ArmInfo. Azerbaijani apples are being sold at Armenian market under the pretence of Greek and Dutch, Babken Pipoyan, Informed and Protected Consumer Organization head stated during the press conference.
According to the expert, the problem is that labels were taken off the Azerbaijani apples with a note of exporter country and were sold under Greek and Dutch names, which is a direct violation of the legislation, as well as a lie towards the consumer.
As Pipoyan stressed,it was already known that the apples entered the market avoiding custom control. First of all, he stressed, these apples were not checked by State Service for Food Safety, thus, it is not clear whether they are safe or not.
"Now the state intends to check their safety, however the product should be checked before it enters the market and before it is being bought by the consumers", Pipoyan said, stressing that Azerbaijani product should be disposed from points of sales or be destroyed, as there is no guarantee they are safe.
"Turkish products are being sold often, such as toothpaste, but in this case, even if it does not conform to all the standards, tooth paste causes much less harm than the harm that food products can cause", Pipoyan stressed.
To note, the alarm on this product selling came on April 23, and on April 25 was utilized, as it has no safety guarantee. Apples could be imported both by private actor and by commercial entity, as according to Armenian laws the import to 50 kg fresh fruits or vegetables is not considered trade product. State Service on Food Products Safety of Armenian Agriculture Ministry searches the importer of this product. The apples penetrated both large stores and supermarkets, and the markets, which have low demand. Nevertheless, Azerbaijani apples continue being sold in some market points.