GRTU complains about pitkala

The GRTU, Association of General Retailers and Traders, yesterday complained that nothing concrete had been done to guarantee that the middlemen at the Ta' Qali vegetable market did not continue to put aside the best produce and deny sellers a "true choice".

The middlemen, or auctioneers (pitkala), were taking phone orders from the big buyers who did not want to go all the way to Ta' Qali, the GRTU charged.

They were therefore putting aside the highest quality fruit and vegetables - amounting to half to a third of all the produce - for pre-booked orders. The price was then settled on the rest.

The volume of produce left over was small and the quality poor, which resulted in high prices for lower quality, the association argued.

The GRTU said it may therefore be constrained to order fruit and vegetable sellers to stop buying their produce from the market until a fair agreement was reached.

It maintained that the consumer was suffering because the seller could only offer what the middleman made available.

The GRTU said the Rural Affairs and Environment Ministry had not taken serious action to find a solution acceptable to all parties, despite the fact that it had set up a steering committee to help solve the problems.

GRTU director general Vince Farrugia said a meeting was being held today between the market's management and the pitkala's association in a bid to agree on the proportions of the produce that should be available for hawkers and for telephone bookings.

Meanwhile, the ministry said that while it appreciated that there were difficulties in the operation of the vegetable market, its intentions were to see an improvement in the situation, and preparations for its reform were under way.

The ministry said the reforms would touch on times, grading, cold storage and management at the market, and would be the result of a wide consultation process.

A report by a Spanish expert, commissioned by the government, has been completed and was now being considered by a committee, the ministry said.

This week, the minister and the permanent secretary met with the GRTU to discuss changes at the market. The reforms would be funded mostly through the protocol with the Italian government.