Is food security in danger? Hungary does not support the Mercosur agreement
István Nagy, Minister of Agriculture, has expressed serious concerns about the draft free trade agreement between the EU and the Mercosur group of South American countries. According to the Minister, the agreement endangers the interests of EU producers and also carries food safety risks – especially in light of the fact that Brussels has also opened the EU market to Ukrainian agricultural products in the meantime.
Objectionable quality, cheap imports
The Minister warned that after the agreement enters into force, agricultural products that do not meet EU food safety and animal welfare standards could flow into Europe en masse. He cited poultry and beef, sugar and honey as examples, which could arrive from South American countries in lower quality and cheaper than European standards.
This would not only endanger the safety of EU consumers, but would also put Hungarian and European farmers at a serious market disadvantage, the Minister pointed out.
Application of the “mirror clause” is urged
Hungary – along with several other member states – continues to advocate that agricultural products from outside the EU must also comply with EU production, traceability and animal welfare standards. This principle is called the “mirror clause”, which aims to ensure balanced conditions of competition between EU and non-EU producers.
According to the minister, an agreement without a mirror clause would give importers a disproportionate competitive advantage and could make European farmers insolvent.
The alliance of member states is taking shape
István Nagy said: Hungary is looking for allies on the issue and is not alone. Austria, Ireland, the Netherlands, Romania and Italy have also expressed concerns about the current form of the agreement. The Hungarian Minister of Agriculture recalled that he had already discussed the issue with the French Minister of Agriculture, and they agreed that the free trade agreement under the current conditions could seriously damage Europe’s food self-sufficiency.
Related news
Nébih tips for baking and storing homemade bread – Food safety and waste prevention on the holiday of new bread
August 20th is the New Bread Festival, which is an…
Read more >István Nagy: We owe gratitude to farmers for the life-giving wheat and the bread made from it
Thanks to the diligence, perseverance and dedicated work of farmers,…
Read more >The first phase of the summer Nébih inspections ended with favorable experiences
The first phase of the summer seasonal inspection has ended…
Read more >Related news
GVH: margin reduction reduced prices, OKSZ disputes the effect
According to the Hungarian Competition Authority (GVH), the margin cap…
Read more >OKSZ has spoken out regarding the extension of the margin freeze
Viktor Orbán announced the extension of the margin freeze. The…
Read more >The government has extended the margin freeze
Viktor Orbán announced in the Facebook group Harcosok Klubja that…
Read more >