The product went viral on social media before it was banned for not ‘meeting EU standards’ [Getty/file photo]
Customs agents in the French port city of Marseille last month seized at least 15,300 jars of Algerian hazelnut spread El Mordjene.
The product has been banned from sale across the European Union.
Authorities have attempted to keep the product away from French and European shelves, even though it went viral on social media last year.
According to the London Times, French police are raiding grocery shops across the country’s cities, particularly in North African-populated neighbourhoods.
Police also reportedly seized a 200 kilogram shipment in the Parisian suburb of Argenteuil, back in April.
Jars, which contain 700 grammes, are usually sold for 15 euros, with some reaching 25 euros – up to six times the price in the product’s country of origin.
The spread, produced by Algerian company Cebon, went viral on TikTok last year. It became popular particularly in France, home to nearly two million people of Algerian descent.
France however banned the product in September, saying it doesn’t meet EU standards regarding its ingredients. The spread reportedly contains 12 percent dried milk and Algeria has no agreement with the EU to export dairy products.
“Algeria does not meet the conditions for a third country to export products to the European Union containing dairy inputs intended for human consumption,” the French agriculture ministry said at the time.
The move was carried despite El Mordjene having been exported to France for three years prior.
El Mordjene’s popularity also increased after a live tasting by journalists of the ‘Première Edition’ of French channel TV BFM.
Top French retailer Carrefour also expressed interest in stocking the product, telling AFP back in November that it had hoped to sell it “as soon as possible while respecting European food import regulations”.
The viral product, known for its hazelnut taste and creamy texture, has been compared to an alternative to the likes of Nutella and Kinder Bueno, which many feel was one of the reasons behind the ban.
Many believe that French authorities deliberately barred El Mordjene’s from being imported in an attempt to protect Nutella, owned by Italian company Ferrero, which has its biggest market in France.
Algerian officials said that France’s desire to protect Nutella from having a rival product was the main spur behind the ban.
Ferrero has denied this however.
The move has also been interpreted by some as politically motivated, due to the ongoing diplomatic tensions between Paris and Algiers.
Relations began to sour in 2021, following remarks allegedly made by French President Emmanuel Macron.
French and Algerian media said that Macron said the country was ruled by a “political-military system” and described Algeria as having an “official history” that had been “totally re-written”.
Tensions have also increased due to incidents such as the killing of a French Algerian teenager by a police officer in November 2023, Paris’ backing of Morocco’s autonomy plan for the disputed Western Sahara territory and the arrest of French-Algerian author Boualem Sansal.
The ongoing tensions have been described as the “worst they have ever been” since Algeria gained independence in 1962 from its former colonial power.
