January 24, 2011

 

High-end EU beef must be protected from Mercosur deal

 

 

The EU's market for high-end beef cuts must be protected in any meat deal the European Commission strikes with South American countries as part of the Mercosur talks.

 

IFA European director, Michael Treacy, believes that Brazil and Argentina will be given increased access to EU beef markets as part of a multi-tiered deal. Following a series of meetings with EU Agriculture Commissioner, Dacian Ciolos, Mr Treacy and IFA president, John Bryan, have concluded that some degree of compromise on South American beef imports into the EU now seems inevitable.

 

However, Treacy and Bryan are both optimistic that their intensive lobbying with central European MEPs in Brussels should limit that compromise to the lower end cuts of beef.

 

Irish profits from beef exports to the EU come principally from prime cuts such as striploin and sirloin, an interest its shares with its allies in the EU. Michael Treacy outlined the fruits of this lobbying at this week's IFA annual general meeting in the Irish Farm Centre in Dublin.

 

Michael Treacy said, "It seems quite clear from our talks with Commissioner Ciolos and his staff that they are going to make an offer to Mercosur to allow in a significant quantity of beef. We have constantly made the point that market access of this kind should not be used as a bargaining chip in trade talks.

 

"Of the EU's one million tonnes of beef imports per annum, high end cuts such as striploins and stirloins make up about 560,000 tonnes," noted Mr Treacy. "Brazil and Argentina don't have the same high quality of processing as the EU. We think there may be some concerns on that subject in the EU, and we are going use that to try to protect the more lucrative high end cuts."

 

Mr Treacy also noted that any reform of the CAP was unlikely to happen before 2012 as elections in Germany and France would take priority for the next two years. This pause is welcome, argues Treacy. In wider social terms, French and German attitudes towards Ireland are at an all-time low.

 

The four million daily purchasers of German newspaper Bild are reading constant criticisms of Ireland, Greece and bailout crises. French attitudes towards Ireland are little better, making a longer lead-in welcome, said Treacy.

 

Also, during the next two years, the chairmanship of agriculture in the Commission passes from Hungary to Poland, Denmark and Cyprus. The general belief in Brussels is that reform is more likely to happen from 2013 onwards, under the chairmanship of Ireland, Italy or perhaps Greece.

 

Michael Treacy and John Bryan are focused on maximising funding for Irish farmers, trying to keep the EU budget, the CAP budget and Ireland's domestic contribution at maximum size.

 

These efforts are taking place against a backdrop of bailout priorities, trade talks with South America and growing Asia Pacific markets and various parliamentary groups in Brussels seeking to spread what have traditionally been agricultural funds into other social categories.