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IFA national chair Jer Bergin and ICSA president Patrick Kent have expressed alarm at the progress of the talks between the EU and the Mercosur countries of South America – Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela.
The prospect of a tariff-rate quota for beef is the key concern expressed by both men for Ireland’s agricultural sector.
IFA national chair Jer Bergin has called on Commissioner Hogan to intervene and prevent an exchange of offers on a trade deal between the EU and the Mercosur countries of South America.
Bergin said a Mercosur trade deal is “unequivocally negative” for Irish and European agriculture, and would particularly damage Ireland’s important beef sector. In addition, he added that pursuing a Mercosur trade deal would undermine the political credibility of EU/US negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
Production standards
“Production standards in South American countries such as Brazil fail to meet EU standards on the key issues of traceability, animal health and welfare controls, the ban on hormone growth promoters, and environmental controls,” Bergin said.
He also referred to an analysis carried out by the Directorate General for Agriculture in the EU Commission, which found that farm incomes in Ireland would drop by 2% to 3% should a Mercosur deal go ahead.
“The real losses at farm level would be much higher, particularly for beef farmers. This would have a knock-on effect in rural economies and lead to job losses,” Bergin concluded.
Our worst fears are beginning to crystallise with a proposal which would be utterly disastrous for the beef sector here
“Our worst fears are beginning to crystallise with a proposal which would be utterly disastrous for the beef sector here,” Kent said.
“A tariff-rate quota implies thousands of tonnes of tariff-free South American beef flooding the EU market, which will be devastating for Irish beef exports.”
Kent said he is calling on Minister for Trade Richard Bruton to make “strong representations” that Ireland “will not accept beef being sold out” for a deal which will have “a very dubious upside” for Ireland.
Calling on minister and commisioners to intervene
“Minister Bruton needs to clarify publicly that he is not willing to see Irish beef sacrificed,” the ICSA president continued.
Kent is also calling on European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan to do everything in his power to fight for the EU beef sector with his colleague Cecelia Malmström, the European Commissioner for Trade, who is handling the Mercosur negotiations on behalf of Europe.
“It’s not just Irish farmers who will be affected; it’s all EU beef farmers. What is the EU for if it is not for supporting a viable agriculture sector in Europe?” he asked.
Talks under way
As our market specialist Phelim O’Neill reported last week, indications from Brussels at the end of March suggest that the European Commission is finalising a draft offer for circulation to member states in early April.
There is a technical meeting on 12 April where trade experts will have an opportunity to discuss the draft and comments will be accepted up until 21 April.
That leaves a couple of weeks to finalise the offer with a bilateral exchange of offers between the EU and Mercosur expected by early May.
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