20/12/06 (www.nieuwsbank.nl) - On 20 December the EU Council of Ministers is expected to decide on the withdrawal of tariff preferences for products, including oils and fats, originating in Belarus.

According to the European Commission ,Belarus has systematically violated the labour rights of its citizens and should therefore loose its present trade preferences that are based on the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP).

After the expected Council decision Belarus will have another six months to meet the recommendations that the International Labour Organization (ILO) has made on this country. If Belarus does not meet these ILO recommendations within the mentioned time period its GSP preferences will be withdrawn by the EU at the end of June 2007.

At present, Belarusian oils and fats (in practice mainly crude rapeseed oil and crude linseed oil) are eligible for tariff preferences for developing countries under the GSP. For example, crude rapeseed oil for technical applications (e.g. bio-diesel) and crude linseed oil can now both enter the EU duty free. If Belarus does not change its policy towards labour rights these Belarusian oils will face the general EU import duty of 3.2% by mid 2007. The import duty on crude rapeseed oil for food applications will be raised from 2.9% to 6.4%. For information regarding the import duties on other oils and fats (incl. refined rapeseed and linseed oil) please contact the Product Board.

According to provisional Eurostat data the EU (mainly Germany, Poland, the Baltic States and Slovakia) has imported 10,674 tons of rapeseed oil in the first nine months of 2006.

Source: http://www.nieuwsbank.nl/