Fruit and Vegetable Branch Chamber: Mercosur deal is a blow to EU agriculture

The Fruit and Vegetable Branch Chamber has expressed its serious concern in a letter to the media regarding the upcoming finalization of the trade agreement between the EU and the Mercosur countries. It is expected to be signed on January 17.

According to the chamber, it carries a real risk of serious economic, social and structural consequences for the EU agricultural sector. The main problem is the lack of equality in production conditions. EU farmers work under extremely strict rules regarding animal welfare, the use of plant protection products, environmental protection, labour standards, etc., which are absent for the Mercosur countries, which allows them to produce cheaper. This creates unfair competition and puts European farmers in an extremely disadvantageous position. Through such trade agreements, the EU undermines its own agriculture by exposing European producers to pressure from cheaper imports produced under incomparable conditions.

Encouraging young people to engage in agriculture cannot go hand in hand with policies that make this livelihood economically unsustainable, the chamber points out.

Bulgarian grain producers to protest against the EU-Mercosur agreement

Editor: Miglena Ivanova

Photo: Facebook/bkpzbul