TURKISH Cypriot farmers say they will consider using French methods to prevent what they term illegal imports of Greek Cypriot meat products into the north.
“You’ve seen what the French farmers do to protect their markets: They bring the country to a standstill. We’ll do the same if we have to,” Turkish Cypriot Farmers Union head Ali Kabakci told the Cyprus Mail yesterday.
Kabakci accused butchers in the north of selling smuggled lamb and beef from Greek Cypriots at knockdown prices, and warned that many of the imports were being sent to the north because they were unfit for sale on European markets.
“As far as we are concerned these imports are not subject to health checks, and we have evidence that some of the meat may have been kept in the deepfreeze for years.
“Whether anyone internationally recognises them or not, we have our laws. All local meat products have to be checked at the abattoirs by municipal vets. If meat is imported it is also subject to health controls. But if it is smuggled, there are no such checks and we can’t guarantee the health of consumers,” Kabakci added.
Farmers Union general secretary Oguz Ceyda went as far as telling a Turkish Cypriot newspaper yesterday he believed some of the smuggled meat could have been in storage for up to 20 years.
Salih Akbicak, a north Nicosia butcher, told the Mail that most of the meat crossing to the north from the south did not in fact originate in the Republic of Cyprus, but came from countries such as Greece and Bulgaria.
“This meat is being sold all over the north, and butchers selling the meat give no indication of its origin. Many believe they are buying local produce,” he said.
“But we can tell the difference, and it is not of high quality,” he added.
Asked how the meat got past customs checks at crossing points in the Green Line, Akbicak said: “It is mostly brought over by Turkish Cypriots. They were doing this even before crossing points opened, either by truck through Pyla or carried by hand by groups of individuals.”
It seems clear, however, Turkish Cypriot farmers are not only concerned about the wellbeing of meat consumers, but also about the survival of their industry.
“While our price for live lamb is six New Turkish Lira (YTL) [£3] per kilo, they are selling cut and de-boned lamb imported from the Greek side for as little as 7YTL,” Kabakci said, adding that such low prices “could be the death of Turkish Cypriot livestock farming”.
“It does not interest me whether meat being smuggled into the north carries the stamps of the Cyprus Republic or EU or wherever. Smuggling creates unfair competition for us as farmers in EU countries get financial support from the EU and their own governments. We don’t get such support, and that’s one of the reasons why they are producing more cheaply than us.”
He also hit out at the EU and the Republic of Cyprus which refuse to handle Turkish Cypriot meat and dairy products, supposedly because of health concerns.
“Our milk is cheaper in the south, and that’s why the Greek Cypriots refuse allow it on their markets,” he said. “It’s got nothing to do with quality.”
Akbicak agreed: “You cannot get meat like ours anywhere in Europe in terms of taste or quality. Our animals roam free and are feed naturally. The same cannot be said of the Greek side or anywhere in Europe,” he insisted.
Ceyda laid blame not only on the smugglers and the butchers who were willing to sell smuggled produce, but also on the north’s authorities whom he criticised for lifting import duties and VAT on imported meats.
“This is the shame of the previous government,” he said, adding that the new ‘government’ in the north should help rectify the situation by reintroducing tariffs.
