Post by Bob Marks on May 18, 2013 22:10:01 GMT -5
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Critics ridiculed European Union bureaucrats on Saturday for taking time off fighting the euro zone's debt crisis to impose strict new rules on how restaurants serve olive oil.
From January 1, 2014, eateries will be banned from
serving oil to diners in small glass jugs or dipping bowls, and forced
instead to use pre-sealed, non-refillable bottles that must be disposed
of when empty.
The European Commission
said the move is designed to improve hygiene and reassure consumers the
olive oil in restaurants has not been diluted with an inferior product.
But critics say the rules are a sop to Europe's olive oil producers,
and will only add to the frustration felt by many towards a bloated EU
bureaucracy regarded as out of touch with the concerns of ordinary
Europeans.
"If the European Union
was logical and properly run, people wouldn't be so anti-Europe. But
when it comes up with crazy things like this, it quite rightly calls
into question their legitimacy and judgment," said Marina Yannakoudakis, a British Conservative member of the European Parliament.
The Commission
said its proposal was supported by 15 out of 27 EU member governments,
including the continent's main olive oil producers - Italy, Greece,
Spain and Portugal - which are among the countries worst affected by the
euro crisis.
From January 1, 2014, eateries will be banned from
serving oil to diners in small glass jugs or dipping bowls, and forced
instead to use pre-sealed, non-refillable bottles that must be disposed
of when empty.
The European Commission
said the move is designed to improve hygiene and reassure consumers the
olive oil in restaurants has not been diluted with an inferior product.
But critics say the rules are a sop to Europe's olive oil producers,
and will only add to the frustration felt by many towards a bloated EU
bureaucracy regarded as out of touch with the concerns of ordinary
Europeans.
"If the European Union
was logical and properly run, people wouldn't be so anti-Europe. But
when it comes up with crazy things like this, it quite rightly calls
into question their legitimacy and judgment," said Marina Yannakoudakis, a British Conservative member of the European Parliament.
The Commission
said its proposal was supported by 15 out of 27 EU member governments,
including the continent's main olive oil producers - Italy, Greece,
Spain and Portugal - which are among the countries worst affected by the
euro crisis.
news.yahoo.com/eu-finds-time-tell-restaurants-serve-olive-oil-152027170.html
Bob Marks
