Commission gives Cyprus five more years to comply with Halloumi regulations

The European Commission on Tuesday extended Cyprus’ transition period to comply with the Protected Designation or Origin (PDO) regulations for Halloumi for another five years.

The initial ten-year transition period given by the European Commission was set to expire on July 9, but with disagreements ongoing between various stakeholders regarding milk quotas and the implementation thereof, the requisite progress was not made.

With this in mind, the agriculture ministry said on Tuesday it will issue a decree regarding milk quotas and proceed with a consultation with the involved stakeholders before and after the final issuance of the decree.

Minister Maria Panayiotou was pleased with the transition period’s extension and set out her next steps for its implementation after the decision was announced.

“The protection of PDO halloumi and its preservation as our main export agrifood product are our two main goals, which we want to achieve during the five-year transition period,” she said.

She added her hope that the appropriate measures will be taken during the five-year transition period to ensure that those goals are achieved.

The consultation announced by her ministry is set to take place at the end of the week.