Portugal’s two autonomous regions, Madeira and the Azores, are among areas that produce bananas. The others are part of Spain and France, with the industry employing some 37,000 people.
The new import rules, which were previously negotiated with EU governments, introduce an early warning system to better anticipate and react to any sudden increase in the inflow of bananas from Ecuador to avoid upsetting the internal market.
The move extends to Ecuador - the largest exporter of bananas to the EU - an existing mechanism that has applied to Colombia and Peru since 2013, but also seeks to improve communications under this
mechanism.
The warning is to be triggered when import volumes reach 80 percent of the annual threshold for the stabilisation mechanism to take effect. Import preferences under the trade deal are to be suspended once the annual threshold is reached.