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This week, the Codex Alimentarius, an international forum, which deals with food quality and is linked to the World Trade Organization, approved rules and standards for international commerce of a total of 85 different fruits, many of which are tropical fruits and grown in Brazil.
Among the fruits that will now have international criterion are caju (the fruit that comes with cashew nuts), carambola (star fruit), banana, cacao, cupuaçu (a cacao relative), orange, tamarind and passion fruit.
The new rules on the fruits were drawn up by a task force of representatives from the Brazil, the United States and the European Union.
"These norms ensure that importers get a product with defined characteristics. It also means that Brazil will export fruit with such characteristics with the result that commerce will increase," explains Márcio Rezende Evaristo, at Brazil Ministry of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Inspection Division.
At the moment, Brazil exports US$ 580 million worth of fruits and fruit juice. Most of that is orange juice (US$ 544 million).
The EU is the biggest importer of Brazilian orange juice (80%). The US buys 11% of Brazil's orange juice and then mixes it with domestically produced orange juice.
ABr - www.radiobras.gov.br
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