NYT: Odd fruits and veggies

Europe Welcomes Abnormal Veggies
By STEPHEN CASTLE
BRUSSELS — Misshapen fruit and vegetables won a reprieve on Wednesday from the European Union as it scrapped rules banning overly curved, extra knobbly or oddly shaped produce from supermarket shelves.
Ending regulations on the size and shape of 26 types of fruit and vegetables, the European authorities killed off restrictions that had become synonymous with bureaucratic meddling.
The rising cost of commodities also persuaded the European Commission that there was no point in throwing away food just because it looked strange.
Starting in July, when the changes come into force, these standards for the 26 products, ranging from peas to plums, will disappear altogether. European shoppers will then be able to choose their produce whatever its appearance.
For 10 other types of fruit and vegetables, including apples, citrus fruit, peaches, pears, strawberries and tomatoes, shape standards will remain. However, items that do not meet European norms will still be allowed onto the market provided they are marked as being sub-standard or intended for cooking or processing.
“This marks a new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the knobbly carrot,” said Mariann Fischer Boel, European commissioner for agriculture, who argued that regulations were better left to market operators.
“In these days of high food prices and general economic difficulties, consumers should be able to choose from the widest range of products possible,” Ms. Fischer Boel said. “It makes no sense to throw perfectly good products away, just because they are the ‘wrong’ shape.”

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That sentiment was not shared by 16 of the European Union’s 27 nations – including Greece, France, the Czech Republic, Spain, Italy and Poland – which tried but failed to block the changes at a meeting of the Agricultural Management Committee. Several countries worried that the abolition of European standards would lead to the creation of national ones, said one official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the delicacy of the discussions.
The European Union is well known for its detailed regulations on appropriate shapes and sizes for agricultural items. Commission Regulation (EC) 2257/94, for example, states that bananas sold in Europe must be “free from malformation or abnormal curvature,” though Class 1 bananas can have “slight defects of shape,” and Class 2 bananas can have full “defects of shape.” Bananas were not covered in Wednesday’s ruling, so for now, these standards remain.
Wednesday’s fruit and vegetable reprieve covers apricots, artichokes, asparagus, avocados, beans, brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflower, cherries, zucchinis, cucumbers, cultivated mushrooms, eggplants, garlic, hazelnuts in shell, headed cabbage, leeks, melons, onions, peas, plums, ribbed celery, spinach, walnuts in shell, watermelons and chicory. When the rules governing the standards for the sale of these foods disappear next year, about 100 pages of regulations will go with them.