COEXPHAL advances in developing a single sustainability seal together with producers from the rest of Europe

Is it possible to achieve a distinctive seal that certifies sustainability? The heads of the associations COEXPHAL, DPA, CSO Italy, Freshfel Europe and GLOBALG.A.P. held a meeting within the framework of the Fruit Logistica fair in Berlin to achieve this, joined by several European distribution chains.

At this meeting, GLOBALG.A.P. forecast where the line of work is going and everyone agreed that it is possible to have a single certification, a unique add-on for everyone, a position that is also shared by the distribution chains.

For manager of COEXPHAL Luis Miguel Fernández, the European fruit and vegetable sector “continues to need a common European protocol that is applicable to all producers; based on common measurement methods so that all farmers have a single sustainability certification system, a position supported by supermarket chains, as they have indicated to us at this meeting”.

Concerns about the proliferation of sustainability labels and the dispersion and duplication of efforts are factors that remain issues to be dealt with by European producers, as noted at the meeting. The need for a standardised and scientifically based European evaluation method is going to be one of the lines of work in the coming months for the European fruit and vegetable sector, for whom it is essential to include the evaluation of the economic impact in decision-making in order to continue to guarantee the viability of producers.