Former farm leaders oppose Mercosur deal at Tullamore Show
Former Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) president John Dillon and former Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) president Pat O'Rourke – now a political and agriculture adviser to MEP Ciaran Mullooly - made a joint effort at the event on Sunday (August 10) to warn about the deal.
The two men said that said the Mercosur deal will have a "devastating impact" on Irish beef farmers.
If ratified by EU member states, the deal would grant significantly increased access for South American beef into the European market.
Speaking at the show, the two former farm leaders highlighted what they called a "massive price gap" between Brazilian and Irish beef, which they said was driven by a differences in production standards.
Dillon claimed: "The farmgate price for beef in Brazil is just €3.20/kg. In Ireland, it's €9.50/kg. That difference is explained by the lower animal welfare standards, use of growth hormones, and weaker environmental protections in Mercosur countries.
"The structural disadvantages for Irish farmers are equally stark. While farms in Mercosur countries can be as large as 15,000ha, the average Irish family farm is just 34ha.
'Irish farmers cannot and will not be able to compete on price with beef produced under vastly different rules and on an industrial scale. If the government is serious about backing Irish farmers, there's only one option – say no to Mercosur," O'Rourke said.
The two men jointly called on the government to take a firm stand against the deal in upcoming EU negotiations, warning that its ratification would undermine the Irish beef sector, threaten rural livelihoods, and reward production systems that fail to meet the high standards demanded of EU farmers.
The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Simon Harris, recently said he had discussed international trade developments, including the Mercosur agreement, with his counterparts from France and Germany, among others.
He said: "The government is committed to supporting free, fair and open trade. Indeed, recent developments in the global trading environment have highlighted the importance of market diversification via an expanded set of EU free trade agreements.
"We have always been clear, that such agreements must defend our most vulnerable sectors and that our farmers' livelihoods must not be undermined through weak or ineffective environmental standards in other countries."
"Our position is clearly outlined in the Programme for Government, which states that the government will work with like-minded EU countries to stand up for Irish farmers and defend our interests in opposing the current Mercosur trade deal," the Tánaiste said.
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