Irish Farmers Association (IFA) president Francie Gorman has warned the European Commission that Ireland’s beef and poultry farmers face decimation in the face of an EU-Mercosur free trade agreement.
The IFA leader led a delegation of association representatives to the European Commission’s office in Dublin to deliver a letter outlining concerns over ongoing negotiations on the deal.
The Commission has been told that Irish farmers will not accept a 99,000t tariff-free quota of South American beef and 180,000t of tariff-free poultry to land on the EU’s shores amid the divergence in the standards upheld domestically and in Mercosur countries.
The IFA said this volume is equivalent to 18% of the EU’s beef output.
The association is looking for a “concrete and scientific” impact assessment of the deal’s expected impact on farmers, the environment, health, labour, animal welfare, the supply chain and consumers.
“Negotiations have ramped up this week, despite significant opposition from some member states,” Gorman said on delivering the letter.
“The Commission is trying to take advantage of political uncertainty in France to drive the deal through this week.”
Up the ante
Gorman’s letter comes as the umbrella group for farming organisations Copa is urging farm groups to up the ante on opposing the deal.
The Laois farmer stated that if talks are concluded by the Commission’s negotiators, member states must block at it at EU council level.
“This deal is the height of hypocrisy. There will be no level playing field for EU farmers. Our markets will be undermined by cheap imports produced to lower standards,” he continued.
Gorman stated that government formation talks could take heat away from the Mercosur issue at Irish level.
He reminded farmers that Fine Gael leader Simon Harris and Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin both voiced opposition to the deal.
“They must carry this commitment forward and relay it at the highest level in Brussels,” the IFA leader said.
The letter outlines four core areas of IFA concerns with the deal:
1 – Both Ireland’s and the EU’s beef and poultry sectors will be “decimated” as a result of more tariff-free imports from countries that can produce at lower costs due to their less stringent standards.2 – The deal’s proposed environmental conditions do not provide “sufficiently robust safeguards for European producers”. 3 - There is a “clear absence of a robust tracing system for suppliers of beef cattle from Brazil to the EU market”, as it is expected that Brazilian cattle will not be fully traceable there until 2032. 4 - There is a “lack of transparency surrounding cattle transfer permits in Brazil”, as, just this month, Brazilian authorities imposed fines equal to €59m on farms and meat packers for raising/buying cattle on illegally deforested land.
Irish Farmers Association (IFA) president Francie Gorman has warned the European Commission that Ireland’s beef and poultry farmers face decimation in the face of an EU-Mercosur free trade agreement.
The IFA leader led a delegation of association representatives to the European Commission’s office in Dublin to deliver a letter outlining concerns over ongoing negotiations on the deal.
The Commission has been told that Irish farmers will not accept a 99,000t tariff-free quota of South American beef and 180,000t of tariff-free poultry to land on the EU’s shores amid the divergence in the standards upheld domestically and in Mercosur countries.
The IFA said this volume is equivalent to 18% of the EU’s beef output.
The association is looking for a “concrete and scientific” impact assessment of the deal’s expected impact on farmers, the environment, health, labour, animal welfare, the supply chain and consumers.
“Negotiations have ramped up this week, despite significant opposition from some member states,” Gorman said on delivering the letter.
“The Commission is trying to take advantage of political uncertainty in France to drive the deal through this week.”
Up the ante
Gorman’s letter comes as the umbrella group for farming organisations Copa is urging farm groups to up the ante on opposing the deal.
The Laois farmer stated that if talks are concluded by the Commission’s negotiators, member states must block at it at EU council level.
“This deal is the height of hypocrisy. There will be no level playing field for EU farmers. Our markets will be undermined by cheap imports produced to lower standards,” he continued.
Gorman stated that government formation talks could take heat away from the Mercosur issue at Irish level.
He reminded farmers that Fine Gael leader Simon Harris and Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin both voiced opposition to the deal.
“They must carry this commitment forward and relay it at the highest level in Brussels,” the IFA leader said.
The letter outlines four core areas of IFA concerns with the deal:
1 – Both Ireland’s and the EU’s beef and poultry sectors will be “decimated” as a result of more tariff-free imports from countries that can produce at lower costs due to their less stringent standards.2 – The deal’s proposed environmental conditions do not provide “sufficiently robust safeguards for European producers”. 3 - There is a “clear absence of a robust tracing system for suppliers of beef cattle from Brazil to the EU market”, as it is expected that Brazilian cattle will not be fully traceable there until 2032. 4 - There is a “lack of transparency surrounding cattle transfer permits in Brazil”, as, just this month, Brazilian authorities imposed fines equal to €59m on farms and meat packers for raising/buying cattle on illegally deforested land. 
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