It's official - after 25 years in the making, the EU today (January, 17) signed a partnership agreement and an interim trade agreement with the four founding countries of Mercosur.

Despite the overwhelming concerns voiced by Irish farmers and farmers across Europe about the threat posed by imports from south America to their livelihoods the Mercosur deal was officially sealed in the same room where Mercosur's founding treaty was signed.

The President of the European Commission said today the deal created "the largest free trade zone in the world, a market worth almost 20% of global GDP".

"We choose fair trade over tariffs, we choose a productive, long-term partnership, and above all, we intend to deliver real and tangible benefits to our peoples and companies," President Ursula von der Leyen said.

According to President von der Leyen the economic benefits of the EU-Mercosur trade deal "are crystal clear".

But the tens of thousands of Irish farmers who chanted "No, No, No to Mercosur" at a rally in Athlone, Co. Westmeath this day last week (Saturday, January 10) have yet to be persuaded.

The mammoth event, organised by Independent Ireland, primarily led by MEP Ciaran Mullooly and TD Michael Fitzmaurice, brought an estimated 20,000 farmers together to loudly voice their opposition to the EU-Mercosur trade deal.

Irish farmers are also expected to participate in major protest in Strasbourg next week which is likely to attract thousands of farmers from across Europe.

Mercosur

But today the voices of farmers were nowhere to be heard as President von der Leyen pledged to turn a "friendship into greater strength – for Mercosur and Europe alike".

Instead it was a day of official handshakes and smiles as political leaders congratulated each other for finally being a position to sign the EU-Mercosur agreement.

President von der Leyen said: "Today, two like-minded regions open a new chapter of opportunity for more than 700 million citizens.

"We will support each other in our clean and digital transitions. And our signal to the rest of the world is clear: the EU and Mercosur are choosing cooperation over competition, and partnership over polarisation.”

According to the European Commission the EU-Mercosur agreement "will open unprecedented access" to the Mercosur region for European farmers and food producers. 

The commission has said the deal "is expected to increase EU agri-food exports to Mercosur by up to 50%" by:

Protecting 344 EU Geographical Indications, high-value traditional food and drink products, from unfair competition and imitation;
Reducing tariffs on key EU agri-food products, such as wine, spirits, dairy, and olive oil.

The European Commission also stressed today that the EU has taken "great care to ensure that sensitive agri-food sectors benefit from every necessary protection" in relation to the Mercosur trade agreement.

It has highlighted that this includes measures such as a €6.3 billion fund - the Unity Safety net as from 2028 -  "as an additional layer of protection" for farmers in case of market disturbances.

The commission has also pointed to its "carefully calibrated tariff rate quotas" that it said will limit market access of sensitive products imported from Mercosur.

There is also a legally binding safeguard mechanism that aims to protect "sensitive European products in case of a  surge in imports from Mercosur countries".

The European Commission has also highlighted that there will be enhanced controls "preventing non-compliant products from entering the EU market, including more audits and checks in third countries, and strengthened controls at EU borders".

One other key measure that the commission has pointed to is a "stronger alignment of production standards, such as pesticides and animal welfare, applied to imported products".