Agriculture: PRO AGRO National Fedration condemns decision of signing Mercosur accord

PRO AGRO National Federation firmly condemed the decision of signing the Mercosur accord on Thursday and makes an appeal to the head of state, the government, through its ministries and to the 33 European MPs to back the sectors to be affected by its ratification.   The people affected by the accord say they feel abandoned and say injustice has been done by the political decision about Mercosur accord.   “Romanian farmers are not the only ones to accuse this accord. All European farmers, especially those from France and Poland have strongly protested against the EU strategy of exposing the most vulnerable entrepreneurs,” PRO AGRO representatives consider.   They reminded that Romanian farmers have been most seriously affected by the commercial aftermaths of the Ukraine war, the Romanian market being invaded by cheap cereals which do not observe food safety norms compulsory in EU.   On last Wednesday,the European Commission presented the Council its suggestions for signing and concluding the EU-Mercosur (APEM) partnership Accord and the modernized global EU-Mexico (AMG) Accord, the EU executive announced in a press release.   These partnerships will create new export opportunities of billions of euros for EU enterprises of all dimensions, contributing to economic growth and competitiveness, they will support hundreds of thousand European jobs and will promote EU interests and values. They will consolidate value chains and will help EU expand its reliable sources for production factors and critical raw materials.   The accord with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay (EU-Mercosur Partnership Accord) will set up the largest freeexchange area in the world, covering a market of over 700 million consumers. EU enterprises will enjoy the first come advantage, benefitting from small prices in a region in which most countries are faced with high prices and other barriers against trade.   It is estimated that the accord can increase annual EU exports to Mercosur by 39% (49 billion euros), supporting over 440,000 jobs in Europe. This will reduce Mercosur taxes which are often prohibitive for EU exports, including essential industrial products such as cars (at present 35%), equipment (14-20%) and pharmaceuticals (up to 14%), the press release shows.   APEM and AGMM need the separate approval of the European Parliament and of member states before they can come into force.