IFA leader in bid to stall trade deal talks with South American states
With an exchange of offers on a trade deal due as early as the end of March, the IFA leader has launched an offensive at EU level to stall the discussions with the South American countries, particularly Brazil.
He particularly highlighted the potential devastation that an unbalanced trade deal with Brazil would cause to Ireland’s beef and pork sectors.
“Equivalence of standards and end-use control, and proper independent monitoring and testing have to be central to any future trade deals that increase access into the EU for agricultural produce,” Mr Downey said.
He has held meetings with Catherine Day, director general of the EU Commission; Jerzy Plewa, director general of DG Agri; and Georg Haeusler, chef de cabinet to the agriculture commissioner. He has also raised the trade issues with Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney, and will soon meet Enterprise Minister Richard Bruton to highlight farmers’ concerns.
