'New EU sugar tax will not impact Maltese manufacturers': Peter Agius
EU Commission amended its plan to only tax raw cane sugar- a product that Maltese manufacturers do not use
The European Commission’s plan for a new sugar tax will not impact Maltese manufacturers, Maltese MEP Peter Agius said.
“Following my intervention with the European Commission, it was announced that the new tariffs on sugar will not apply to refined sugar. In Malta, we have around 600 jobs that depend directly on the price of imported sugar. We managed to protect them,” Agius said in a social media statement.
As things stand, the EU does not charge customs duties for refined or raw sugar coming into the EU if that sugar is used to make products that are again exported outside the bloc.
The commission is now planning to introduce a stamp duty on imported raw sugar as a way to protect northern European sugar beet farmers who produce sugar themselves.
Agius had raised the issue in late March, saying the collateral damage for Malta, which has no domestic sugar production, could be severe. Back then, he had warned that the most impacted would have been manufacturers of sugar-based desserts and drinks, and also the local tomato industry.
On Thursday, Agius said that following his intervention, the commission's new plan is to only tax raw cane sugar, rather than the refined sugar that Maltese manufacturers use.
In a statement, the Commission last week said: “The measure adopted today will not affect inward processing imports of white sugar. Operators across downstream industries using white sugar as a raw material to manufacture products for export can continue to rely on these imports without disruption”.