The recent revelations surrounding the marketing and sale of agricultural products grown in occupied Western Sahara have once again drawn attention to the continued and unlawful exploitation of the territory\u2019s natural resources. On 21 July 2025, the Spanish Federation of Consumers and Users (CECU) and the national farmers\u2019 union COAG lodged a formal complaint with Spain\u2019s Directorate-General for Consumer Affairs, denouncing the mislabelling of cherry tomatoes cultivated in Western Sahara and sold across the European Union as “products of Morocco”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This case centers on the French-Moroccan agribusiness conglomerate\u00a0Azura<\/strong>, which operates over\u00a0400 hectares of tomato greenhouses in occupied Western Sahara<\/strong>. Despite the region\u2019s legal status as a non-self-governing territory under international law, Azura markets its products throughout the EU including in\u00a0Carrefour supermarkets in France and Spain<\/strong>\u00a0 as if they originate from Morocco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This practice is not only misleading to European consumers and unfair to EU farmers, but it also stands in flagrant violation of international and European Union law<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Western Sahara is recognised by the United Nations as a non-self-governing territory<\/strong>, the last remaining colony in Africa. In its landmark 1975 Advisory Opinion<\/strong>, the International Court of Justice (ICJ)<\/strong> ruled that no ties of territorial sovereignty existed between Morocco and Western Sahara<\/strong>, affirming the Saharawi people’s inalienable right to self-determination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The UN Legal Counsel<\/strong>, in a 2002 legal opinion addressed to the President of the UN Security Council, further clarified that economic activities related to the natural resources of Western Sahara are illegal unless they are conducted with the consent and for the benefit of the Saharawi people<\/strong>. No such consent exists for Azura\u2019s operations, nor for the broader agricultural and extractive industries that Morocco has unilaterally developed in the occupied territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU)<\/strong> has consistently upheld the legal separation between Morocco and Western Sahara<\/strong>. In its 4 October 2024 ruling<\/strong>, the CJEU declared that the EU-Morocco trade agreement cannot apply to Western Sahara<\/strong>, as the region is “distinct and separate” from Morocco, and because Morocco has neither sovereignty nor administrative authority<\/strong> over the territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The ruling further stipulated that products from Western Sahara must not benefit from preferential EU trade tariffs<\/strong>granted to Moroccan goods. Importantly, in a parallel ruling<\/strong>, the Court decided that fisheries and agricultural products from Western Sahara must not be labeled as Moroccan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite these clear legal judgments, companies like Azura continue to operate under a veil of deception and impunity<\/strong>, misleading both retailers and consumers and enabling Morocco\u2019s entrenchment of occupation through economic normalization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In response to public criticism, Carrefour stated that it \u201ccomplies with its product labelling and traceability obligations\u201d and is open to implementing regulatory changes. However, such responses ring hollow without immediate and transparent enforcement of the EU\u2019s own legal standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is alarming that while Western Sahara\u2019s legal status remains unresolved<\/strong>, the region is being further integrated into Morocco\u2019s export infrastructure. Projects like the Engie-led desalination plant in Dakhla<\/strong>, which aims to increase irrigated land in the area fivefold, indicate a long-term strategy by Moroccan authorities to consolidate control over the territory through economic colonization<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to trade data, Morocco has now overtaken Spain as the EU\u2019s second-largest tomato supplier<\/strong>, with exports to the EU growing 17.7% in volume in 2024 alone. A significant portion of these exports are sourced from greenhouses illegally constructed in occupied Western Sahara.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Adala UK\u00a0unequivocally condemns<\/strong>\u00a0the ongoing exploitation of Western Sahara\u2019s natural resources without the free, prior, and informed consent of its indigenous people. The organization calls upon all relevant actors governments, corporations, and civil society to\u00a0respect the sovereignty and rights of the Saharawi people<\/strong>, as enshrined in international law and upheld by the UN and international courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We emphasize that respect for Saharawi self-determination is not only a legal obligation but also a moral imperative. Any economic activity or trade involving resources from Western Sahara must be fully transparent and conditional on the consent and benefit of the Saharawi people, represented by the Polisario Front.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The ongoing exploitation of Western Sahara\u2019s natural resources<\/strong> without the consent of its people is a grave breach of international law<\/strong>, one that undermines the Saharawi people\u2019s right to self-determination and rewards illegal occupation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Adala UK calls on:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Western Sahara is not part of Morocco. No economic activity conducted in the territory can be lawful unless the Saharawi people, represented by the Polisario Front<\/strong>, give their free, prior, and informed consent. Until then, any foreign corporation or government participating in or facilitating such activities bears responsibility for supporting the illegal occupation of Western Sahara.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The recent revelations surrounding the marketing and sale of agricultural products grown in occupied Western Sahara have once again drawn attention to the continued and unlawful exploitation of the territory\u2019s natural resources. On 21 July 2025, the Spanish Federation of Consumers and Users (CECU) and the national farmers\u2019 union COAG lodged a formal complaint with Spain\u2019s Directorate-General for Consumer Affairs, denouncing the mislabelling of cherry tomatoes cultivated in Western Sahara and sold across the European Union as “products of Morocco”. This case centers on the French-Moroccan agribusiness conglomerate\u00a0Azura, which operates over\u00a0400 hectares of tomato greenhouses in occupied Western Sahara. Despite the region\u2019s legal status as a non-self-governing territory under international law, Azura markets its products throughout the EU including in\u00a0Carrefour supermarkets in France and Spain\u00a0 as if they originate from Morocco. This practice is not only misleading to European consumers and unfair to EU farmers, but it also stands in flagrant violation of international and European Union law. The Legal Status of Western Sahara Western Sahara is recognised by the United Nations as a non-self-governing territory, the last remaining colony in Africa. In its landmark 1975 Advisory Opinion, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that no ties of territorial sovereignty existed between Morocco and Western […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6105,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,92,95],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6104"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6104"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6104\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6106,"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6104\/revisions\/6106"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6104"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6104"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adalauk.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6104"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}The Legal Status of Western Sahara<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
EU Court of Justice: Repeated Reaffirmation of the Law<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Carrefour\u2019s Involvement and the Expanding Occupation Economy<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Adala UK\u2019s Position<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Conclusion: An Obligation to Uphold the Law<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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