Minister calls for speedy halloumi decision

By Constantinos Psillides

AGRICULTURE Minister Nicos Kouyialis has requested a speedy evaluation of Cyprus’ application to register halloumi as a protected designation of origin (PDO) product in the EU.

In a meeting he had with EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Dacian Ciolos in Brussels on Monday, Kouyailis briefed the commissioner on the halloumi application and focused on the positive impact for the Cyprus economy if it was registered as a PDO.

The government submitted the application to register halloumi as a PDO last Wednesday and expects an answer within a year. PDO is a designation aimed to protect the names of regional foods and to ensure that only products originating from that area can use the trade name.

The biggest threat for halloumi doesn’t come from the EU but from Cyprus, since the cattle farmers association (POCF) and the cheese-makers association will be filing an appeal with the Supreme Court to overrule the government’s decision to submit the application.

If the appeal is successful, the halloumi PDO application will have to be withdrawn.

The associations are protesting the acceptable proportions of milk; it mandated a 51 per cent minimum of goat and sheep milk, which their association deemed as unrealistic as available quantities in Cyprus did not allow for such a high percentage in halloumi production.

The application stipulates that the proportion of goat and sheep milk in halloumi must be over 50 per cent.

A ten year transition period has been granted to halloumi producers to adopt the new standard.

During that period, halloumi makers will be allowed to use maximum 80 per cent cow milk for their products.

Responding to the protests, Kouyialis had said that they were unreasonable since cattle farmers and cheese-makers will be given a ten year transition period.

The government will also subsidise the modernisation of existing, and the creation of new animal farms, as well as the improvement of halloumi production facilities.

The subsidies will range between 40 and 60 per cent of the cost, which can be up to €800,000.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.