Source: European Parliament
The Commission is aware of the importance of banana production for Madeira. The Madeira POSEI[1] programme includes an annual budget of EUR 10.2 million for the support of banana production (corresponding to 44% of the total support for local production in Madeira).
According to the programme, the aid shall be paid to the banana producers through a body with appropriate technical means for the packaging and marketing of bananas, on the basis of the quantity of bananas delivered. It is the Member State’s responsibility to define and recognise this body.
Following a recent opinion (EPR/2023/1) of the Portuguese Competition Authority (AdC)[2], which recommended to the Madeira Autonomous Region to relax the necessary requirements for the recognition of banana Producer Organisations (POs) in Madeira, the Commission requested and obtained assurances from the region that they are driving legislative changes to amend the minimum thresholds for setting up POs and to fully comply with the recommendations of the Competition Authority.
The Commission will request information from the Portuguese authorities concerning the demand for written commitments mentioned in your question and follow the issue closely.
No restrictions may be imposed that aim to prevent the existence of alternative POs, as this is likely to have an adverse effect on the objective of the public policy.