ICSA president Sean McNamara has expressed his outrage following the announcement that an agreement has been reached on the Mercosur Trade Deal. “This deal is a disgrace. Irish and European beef farmers are being sacrificed on the altar of global trade, with no regard for the devastating impact this will have on our livelihoods, rural communities, and the environment. The hypocrisy of the European Commission in pushing through this deal while demanding ever-higher environmental standards from EU farmers is staggering,” he said. 

“Farmers have been told repeatedly that climate action must be front and centre. We have the Green Deal, the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity Strategies, the Nature Restoration Law, the Industrial Emissions Directive, the EU Deforestation Regulation, the Veterinary Medicines Regulation, and countless other measures dictating how we do things. Yet where is the climate emergency when it comes to the Mercosur deal? This deal will see beef farmers sacrificed so that cars and white goods can be exported to South America. Does the climate emergency only matter when it is about penalising farmers? Or does it conveniently disappear when there’s profit to be made?” 

Mr McNamara once again urged Irish political leaders to prioritise the formation of a stable government without delay. “This deal cannot be allowed to proceed. Ireland needs a unified and determined approach to stop Mercosur and safeguard the future of Irish farming.” 

ENDS