Taoiseach Michael Martin must make it clear to farmers where the government stands on the Mercosur deal, one farm organisation has said.

The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) has called for answers from the government on whether or not Irish farmers will see Brazilian beef on the shelves, while they work to produce product more sustainably.

The Mercosur Deal would provide the EU with access to almost 100,000t of beef from Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay while many farmers on this side of the Atlantic face the possibility of a reduction in livestock numbers.

Chair of the ICSA’s Beef Committee Edmund Graham, explained why the organisation has actively campaigned against the deal for many years.

“It is absolute hypocrisy to even attempt to find a way of making this Mercosur deal acceptable at a time when farmers are extremely worried about what measures will be imposed on them in order to meet the climate action plan targets.

“A key element we wanted [in the campaign] was that beef should not be imported from regions that are removing forest cover.”

Many politicians and stakeholders in Ireland have voiced frustration that producers in the Mercosur countries do not uphold the same environmental protection measures as EU countries.

The argument is related to heavy deforestation in Brazil, which some argue is ongoing to create more space for beef production.

ICSA Beef Chair Edmund Graham

Graham also raised questions at the possibility that the EU may introduce protocols which would allow the entry of South American beef, in return for providing assistance with the car manufacturing sector.

“It just doesn’t make any sense when farmers have spent the last few months being told that the national herd would have to be cut,” he said.

“We do not accept that, but we can see no logic to importing beef from outside the EU.”

Graham said that these vague possibilities need to be clarified and farmers, who are willing to play their part in the fight against the climate crisis, must be kept in the loop.

“This must be stopped straight away. Farmers will not accept any more obfuscation.

“Farmers are willing to their bit in improving sustainability, but we will not accept our efforts being undermined by cheap beef imports just to placate the EU car sector,” he concluded.