OLAF: ANTI-FRAUD UNIT HELPING GREEK JUDGES IN CROATIAN SUGAR CASE.

The EU's anti-fraud unit OLAF has confirmed that it is helping Greek judges with their investigations into alleged fraudulent sugar exports from Croatia to the EU. A spokesman for OLAF said on May 28 that the hearing by a court in Salonika was at a "fairly advanced stage of advancement". The case was opened after traces of cane sugar were found in a Croatian consignment bound for Greece, although the country is only able to produce beet sugar. A number of other investigations were opened by OLAF, in response to rocketing sugar imports from the Western Balkans after liberalisation of the trade in 2000 - Croatia alone accounted for 250,000 tonnes of sugar in 2001-2002. Other enquiries are being made into how effective the systems designed...