Francie Gorman, president of the Irish Farmers' Association (IFA), has said that the associaiton's opposition to the EU-Mercosur Interim Trade Agreement 'remains absolute'.

The trade deal has entered into force as of today (Friday, May 1).

The trade agreement will allow an additional 99,000t of beef from Mercosur countries to enter the EU at a reduced tariff rate of 7.5%, which will be phased in over six years.

An additional 180,000t of poultry will also be allowed into the EU at a lower tariff.

The interim trade deal covers the trade aspects of the wider EU-Mercosur Partnership Agreement.

The partnership deal still needs approval from the European Parliament and is currently subject to a challenge in the Court of Justice of the EU, a challenge spearheaded in part by Irish MEPs.

However, the European Commission has been able to separate out the trade part of the partnership agreement and to provisionally apply it, while the wider partnership agreement awaits approval; hence why it is called an 'interim' trade deal.

According to Gorman, the decision by the commission to allow the Mercosur trade deal to come into effect provisionally today, pending ratification by the European Parliament, does not take away from the issues that exist for farmers here.

"The commission is saying this week that more audits will be done in Brazil. But this underlines how inadequate the existing oversight is," he claimed.

The IFA president called for the role of the European Parliament to be respected.

"MEPs are directly elected in each member state, unlike the European Commission which is appointed. As the parliament has a say, it should have its input before any further move was made," he said.

Gorman said that the IFA will continue to oppose the deal "because of the failure of beef and poultry imports from the Mercosur region to meet the very rigorous standards that apply to European producers".

"Those who support the deal cannot deny that an issue exists with imports. The EU Commission is in denial and no extra number of audits will deal with this fundamental point," he claimed.

Court challenge

Apart from the court challenge taken by MEPs, the trade deal will also be subject to a separate challenge taken by the government of Poland.

Independent TD Carol Nolan called on the Irish government to do likewise in the Dáil this week.

Responding to her remarks, Tánaiste Simon Harris said that he would seek an update from Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Helen McEntee on her engagement with her Polish counterpart and whether Ireland will take any further action.

Following the Dáil debate, Nolan said: "I welcome the Tánaiste’s recognition that Ireland shares serious concerns around the Mercosur deal, such as the lack of a level playing field, the erosion of food standards, and the environmental risks it poses.

"His commitment to seek an update from the Minister for Foreign Affairs on her recent discussions in Poland is also welcome," the Offaly TD added.

"But Irish beef farmers have been warning this government for years that Mercosur threatens their livelihoods, our food security, and our national interest. Political damage limitation is no longer acceptable," Nolan said.

She called on the Tánaiste, Taoiseach Micheál Martin, and Minister McEntee to "follow Poland's lead immediately".