Protecting European farmers from South America

The approved proposal sets out the conditions under which the EU can temporarily suspend tariff benefits on imports of sensitive agricultural products - in particular beef and poultry - from Mercosur countries Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. The measure is intended to act as a safeguard in the context of the forthcoming trade agreement.

Parliament has pushed for stricter and faster triggering of the safeguard measures. Whereas the Commission was originally supposed to react only when imports increased significantly, the new approach is to allow an average increase of 5% over three years. At the same time, the time limits for investigations are shortened so that the EU can act more quickly and prevent damage before it becomes irreversible.

The principle of reciprocity is also an important element. Should imported products fail to meet comparable standards on environmental protection, animal welfare, food safety or labour rights, the Commission has an obligation to intervene. The aim is to prevent European farmers from being disadvantaged by stricter rules.

In addition, the European Commission is to monitor the market on an ongoing basis and regularly report on the development of imports. The safeguard clause is to become part of the main EU-Mercosur agreement as well as the transitional trade agreement, which will still have to be ratified by the European Parliament.