Brussels Backtracks on Plan to Ban Belgian Fries

Brussels has backtracked on an attempted to effectively ban the most famous traditional dish of… Brussels.

The European Union (EU) has declared war on the preparation method of Belgian fries, one of the national dishes of Belgium, home of the EU’s government and parliament.

Brussels bureaucrats say the thick-cut double fried potato snack, traditionally eaten with mayonnaise, could contribute to cancer due to the presence of a harmful compound called acrylamide.

The unelected executive branch of the EU, the Commission, wants to force chefs to blanche potatoes first to reduce the presence of acrylamide, which forms naturally when some starchy foods are fried at a temperature above 120C.

Defenders of the delicious fried snack, however, say that boiling in water first will destroy the traditional flavor and texture of the famous golden potato chips.

Belgium fires acquire their fluffy interiors because they are cook from cold on lower temperature, before being fried a second time, at a higher heat, to give them a crispy edge.

“It would be an enormous impoverishment of our fries culture,” Flemish Tourism Minister Ben Weyts wrote to the European Health Commissioner in a letter acquired by The Associated Press.

“It would be a shame if the EU would ban this heavenly tradition”, the fried potato fan added.

People have been eating Belgian fries in Brussels since the 17^th century after the potato was brought over from the Americas in the 16^th century – and the seeming insensitive and arbitrary attack on the culture of its capital has left the EU red-faced.

Bureaucrats now appear to be in retreat, insisting they have amended legislation and their war on acrylamide will not result in a ban on the traditional preparation of fries, Reuters reports.

“The Belgian fry is saved! Europe has listened to Belgium,” Belgium’s Agriculture Minister Willy Borsus said in a tweet, which Prime Minister Charles Michel retweeted.

EU Commission spokesperson Margaritis Schinas added: “The Commission has no intention whatsoever, I repeat, no intention whatsoever, to ban Belgian fries, or any other type of fries.”