ICMSA say EU Commission briefing on Mercosur was “a waste of everyone’s time”.

Referring to yesterday’s (21^st May) meeting at the Commission Offices in Dublin ostensibly for the purposes of allowing Commission officials to give specific responses to the detailed questions put to them by the Irish farm organisations, the President of ICMSA said the exercise had been “hugely disappointing”.    Mr. Denis Drennan said that the Commission officials were not inclined to answer in any detail or with any purpose the questions posed by ICMSA and others and giving just one hour to such an important topic shows a complete disregard to the genuine concerns of farmers.   Mr. Drennan said he was always reluctant to dismiss meetings as an absolute waste of time, but he said that, frankly, he resented having had to travel to Dublin for such a disappointing meeting on such an important, indeed vital, subject.

“Farmers are the most exposed sector within the EU that will be most impacted by Mercosur and because farming and agri generally play such a disproportionate role in Irish life, there’s a good argument for saying that Irish farmers would be the single most affected sector in the EU by the disaster that will be Mercosur.   That being the case, we would have thought that the very least we are entitled to would be to have our legitimate specific questions answered.   We didn’t get that.   We didn’t get anywhere close to that.   What we got were ‘vague’ answers and assurances from Commission officials that convinced no one at the meeting.

Mr. Drennan said that the even the most basic questions did not get specific answers and farmers are no clearer today than they were yesterday.   What they are clear about is that there is a real danger that the EU will sell out its farmers to secure a Mercusor agreement.   The following are some of the questions posed by ICMSA that remain unanswered:

• How can the EU Commission guarantee that an animal did not get growth promoters in the Mercusor countries and subsequently imported to the EU?  
• What are the sanctions for a country if growth promoters found?
• Does the EU Commission accept that the cattle traceability system in Mercusor countries is inferior (non-existent in some cases) and how will it ensure that beef from only approved cattle will enter the EU food chain?
• How many staff will the EU Commission have at meat plants/on the ground to ensure the agreement is implemented correctly?
• In the EUDR, the EU Commission have implemented a complex system for EU farmers to comply with, will the same rules apply to Mercusor farmers and how will the EU Commission verify their data?
• If a steak arrives in the EU, how will the EU Commission know it didn’t come from deforested areas?
• What are the labelling requirements for Mercusor beef and how will a consumer know if they are consuming it, for example in a restaurant?
• The proposed €1 billion compensation fund.   What is the funding source, is it from CAP or is it additional funding?    How will it be triggered and how will the funding be distributed?

Mr. Drennan said it was simply not good enough for the Commission officials to ‘turn up’ at meetings on subjects as fundamental as this without having even the slightest intention to provide answers to questions as basic as those ICMSA was obliged to ask. He described the whole exercise as a waste of time and said that the so far from allaying the concerns of Irish farmers, this kind of process would only serve to compound and increase farmer anxieties.

ENDS  22 May 2025

Denis Drennan is at (086) 8389401.

ICMSA Head Office: (061) 314677