ANAFRIC, the Spanish beef association, and the beef sector have expressed their total opposition to the EU-Mercosur agreement, which could lead to the disappearance of the Spanish beef sector and, consequently, a drastic reduction in the national meat industry. This agreement seriously compromises the future of slaughterhouses, cutting plants and cold storage facilities, causing thousands of workers to lose their jobs and rendering the investments made over the years useless.
Unfair competition inconsistent with European requirements
The agreement clearly shows a lack of consistency with the strict regulations imposed on EU meat producers and industries in terms of traceability, use of antibiotics, animal welfare, sustainability and biodiversity. These regulations, which have led to an increase in production costs in Europe, are not applied in the countries of the Mercosur bloc, generating obvious unfair competition.
“Where are the principles of the European Green Pact?” asks José Friguls, president of ANAFRIC. “They demand sustainability and respect for the environment, but this agreement contradicts everything that the EU claims to defend.”
A blow to the European beef sector
Europe is currently losing beef producers, and this agreement, instead of stopping this trend, could increase beef imports from Mercosur countries by 35%. This threatens not only the production sector, but also food safety, animal welfare and the environmental standards that the EU demands within its borders.
European politicians must defend the beef sector
Friguls adds: “The beef production and industrial sector cannot be a bargaining chip for other interests. European politicians are obliged to defend us; that is why we elected them. If they do not do so, what is the point of this EU, which should protect us?”
A call to action
ANAFRIC calls on the Spanish and European authorities to reconsider this agreement and to value the demands of the beef sector. “The sector wants to be told clearly: either we are defended or we are to be made to disappear,” concludes Friguls.
