13.01.2026, Brussels.
European farmers are concerned not only about the prospect of economic losses resulting from the potential opening of the EU market to a flow of cheap agricultural products from Latin American countries, but also about the fundamental unfairness generated by the EU-MERCOSUR deal, Rossa Primavera News Agency Agricultural Desk notes.
After the official approval on January 9 by the EU member states of the trade agreement with MERCOSUR, leaders of the European farming community (including those in the United Kingdom) renewed their concerns. Farmers’ unions once again stated that the European Council’s decision to support the deal with Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay has heightened fears that European agricultural producers will face cheaper imports. Worse still, this produce will be made in accordance with standards that are not permitted within the EU.
The MERCOSUR agreement, which has been under development for more than twenty years, will significantly increase agricultural imports into the EU under preferential tariff arrangements. Farmers’ organizations across Europe have warned that the agreement will create unequal conditions for producers who are required to comply with strict EU regulatory standards.
For example, the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) in the United Kingdom stated that the new trade agreement raises a critical question of whether farmers can compete fairly at all with products produced under entirely different systems, especially where there are major differences in animal welfare rules, regulatory oversight, and production practices.
UFU Deputy President Glenn Cuddy said that approval of this deal raises fundamental questions about fairness in international trade. Similar concerns have been voiced by farmers’ associations across Europe, warning of possible market distortions, falling prices, and negative impacts on rural economies if safeguard measures are not fully enforced.
Farmers’ associations are calling on policymakers in Brussels to ensure that all imports from MERCOSUR countries are subject to checks equivalent to EU standards.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
