Portugal’s Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Forestry, Capoulas Santos, has said that the country's hypermarkets owe about €15 million to the government relating to the food safety tax.
The amount corresponds to a €9.7 million debt accrued between 2012 and 2015, plus €6.3 million relating to 2016.
Speaking during a Parliamentary hearing, Santos added that more than 500 court actions have been launched against the collection of this fee.
According to Santos, the large amount of outstanding debt is causing financial problems for the Portuguese National Authority for Animal Health (DGAV).
The food security tax applies to grocery retailers that have a sales area exceeding 2000 square metres, such as hypermarkets, leaving out small retailers.
© 2016 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
