Parliament voted to prohibit trade in unripe carobs

Parliament on Thursday voted through legislation prohibiting the gathering, transport and trade in unripe carobs.

The bill, tabled by Disy MP Kyriacos Hadjiyiannis, passed with 31 votes for, one against.

It prohibits the gathering or transporting or trading in carobs prior to a certain date, to be designated via decree issued by the minister of agriculture.

Any person wishing to engage in such activities with unripe carobs can apply for an exception, by writing to the agriculture minister and citing the reasons for requesting the exemption. The minister will consider the application and decide on a case-by-case basis.