EU Plans Labeling of Israeli Products Made in Occupied Territories

July 29,2013

The European Union is pushing ahead with plans to force Israeli companies operating in the West Bank and East Jerusalem to label the origin of their products. It comes as Israeli and Palestinian delegations begin peace talks for the first time since 2010.

Israel’s continued construction of settlements on land captured in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war has been a major obstacle to a peace deal. Currently products made by Israelis in the occupied territories are sold under the ‘Made in Israel’ label.

The European Union is pushing through rules to ensure products from the occupied territories are labeled as such.

The policy would implement longstanding consumer legislation, Maja Kocijancic, spokesperson for EU Foreign Affairs, told VOA on the phone from Brussels.

“The main principle of this legislation is that the information must not mislead the consumers. ‘Made in Israel’ as a label is misleading when it comes to settlement products. Currently the internal consultations on this are ongoing,” he said.

The change would bring labeling rules in line with the official EU position on the Israeli settlements, says Rosemary Hollis, Professor of Middle East Policy Studies at City University London.

“This is almost overdue in terms of carrying through on what they say is the legal status, or lack of legal status of the settlements,” she said.