Bonn slips on European banana rules

The Germans like to be seen as the most pro-European nation of all - in most respects, at least. But not when it comes to bananas. Bananophilia comes before Brussels. A Hamburg court has confirmed that Germany likes to make its own rules when it comes to buying the fruit.

The court ruled in favour of a fruit importer who had broken European quota rules on the import of cheap "dollar bananas" from Central and South America. Officially, the court allowed T. Port to break the European rules because this was "urgently necessary" for the company to avoid bankruptcy. In practice, the court was politely making a two-fingered gesture on behalf of all Germany to the drafters of European rules in Brussels.

There was enormous unhappiness in Germany when the new rules were introduced two years ago. Germany had always been an avid consumer of bananas. The market was boosted still further when the Berlin Wall came down. Bananas - almost unavailable in Communist East Germany - became a symbol of the Freedom to Buy.

Other EU countries were less enthusiastic about a no-holds-barred purchasing policy. France and Britain wanted to ensure that their former colonies in Africa and the Caribbean would not suffer. There were Euro-bananas to take account of, too, from the Canary Islands.

Complex agreements were agreed, which sought to avoid breaking the terms of Gatt, the international free-trade agreement, while keeping faith with small Caribbean and African economies, which relied heavily on their European markets.

The Germans were outraged. The restrictive Euro-policies were the subject of angry editorials and of popular indignation. Since then, the indignation has died down but the underlying bitterness remains. German officials point out that the price of bananas has gone up by more than 50 per cent since the Euro-ruling. The consumption of bananas has fallen by almost one-third.

The latest court judgment is not a carte blanche for defying Brussels. But it is an incitement to future defiance: this week's decision is the third recent "one-off" decision against Euro-bananas. Already there have been phone calls from Brussels, complaining about the Germans' lack of community spirit.