Trade agreement negotiations continue – , with signatures expected by the end of January.
According to a European Commission official, progress has been made in recent weeks towards the signing of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. “We are on the right track to sign the agreement and we hope that will happen very soon,” the spokesman told reporters in Brussels.
The trade deal in question will bring about a number of changes in the market, as European agricultural products are at risk of losing “ground” to the import of cheaper products
The EU-Mercosur trade deal has so far been a political thorn in the side, pitting Brussels’ free trade decisions against producers’ fears of unfair competition, falling prices and declining environmental and quality standards.
It should be noted that Germany and Spain support the deal with Mercosur, but farmers in France argue that the trade deal will lead to cheap imports of products from South America, especially beef, which do not meet European Union environmental and food safety standards.
New measures from France
Meanwhile, new measures to protect French farmers from Mercosur have been announced by the country’s Prime Minister Sebastien Lecorny, in an effort to quell mass protests over concerns that the deal will open the floodgates to massive imports that will hurt domestic production.
with South America’s Mercosur coalition, as well as the government’s handling of a zoonotic disease affecting livestock.
Lecorni wrote to X that a government decree will soon be issued announcing the suspension of imports of certain products containing residues of substances banned in Europe.
“Avocados, mangoes, guavas, citrus fruits, grapes and apples from South America or elsewhere will no longer be allowed to enter the national territory,” Lecorny said.
“This is a first step to protect our supply chains, our consumers and to combat unfair competition, which is a real issue of fairness and equity for our farmers,” he added.
What farmers are saying about Mercosur
According to what the EU’s leading agricultural cooperatives have already warned, this trade agreement will bring about a series of changes in the market, as European agricultural products risk losing “ground” to the introduction of cheaper products, which, for example, in the use of pesticides.
In addition, according to farmers’ protests, duty-free imports of beef, poultry, sugar, fruit and wine, which is one of the key points of the agreement, creates further unfair competition.
This commercial agreement comes to add to the significant problems faced by the primary sector recently, as it has been burdened by the energy crisis, production costs, the implementation of the new CAP, the loss of subsidies.
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