Commission using agriculture as bargaining tool, says livestock
The IFA livestock leader wants the Government and Irish MEPs to ensure that EU negotiators do not repeat mistakes in trade negotiations with Canada and the US.
His concerns for Irish agriculture and livestock farmers relate to the future deals in EU talks with Brazil and the US under the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).
Henry Burns said the EU agreed a bad deal for agriculture with Canada, involving up to 50,000 tonnes of beef imports. It’s now down to limiting the damage from this deal, he said.
“The EU Commission must secure end-use control in managing the quota, instead of giving the Canadians free access on a ‘first-come, first-served’ basis. Our Government and MEPS must insist on this from the commission,” Mr Burns said.
The IFA livestock leader said the Government and Irish MEPs must fully defend the livestock sector by insisting there is no repeat of the massive access granted to Canada in the talks with Brazil and the US.
As the largest net beef exporter in the Northern Hemisphere, the potential damage to the Irish beef sector, from the current negotiations with the US and Mercosor, is very serious. He said the livelihoods of thousands of farm families, jobs and exports are on the line in these negotiations.
Henry Burns said the IFA is very concerned that the EU Commission are about to exchange offers with Brazil on market access.
“The commission has no real strategy on the trade negotiations and it appears they are willing to sacrifice agriculture, and particularly the beef sector, just to conclude a deal at any cost,” he said. “The commission would be showing a very weak hand to proceed to exchange an offer with Brazil when the TTIP talks with the US are intensifying.”
He also said the commission is taking unacceptable risks by importing products which come nowhere near to meeting EU standards.
European producers and consumers will not accept food imports from countries using hormones in beef, BST growth promoters in milk and beta-agonist drugs such as ractopamine in cattle and pigs. These are all banned in Europe.
Meanwhile, Mairéad McGuinness, MEP and vice-chair of the EPP group in the European Parliament, said the concessions made to Canada could destabilise the EU beef market by allowing “unbridled access” for beef and pork from Canada, jeopardising the livelihoods of thousands of farm and industry jobs.
She and other MEPs have written to the agriculture commissioner urging him to defend the interests of EU livestock farmers and the industry against a push by the Canadians to gain market access.
