The European Commission on Thursday filed an appeal at the World Trade Organisation against a ruling that found European import tariffs for bananas unfairly discriminated against Latin American countries.

The European Commission said the WTO ruling did not take into account evidence that Latin American suppliers had seen a 10 per cent increase in market access in recent years.

The WTO last month proposed that the EU implement a cut in banana import from €176 per tonne to euro114 per tonne by 2016, with an interim cut to euro148 by next January, following a complaint by Ecuador that further challenged preferential access for African, Caribbean, Pacific countries to the EU market.

Thursday's announcement is the latest move in a longstanding trade dispute over how many bananas the 27-nation bloc lets in from Ecuador and other countries that do not have preferential trade ties with the EU bloc.

The WTO said in May that Brussels breached trade agreements by favouring imports from Africa, Caribbean and Pacific states - many former French and British colonies.