The approval of the Mercosur deal with the South American countries belonging to the so-called Mercosur agreement has not calmed the protests of European farmers.
Europe has given the green light to the trade agreement with the South American countries of the so-called “Mercosur” group. Anticipated for 25 years, the agreement provides Italy with both early access to €45 billion starting in 2028 under the next Common Agricultural Policy budget and an increase in seven-year funding.
In its 2028-2034 budget proposal, the European Commission had envisaged a 22 percent budget cut, allocating €31 billion to Italy compared to the nearly €38 billion in the previous multi-year allocation.
This reduction was later reversed by the Commission itself in order to obtain Rome’s approval for the agreement with the South American countries.
The Commission has, in effect, offered Italy an additional €5 billion from the so-called “Rural Target” and another €4.7 billion from unallocated reserves. Thanks to this, the Italian CAP budget for 2028-2034, instead of decreasing compared to the previous allocation, should benefit from an increase of approximately eight percent, reaching almost 41 billion euros.
European Farmers’ protests
Farmers, however, are largely furious about the agreements between the Eu and Mercosur countries. The mainstream press is fueling the protests.
A prime example of this is the article reporting that over 600 new “pesticides” would be authorized in Brazil in 2024.
Unfortunately, these are new commercial formulations, almost all based on pre-existing molecules. Many of these could also be used in the EU until the European Review fiasco sacrificed them on the altar of the green lobbies that dictate the agenda in the Old Continent.
Rather than protesting against Mercosur countries, it would therefore be beneficial for the agricultural world to protest in Brussels for having created operational inequalities that have benefited competition from the rest of the world without resulting in any positive return in terms of environmental protection.
Agreement underway with provisional application
The European Commission, however, is provisionally applying the Mercosur trade agreement. This procedure, provided for by EU law, clashes with the EU Parliament’s decision to postpone ratification of the agreement pending a ruling on Mercosur’s legitimacy by the European Court of Justice.
Title: EU Agriculture, Mercosur deal Between Approval and Protests
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