Welcome back the curvy zucchini, mangled mushroom and other odd and ugly fruit and vegetables. The EU bid adieu Wednesday to rules that have cemented its image as an ivory tower: starting next summer, it will allow the sale of fruit and vegetables that may be crooked, bent or twisted but are fine for consumption. “This marks the new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the nobbly carrot,” EU Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel said. “We simply don't need to regulate this. In these days of high food prices and general economic difficulties, consumers should be able to choose from the widest range of products possible.” There have been riots over rising food prices in impoverished countries like Haiti and Senegal earlier this year as world food prices peaked. The ban, imposed more than 20 years ago, spared consumers having to buy scary looking food which ended up in food processing machines or was discarded. Over the years, that ban on ugly has triggered much ridicule. Europe's tabloid media have long used it to highlight bureaucrats' desire to regulate every nook and cranny of Europeans' lives. “I'm tempted toward whimsy on welcoming this decision,” said Alyn Smith, a Scottish member of the European Parliament. “But this is good news for producers and consumers. It may just perhaps even nail once and for all the myth that the EU regulates everything in sight.” At its weekly meeting, the European Commission ended marketing standards requiring 26 fruit and vegetables to be sold without any odd curves. They are: apricots, artichokes, asparagus, avocados, beans, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflower, cherries, zucchinis, cucumbers, cultivated mushrooms, eggplants, garlic, hazelnuts in shell, headed cabbage, leeks, melons, onions, peas, plums, ribbed celery, spinach, walnuts in shell, watermelons, and chicory. “Pretty-food” standards remain for 10 other types -including apples, strawberries and tomatoes - but governments may allow the “uglier” version to be sold if they wish. EU officials said the ban was outdated and a red tape nightmare. Its demise means the EU can shed 100 pages of rules and regulations. EU officials said the ban was resisted by Italy, Spain, France and Hungary, which felt it may scare away consumers. But proponents prevailed. “To stop stores selling perfectly decent food during a food crisis is morally unjustifiable,” said British Conservative Neil Parish, who chairs the European Parliament's agriculture committee. “This is a matter that should not be decided by the EU.”
