🗺️ Strategic Trade, Safeguards & Standards: Why the EU–Mercosur Deal Matters Beyond Agriculture 🚨 From an automotive, legal, compliance, and global trade executive perspective, the EU–Mercosur Partnership Agreement is far more than an agri-food trade facilitation tool - it is a textbook example of modern trade diplomacy balancing market access with regulatory sovereignty. 🎯 The projected 50% boost in EU agri-food exports reflects not only tariff elimination but also the EU’s growing ability to export its standards, geographical indications, and compliance frameworks. Protecting traditional EU products from imitation strengthens brand equity globally - a model long familiar in the automotive sector, where IP protection and technical standards define competitiveness. 🚩 Equally important are the embedded safeguards. Tariff rate quotas, emergency safeguard mechanisms, and the €6.3bn Unity Safety Net signal that the EU is no longer pursuing trade liberalisation without resilience. This mirrors developments in industrial trade policy, where openness is increasingly paired with contingency tools and regulatory oversight. 🛃 The emphasis on health, safety, animal welfare, and pesticide standards - reinforced by audits and border controls - sets a clear precedent: access to the EU market is conditional on full compliance, not price competitiveness alone. For global manufacturers and exporters, this reinforces a critical message: trade strategy and compliance strategy are now inseparable. ⏭️ In an era of geopolitical fragmentation, this agreement shows how trade deals can simultaneously enhance competitiveness, protect domestic stakeholders, and elevate global standards - a direction highly relevant not only for agri-food, but also for automotive supply chains, chemicals, and advanced manufacturing. #EUTrade #Mercosur #GlobalTrade #TradePolicy #Compliance #RegulatoryStandards #SupplyChain #AutomotiveIndustry #Geopolitics #InternationalBusiness

🇪🇺🇨🇳 China imposes duties on EU dairy imports – industry reaction Dairy Industry Ireland, part of Ibec, has expressed concern following the announcement by China that it will impose duties on European Union dairy imports. 🗣️ Conor Mulvihill, Director of Dairy Industry Ireland, called for urgent engagement by the European Commission and the Irish Government to avoid negative impacts on farm families and processors, particularly at a time of global dairy market pressure. 📌 Key points highlighted by the association: China remains an important export market for EU and Irish dairy products Irish dairy exports benefit from a diversified product mix and destination portfolio, providing some resilience Irish dairy operators have fully complied with all EU and Chinese information requests linked to earlier investigations The sector is concerned dairy may again be used as a political lever in broader EU–China trade tensions, notably around electric vehicles 🔍 Dairy Industry Ireland confirmed it is actively engaging with authorities to assess the full impact of the duties and is urging constructive dialogue and restraint from all parties involved. #Dairy #EUTrade #AgriFood #DairyIndustry #InternationalTrade #FoodExports #Ireland #Ibec https://lnkd.in/ek9kW7QN

The EU Council has agreed to sign the EU‑Mercosur deal in a significant development for transatlantic agri‑food trade, including dairy. Key wins for the sector include: 🧀 Lower tariffs and bigger quotas for cheese, milk powder and infant formula 🌍 344 EU GIs protected, including iconic cheeses 🐄 Clearer, faster import checks and rules to keep trade flowing even during localised disease outbreaks 🌎 Improved EU access for Mercosur dairy, and vice versa Formal signing could now happen as early as next week. Full explainer: https://lnkd.in/eRNWhZ26 #EUMercosur #TradeAgreement #GlobalTrade #InternationalTrade

✅ PSD Members of the European Parliament voted for the safeguard clause, which represents a safety net for the EU–Mercosur Agreement. It is important to clarify this, because in the public space—either deliberately or due to a lack of understanding—confusion has been created between our vote in the European Parliament and the procedure for validating the EU–Mercosur Agreement. 👉 As I also explained on the Puterea Știrilor program on #PSNews, at the time this document was voted on, what we voted for was strictly the safeguard clause, not the trade agreement itself. During the last session in Strasbourg, we did not vote on the EU–Mercosur Agreement. The trade agreement as such was not submitted to a vote in the European Parliament at that time. What we voted on was the Regulation on the safeguard clause—an essential mechanism that protects European and Romanian farmers if imports from Mercosur countries increase rapidly and affect the internal market. 🔹 An amendment taken directly from Romanian farmers To strengthen the protection of farmers, we submitted an amendment drafted together with a farmers’ association from Romania. The amendment introduces an automatic response mechanism: if imports of a product increase by more than 5% compared to the average of the last three years, an investigation is immediately launched, and affected farmers can be compensated within a maximum of 14 days from the start of the investigation. 🔹 Additional protection for sensitive products: • Investigations are reduced from 4 months to 2 months for sensitive products. • For other products, from 6 months to 3 months. • If the price drops by more than 5% compared to the average of the last three years, the investigation is automatically triggered. 🔹 European standards remain mandatory for everyone. The clause obliges the European Commission to strictly monitor compliance with European production, environmental, food safety, and labor standards. EU farmers must not be placed in unfair competition with products made under more permissive practices. Therefore, our vote in December concerned only protective measures. Not the agreement. ✅ Why did we vote for this clause? Because Romanian farmers need clear, automatic, and rapid mechanisms. Because we cannot allow massive, cheap imports to destabilize the European market. Because the interests of Romanian farmers must be defended through firm and predictable rules. PSD voted for this document precisely to guarantee that, regardless of the future evolution of the EU–Mercosur negotiations, farmers’ rights and the stability of the agricultural market remain the top priority. #EU #Mercosur #romania #farmers #PSD

NO to #Mercosur without full reciprocity! Coldiretti president Ettore Prandini reaffirms a firm position: the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen cannot move forward with the Mercosur agreement until the same rules required of European farmers apply to all imported products. Today, with only 3% of agri-food imports effectively checked, promises of stronger controls are simply not enough for Our #farmers! This has nothing to do with the #CAP! Recovering CAP resources and negotiating Mercosur are two distinct issues, and must remain so. Our commitment continues: cutting bureaucracy, ensuring stability, and protecting those who feed Europe every day.

Importing Fresh Fruit and Vegetables from Spain to the United Kingdom: A Comprehensive Compliance Guide Importing fresh fruit and vegetables from Spain remains commercially attractive for UK buyers, but post-Brexit it now requires full customs and regulatory compliance. This guide explains how to manage tariff-free trade under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, navigate current phytosanitary easements, prepare for full plant health controls from 2027, and file accurate customs declarations through CDS. It also covers classification, valuation, VAT treatment, marketing standards, and common pitfalls that can delay perishable goods at the border—helping importers keep supply chains moving while staying fully compliant. Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/dFXQANkv #ImportingFreshProduce #SpainToUK #FruitVegetableImports #CustomsDeclarationsUK #CustomsDeclaration #ImportDeclarations #CDSDeclarations #ENSDeclarations #Phytosanitary #IPAFFS #UKEUTCA #ImportVAT #PVA #TradeCompliance #BorderControls #PlantHealth #UKImports #HMRC #FreshProduce

Today, history is being made in Assunção, Paraguay. After more than 25 years of negotiations, the European Union and Mercosur formally sign one of the world’s largest free trade agreements, creating an integrated market of over 700 million consumers. The signing takes place with the participation of Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and António Costa, President of the European Council, underscoring the political, economic and strategic relevance of this moment. For #Portugal, the agreement opens a new chapter for emblematic agri-food products such as #oliveoil, #wine and protected-designation cheeses, with tariffs on exports to #Brazil and other #Mercosur markets set to be progressively reduced and ultimately eliminated. Beyond trade volumes, this agreement strengthens high-value agri-food value chains, increases regulatory predictability for producers and exporters, and raises the bar for quality, scientific substantiation, traceability and sustainability. An agreement is signed today. Its success, however, will be measured by how effectively #science, producers, companies and consumers translate it into stronger value chains and long-term impact. https://lnkd.in/ennGfQWz https://lnkd.in/euuZfyfF https://lnkd.in/ecpua234

https://lnkd.in/gm6NxVda Malaysia is bracing itself for a surge in American poultry shipments under an “agreement on reciprocal trade” signed with Washington in October. The deal opens the Southeast Asian nation to more US exports of food, cars and machinery, in exchange for a reduced 19 per cent tariff on Malaysian goods entering the world’s largest economy.

🇫🇷🚜 Protests in France Highlight Political Risk of the EU–Mercosur Deal Recent tractor blockades by French farmers in Paris have once again brought the trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur into the spotlight of European political debate. While such protests are recurring, they gain weight at a sensitive moment as the treaty approaches key decision points within the EU. The main concern among French producers is the increased competition from South American proteins, particularly beef, produced at lower costs and under environmental regulations perceived as less stringent. For the European agricultural sector, the agreement amplifies an existing structural asymmetry: high regulatory costs in the EU versus greater market access for more competitive countries. On the Mercosur side — particularly Brazil — the agreement is structurally positive, but its impact is far from immediate. Import quotas are limited and conditioned on strict sanitary and environmental requirements, which tends to favor large exporters with established traceability and ESG compliance, while restricting the participation of smaller producers. From a quantitative perspective, the volumes involved are insufficient to “flood” the European market, but they are large enough to exert marginal price pressure. Estimated impact is moderate, around –1% to –3% on average beef prices in the EU, concentrated mainly in processed meat, hamburgers, and food service. In this case, the psychological effect tends to outweigh the immediate physical impact. For Brazil, the effect is less about volume and more structural. The agreement can establish a floor for premium cuts, creating opportunities for premiums associated with traceable beef, low deforestation, and high environmental standards. It is not an export shock, but a gradual increase in value per ton. A common market misconception is interpreting the agreement as an automatic trigger for a surge in Brazilian exports. In practice, the deal is more likely to redistribute destinations and increase value per ton than to drive total volume growth. The main bottleneck remains the ability to meet traceability, ESG, and certified logistics requirements — not tariff reduction alone. The strategic takeaway is clear: for the European Union, the agreement is economically rational but politically toxic. For Brazil, it represents a premium gateway to the European market, not a volume outlet. For exporters, competitive advantage lies with those already operating within EU standards. In terms of pricing, the impact is marginal but persistent over time. #Agribusiness #Commodities #BeefMarket #MeatIndustry #FoodService #EUMercosurDeal #TradePolicy #InternationalTrade #Mercosur #MarketHumor #Brazil #EU

Europe’s key Caobisco confectionery association has joined CIUS, sugar users group, and a host of wider industry trade bodies in backing signing of the landmark EU-Mercosur Trade Agreement #EU #Mercosur #trade #Argentina #Brazil #Paraguay #Uruguay #export #import #tradenegotiations #strategy #investment #standards #environment #farming #agriculture #policy #confectioneryproduction #cocoa #sugar #commodities EU Commission DE CAOBISCO Mayssa Vande Vyvre https://lnkd.in/ebXUs6tk