As negotiations on the EU-Mercosur trade agreement near conclusion at the G20 meeting in Rio de Janeiro, a proposal has emerged in Brussels to create a “compensation fund” intended to reassure European farmers. For the sectors associated with COPA-COGECA, this seems more like a false quick fix than a real solution. It does not address the main concerns, in particular those relating to the impact on sensitive sectors and the lack of reciprocity in production standards under the current terms of the agreement.

The prospect of an EU-Mercosur trade agreement is strongly rejected by the European agri-food sectors, which denounce it as obsolete and incoherent. This agreement would facilitate the import of agri-food products on the European market that are far from the standards imposed on European producers and industrialists (use of PPP, animal welfare, labour laws...), leading to unfair and intolerable competition for our sectors. Even before the new Commission is confirmed, this would leave an indelible mark on the start of Ursula von der Leyen's second term.

In response to these criticisms, it appears that the Commission will now propose the creation of a “compensation fund” for EU farmers. "This could only be perceived as a provocation!" - say European agri-food production sectors - "a “compensation cheque” does not solve the problems of this trade agreement, as raised by our sectors and a large part of European public opinion, including consumer representatives, trade unions and environmental organisations, on the need for real reciprocity as regards production standards and the risks of stimulating environmental degradation and biodiversity loss in the countries concerned", so the representative body of the European agri-food production sectors proposes that "instead of distracting the debate with such proposals, the Commission should take seriously the conclusions on agri-food trade raised by the report on the Strategic Dialogue on the future of EU agriculture, which underlines the need for the Commission to “conduct a thorough review of its negotiating strategies”, as well as the need for a higher level of reciprocity", since any other approach would jeopardise the European agri-food sectors, already weakened by a difficult climatic and economic context, and would risk exacerbating the tensions expressed by the European agricultural sector at the beginning of 2024.