Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has written to European Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan to oppose beef concessions in a trade agreement believed to be closer than ever with the South American Mercosur bloc. “It’s not a done deal yet but all the signals are very worrying,” Minister Creed told the Irish Farmers Journal, adding that he would prefer the next European Commission due to take office in October to continue the talks.
Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has written to European Commissioner for Agriculture Phil Hogan to oppose beef concessions in a trade agreement believed to be closer than ever with the South American Mercosur bloc.
“It’s not a done deal yet but all the signals are very worrying,” Minister Creed told the Irish Farmers Journal, adding that he would prefer the next European Commission due to take office in October to continue the talks.
Minister Creed’s letter highlighted climate change concerns and the Commission’s own conclusions on the damage the latest official offer of 70,000t of extra beef imports from Mercosur would inflict on EU beef markets.
Asked during a live interview by Politico on Tuesday if he hoped to seal a deal before the end of his term, Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said: “I’m not optimistic nor am I pessimistic. But we are trying hard.” He mentioned Ireland along France and Belgium among countries raising concerns on agriculture.
The EU’s top unofficial beef offer is 99,000t. Should this quota be all steak cuts, it would be equivalent to those from 3.3m cattle coming into Europe.
IFA livestock chair Angus Woods warned that the Commission’s proposal last week to reduce Irish beef production as a condition to access a promised €100m Brexit support fund was an attempt to prepare markets for an influx of imports from Mercosur. “There is no way we will cull cattle here to make way for South American beef,” Woods said. IFA president Joe Healy has written to An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to ask him to veto “a deal which will severely damage our vital national interest in beef production”.
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