The EU on Tuesday decided to lift a seven-month-long ban on the import of mangoes from India after the world's biggest producer made significant improvements in plant health controls and certification system, clearing the way for them to return to the 28-member bloc by March. However, the prohibition on the import of vegetables from India will be reviewed at later stage after collecting more evidence, the EU said in a statement.
A European Commission committee meeting in Brussels voted to lift the ban on mangoes on Tuesday. "A proposal by the Commission to lift the import ban of mango fruits from India was today endorsed by Member State experts meeting at the relevant Regulatory Committee concerned with Plant Health," the statement said.
"An audit carried out by the Commission's Food and Veterinary Office in India in September 2014 showed significant improvements in the phytosanitary export certification system. The European Union's "temporary ban" came into force on May 1, 2014 and was to remain effective until December 2015 after authorities in Brussels found consignments of the premium Alphonso mangoes infested with fruit flies that they feared could damage European salad crops.