Today the European Commission put the adoption of the EU-Mercosur agreement on the Council’s agenda. The Commission opted for an undemocratic splitting of the agreement, to bypass the opposition of some countries and national parliaments and fast-track the ratification process. The 27 member states will soon have to decide if they ratify the deal in an upcoming Council vote.
If ratified, EU-Mercosur will boost climate chaos, trade in toxic pesticides prohibited in the EU and goods responsible for deforestation in Latin America (soy, beef, ethanol). This trade deal only serves the interests of big multinationals such as Bayer and BASF. It locks both continents in an unsustainable agribusiness system, fuelling violences against Indigenous Peoples and unfair competition for small-scale and family farmers.
Julie Zalcman, trade campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe, said:
“The final EU-Mercosur deal does nothing to stop free trade from harming neither small-scale farmers nor Indigenous Peoples threatened by the expansion of agribusiness. None of the problems identified by the European Parliament and Member States in 2020 have been solved.
Worse, the splitting manoeuvre is an undemocratic hijacking of the long-standing opposition of several EU member states. By opting for this trick, the European Commission ignores the wide mobilisation of climate activists and farmers fighting for trade justice and a more sustainable agricultural system.”
Friends of the Earth Europe calls on Member States and the European Parliament to vote no to the ratification of the toxic EU-Mercosur deal.
We think you’d also like:
Stop the EU-Mercosur trade deal
The EU is close to finalising a climate-wrecking trade deal with Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay – known collectively as Mercosur. But there’s still time to stop it.
