The European Parliament and the European Council have informally agreed on measures to protect EU agriculture once the EU-Mercosur trade and partnership agreements are in place.
The European Commission will be able to temporarily suspend tariff preferences on agricultural imports from Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay if these imports are deemed to be harming EU producers, according to a statement issued by the European Parliament on Wednesday.
Under the draft regulation, increases of more than 8 percent in import volumes or drops in prices of more than 8 percent — measured against the three-year average — would be considered "serious injury" and trigger an official investigation into whether to suspend tariff advantages.
These measures apply to imported agricultural goods labelled "sensitive", such as poultry and beef.
The agreement allows the Commission to also monitor non-sensitive products, if requested by EU industry, and lays out specific timeframes for investigations.
For sensitive goods, the Commission may take provisional action within 21 days of notification. For all other relevant products, investigations should conclude within at least six months.
Safeguards and improved monitoring
The Commission will continuously monitor imports of sensitive agricultural products and provide monitoring reports every six months, with assessments on the impact of imports given to both the European Parliament and the Council, the statement added.
Data sharing between EU member states and the Commission will also be improved to support this monitoring.
Additionally, the European Commission committed to aligning production standards for imported goods with EU rules, particularly on animal welfare and pesticides for imports from Mercosur countries.
Mercosur is a South American trade bloc comprising Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
The EU is the bloc’s second-largest trading partner, with EU exports to Mercosur totalling €57 billion in 2024 for goods and €29 billion in 2023 for services, according to new figures cited by the Parliament.
The proposed safeguards form part of the wider EU-Mercosur Partnership and interim Trade Agreements, which require ratification by both the European Parliament and the Council before they can enter into force. The agreements are expected to be signed later this month.
