Longford MEP Mullooly condemns EU-Mercosur trade agreement: Irish farmers deserve better than being sold out

MEP Ciaran Mullooly has strongly condemned the EU-Mercosur trade agreement, calling it a direct attack on Irish and European farmers who are already burdened by strict environmental regulations.

The deal, announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, has been negotiated in secrecy and threatens to flood EU markets with agricultural imports produced under far inferior environmental and sustainability standards.

“This deal is a betrayal of everything we stand for in Europe,” said MEP Mullooly. “Irish farmers are being asked to compete on completely uneven ground, while their livelihoods are sacrificed for a trade agreement that prioritises profits over sustainability and fairness.”

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Mullooly is calling on Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue to convene an emergency meeting of the Council of Agriculture Ministers to halt any further implementation of this draft agreement. He also demands that a full impact assessment be conducted to evaluate the consequences for the Irish and European agricultural sectors.

Furthermore, MEP Mullooly has urged An Taoiseach Simon Harris to immediately engage with other EU leaders who share Ireland’s concerns about this deal. “We must build a coalition of opposition against this flawed agreement. It is unacceptable that such a significant deal is being pushed through without proper consultation or transparency,” he stated.

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Mullooly also stated that he is now contacting the Chair of the European Parliament’s Agriculture Committee to summon the EU Agriculture Commissioners to explain their position on this agreement.

“I will work closely with all farming organisations across Ireland to limit the damaging impact of this deal on rural communities,” MEP Mullooly stated. “This is not just an economic issue; it is about protecting the future of sustainable farming in Europe. I will not stand by while Irish farmers are left to bear the brunt of this disastrous and secretive trade deal.”

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Meanwhile, last Monday in Brussels, Michael Fitzmaurice TD and MEP Ciaran Mullooly, representing Independent Ireland, joined Irish farming organisations, including the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) led by Francie Gorman, to protest against the EU-Mercosur trade agreement.

The protest, organised in collaboration with European farming groups, underscores widespread outrage over the deal’s potential to devastate the Irish agricultural sector.

Deputy Fitzmaurice condemned the agreement in the strongest possible terms: “This deal sacrifices Irish farmers and rural communities for the benefit of other industries, particularly the German car sector. Our farmers have invested millions in environmental and animal welfare and poultry standards to produce food of the highest quality. Yet this agreement allows substandard imports, of poultry and hormone-treated beef from Mercosur countries, into EU markets. It’s a disgrace.”

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MEP Mullooly pledged: “We will work closely with all farming organisations across Ireland to limit the devastating impact of this deal. Irish farmers deserve better than being sold out in secretive negotiations that prioritise profits over people.”