EU deal with New Zealand could hit Irish food exports

Any free trade agreement between New Zealand and the EU could have a negative impact on Irish agri-food exports. So says Ireland South European Parliament member Sean Kelly who has voiced alarm over the possible implications for Ireland.

“New Zealand is one of the world’s top agricultural exporters. It mainly exports milk powder, butter and milk, as well as meat, wood, fruit, and vegetables.

“Though it is now focused on exporting to the Asian markets, New Zealand has been pushing for a free-trade agreement with the EU for many years now,” he said.

Mr Kelly, Ireland’s only member of the European Parliament’s trade committee, said recent negotiations on an EU-NZ Partnership Agreement on Relations and Co-operation, have aimed to deepen relationships between the two.

“This development, and progress on the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, may have reignited hopes for a similar deal with New Zealand, but I would caution EU leaders against too liberal a deal, particularly over agri-food products,” he said.

Mr Kelly said while Canada is not a major dairy exporter, New Zealand may have its sights set on Europe’s agricultural market. However, this would be to the detriment of Irish agri-food products like cheeses and butter, as New Zealand would aim to export very similar produce to Europe.

“We are facing a difficult year for the dairy sector with price volatility, and predictions that the price of milk may fall to 27 cent per litre.

“From 2015, when milk quotas are gone, we must support our dairy farmers as they expand production.

“Allowing a massive dairy exporter like New Zealand greater access to our market would negatively impact on Irish farmers,” he said.

Mr Kelly said Ireland, a largely agricultural country with a sizeable dairy sector, is dependent on its agri-food exports. It would be the most affected EU member state by any such EU-NZ trade deal.

“Irish farmers are already working to meet huge expectations and targets under Harvest 2020 and to make the best of the post-quota era. I’ll seek to ensure EU leaders are conscious of these factors when examining trade opportunities outside of Europe,” he said.