In 2015, Costa Rica unilaterally decided to ban the import of Mexican Hass avocados, stating that a pest called Sunblotch Viroid (sunspot) could enter the country via the fruit. Last April, the World Trade Organization published the final report of the panel of experts that examined the issue raised by Mexico in March 2017, under the international entity’s Dispute Resolution Understanding.
As a result of the measures put in place by Costa Rica regarding the import of avocados from countries where there is an avocado plague Sunblotch Viroid, a panel examined the controversy.
The president of Costa Rica, Rodrigo Chaves, announced this Wednesday the lifting of the restriction on the importation of Mexican avocado that was in force since 2015, a case that generated a bilateral dispute in which the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed with Mexico.
“Costa Rica complies with and respects international law, and in this context, the resolution of the measure against the importation of Mexican avocados is being lifted,” Chaves said at the press conference after the weekly Governing Council.
The president assured that “with this we put ourselves in the right, consumers will be able to choose, we comply with the law, and we hope to be able to defend the country from possible economic sanctions of an enormous magnitude”.
Source: smallcapnews.co.uk