Thousands of Irish farmers have taken to the streets against this A trade agreement A day after a majority of EU member states provisionally ratified a long-negotiated deal between the European Union and the South American bloc Mercosur.
In the central town of Athlone, farmers from across Ireland gathered on Saturday to demonstrate against the deal, holding placards reading “Stop EU-Mercosur” and chanting slogans accusing European leaders of abandonment. their interests.
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The protests came after Ireland, France, Poland, Hungary and Austria voted against the deal on Friday but failed to block it.
Agreement, more than 25 years in the makingThe 27-nation EU and Mercosur countries will create one of the world’s largest free-trade areas, boosting trade between Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
Under the agreement, Mercosur will export agricultural products and minerals to Europe, while the EU will export machinery, chemicals and pharmaceuticals at reduced tariffs.
While the deal has been welcomed by trade groups, it has come under fire from European farmers, who fear cheap imports from South America, particularly agricultural powerhouse Brazil, will erode their living standards.
Irish farmers have been particularly vocal in their opposition, warning that the deal could see an additional 99,000 tonnes of low-cost beef enter the EU market, disrupting Ireland’s farming sector.
Beef and dairy are major employers in Ireland and many farmers say they already struggle to make a sustainable income.
The Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), the country’s main farming lobby group, this week described the EU states’ decision as “extremely disappointing”.
The group said it would renew efforts to stop the deal in the European Parliament, which must approve the deal before it can enter into force.
“We hope that Irish MEPs will stand behind the farming community and reject the Mercosur agreement,” IFA president Francie Gorman said in a statement.
‘serious consequences’
At Saturday’s protest in Athlone, farmers expressed anger and concern for the future of rural Ireland.
Joe Keogh, a farmer in the nearby village of Multifarnham, told Reuters the deal would destroy farming communities.
“This is a huge shame on behalf of farmers and people who have put Europe where it is today,” he said. “It’s going to shut down the whole countryside.”
Others expressed concern about food quality and production standards.
Earlier in the week, Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin said he was concerned beef imported under the Mercosur deal could not be produced to the EU’s strict environmental standards.
“We have to be sure” that the rules and obligations imposed on Irish farmers are not undermined by imports produced under less stringent rules, he said.
Protesters echoed those concerns. “Our cows follow the rules, why not theirs?” placards read on Saturday. and “Don’t sacrifice family farms for German cars,” reflecting fears that agriculture is being traded to benefit other European industries.
The demonstrations followed similar protests in Poland, France and Belgium on Friday and underscored widespread unease among farmers across Europe.
Although the opposition won some concessions and compensation measures for EU farmers, Ireland and France have vowed to continue fighting on the deal heading into a potentially tight and unpredictable vote in the European Parliament.
For many farmers on the streets of Athlone, the issue goes beyond trade.
“It’s about the quality of the food we eat,” Niamh O’Brien, who traveled from Athenry in western Ireland, told Reuters. “This has serious implications for both farmers and consumers.”