MII fears tariff cuts blow to beef, lamb sector

ONLY ‘sensitive product status’ and ‘safeguard clause’ mechanisms can save European beef and lamb markets from being overrun by imports, if last week’s EU offer in world trade talks is accepted, warned Meat Industry Ireland (MII).

Cormac Healy of the MII representative association for Irish beef processors, said: “The magnitude of the import tariff cuts now proposed by the EU Commission would effectively open up the EU borders to unlimited volumes of imports at prices considerably below prevailing prices for Irish or EU product.”

The domestic beef and lamb sectors in the EU cannot sustain import tariff cuts in the order of 50 to 60%, according to MII.