police (you can't make it up fast enought)

The New Criterion ^ | 12/31/03 | Roger Kimball

[DUMBGRUNT]

From the article:"To be sure, it covers the surface of society "with a network of small, complicated, painstaking, uniform rules"--the last time I checked there were 185,000 pages of rules and regulations; the EU "does not tyrannize, it hinders, compromises, enervates, extinguishes, dazes" and so on"

How does 185k pg. compare to the blizzard of bs from the US bureaucrats?

[ijcr]

It was reported last week that an Austrian farmer, Johann Thiery, had been fined and threatened with prison for selling "apricot marmalade" made from a traditional Austrian recipe passed on by his grandmother.

Under EU rules "marmalade" can only be made from citrus fruit. Sternly defending Mr Thiery's punishment, a European Commission spokesman said: "The law is the law."

Next day Pedro Solbes, the EU's economics commissioner, was reported as defending the right of France and Germany to run up huge budget deficits, in flagrant breach of the Growth and Stability Pact.

"Given the circumstances we face," he said, "it would be unwise to follow the letter of the law." (Sunday Telegraph Christopher Booker's 26/10/2003 )

[Publius6961]

OK I give up.

Where's the "Onion" logo?

[Nick Danger]

Ummm, folks, stuff just this weird happens right here in the good old USA. A "peach" shall be yeah big and no smaller; any peaches smaller than that have to be burned... you can't just sell them for less. Ditto for plums, apples, and so on. We have plenty of our own Agriculture Nazis; we don't need to be laughing at theirs.

[dennisw]

The larger factor is that ugly fruit stays where it is grown. The better fruit is sent to other states where consumers demand perfection. Plenty of bargain priced ugly oranges and other citrus down here in Florida that are happily gobbled up by consumers. In California y'all must get great deals on apricots and such that aren't sent east since they don't look the best.

[mtbopfuyn]

Ummm, folks, stuff just this weird happens right here in the good old USA.

So true. However, the rules only apply to labeling. Fruit can be sold no matter what size or shape as long as it's not being labeled as "grade A" or whatever. I'm wondering if this EU law applies to the thousands of farm family roadside produce stands?

[secretagent]

The Blob gets bigger.

[farmfriend]

Rights, farms, environment ping.

Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from this list.
I don't get offended if you want to be removed.

[Quix]

SHRILLERY'S GLOBAL GOVERNMENT is so proud of it's initial accomplishments in Europe. Aren't you thrilled that she too is sooooooooooooo eager to bring such thoughtful idiocy to our shores.

Gag me with a crooked banana!

[Pan_Yans Wife]

So all the food grown that doesn't comply with the regulations must be destroyed?

What about shipping it overseas for humanitarian relief?

[gitmo]

From the title, I thought this was an article about police enforcing homosexual rights or maybe cracking down on gays. Then I realized it had to do with groceries (and hedges???). Then I got to this section:

GOODBYE bendy bananas. Farewell curved cucumbers. So long chunky carrots. The European Union has finally triumphed in its quest to tame nature

Now I'm totally confused.

[Nick Danger]

the rules only apply to labeling. Fruit can be sold no matter what size or shape as long as it's not being labeled as "grade A" or whatever.

Perhaps my comment is unique to California, where I lived for twenty years:

The particular problem is fruit, slightly "undersized" peaches and nectarines grown in California. Since the 1930s, the Secretary of Agriculture has been setting minimum size standards for peaches and nectarines. Any fruit even microscopically below the minimum size and weight set by the government is illegal and must be destroyed by the farmer, under pain of severe penalties.

It's not that these slightly smaller peaches and nectarines are unsalable to the consumer. On the contrary: most people, including trained fruit pickers, can't tell the difference visually, so they are forced to use expensive weighing and sorting machines. It is estimated that, during the 1992 growing season in California, fruit growers will be forced to destroy no less than 500 million pounds of this undersized fruit.Source

[tertiary01]

Apricots are just as expensive in stores in California as in other states, because all the duds go to the canners. They are even expensive at the farmers markets (if you can find them).

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!

[okie01]

"I'm wondering if this EU law applies to the thousands of farm family roadside produce stands?"

The answer is "Yes".

And the answer would be "Yes" even if the family roadside produce stand were giving away the merchandise.

[dennisw]

If not apricots then I sure hope Californians get the apples deemed too ugly to ship out of state or abroad. Real deal ripe apricots are my favorite and I manage to get them every few years here in Florida. All California grown of course. Last summer they were from 1 to 1.50 dollars per pound in Stiles market which has low prices, quick turnover

[dennisw]

No way, I don't believe this can or does apply to a farmer's roadside stands. If so I am amazed.

[okie01]

I'm reasonably certain that it does.

The EU's regulations tend to be universal -- no exceptions for number of employees, gross sales or marketing area.

Whether they are enforced or not... Ach, that is another matter, is it not?

[Dan Evans]

Why???????

Economic protectionism. More evil than it is stupid.

Suppose you are a greedy carrot farmer in Belgium and you happen to know that most of the carrots grown in England are a different shape than the variety you grow. All you need to do is beg or bribe the Eurocrats to pass a regulation giving your carrots preference.

NAFTA is the same way. You don't need a document the twice the size of the NFL rulebook to say "free trade". But you do need a lot of ink to give protected markets to all the vested interests. All this does is establish a huge, entrenched bureaucracy that can never be abolished.

[F.J. Mitchell]

The EU has misinterpreted the Parables. It is obvious they read, "The meek shall inherit the earth" as "The freaks shall rule the earth".