5 May 2016
ICSA president Patrick Kent says he is hopeful that the EU Commission will listen to the wave of objection to beef being sacrificed at the Mercosur talks. “ICSA’s protest held outside the EU Commission office yesterday reflects a widespread opposition to the inclusion of substantial tariff rate quotas for beef in the Mercosur talks. News emerging from Brussels suggests that the EU Commission is starting to pay attention to the opposition but we will wait to see what is included in the exchange of offers between the EU and Mercosur next Wednesday.”
“We have conveyed the opposition of Irish farmers to the Commissioner for Trade, Cecilia Malmström through our protests in Dublin outside the EU Commission offices and the Dail, and also we have set out the case against a big tariff rate quota for beef in a detailed letter to her.”
Mr Kent concluded that the ICSA protests are helping to convey the wider opposition across Europe to unbalanced trade deals under Mercosur and also TTIP. “The leaked documents on TTIP suggest that car parts were being prioritised at the expense of European family beef farms. ICSA will continue its campaign to support the European beef sector until we are certain that beef is not sacrificed to get a deal.”
ENDS
