Sinn Féin MEP Chris MacManus, along with members of The Left in the European Parliament, has launched a study on combatting carbon leakage in the agri-food sector.
The launch, which took place yesterday (Tuesday, February 14), included the author of the study, Prof. Alan Matthews from the Department of Economics at Trinity College Dublin (TCD), and around 20 MEPs.
Carbon leakage can occur if businesses transfer production to other countries with emission constraints that are more lax. This can result in an increase in their total emissions.
Carbon leakage
Speaking after the launch, Chris MacManus said: “Many people will never have heard the term carbon leakage, and it can seem a bit abstract at first. However, it can be explained very simply.
“To give an example, carbon leakage can be a situation where EU farmers must increase food prices for consumers to account for the increasing costs they face, as they invest in making their model of production more carbon efficient.
“As a result of these increased food prices, customers choose to buy more products that are imported into the EU, even though these products are produced in a way that releases more carbon emissions into the atmosphere; think about buying a steak in the EU that was produced by burning down the Brazilian rainforest, instead of an Irish grass-fed suckler steak.
“Over time, EU farmers, who are the more environmentally friendly producers, lose their customers and producers from non-EU countries, increase their production size, to supply their new EU customers.
“The outcome is poorer EU farmers and an overall net release of more carbon into the atmosphere,” the MEP said.
MacManus said that to avoid carbon leakage, MEPs must ensure EU farmers are not being undercut by carbon intensive imports.
“It’s about fairness for our farmers,” he said.
“Famers are our best allies in transforming our global food system to make it more sustainable.
“In order to guarantee their support, we must fairly reward them for the environmental restoration they engage in and protect them from unfair competition, in particular when that competition is selling a product that comes at a heavy cost for the planet,” MacManus added.
Study
The Irish MEP praised the work of Prof. Matthews on examining what tools are available to EU policy makers to fix the problem.
“His proposals include signing environmental agreements with our trade partners, adjusting the tariffs we apply to other countries, important standards, and mandatory due diligence obligations.
“By demanding our trade partners raise their standards to match ours, we are not only looking after ourselves but also indirectly benefiting the citizens of non-EU countries, who agree to meet our standards. It is a clear win-win,” MacManus said.
The MEP acknowledged that “raising the bar” could lock developing countries out from global trade.
“We cannot compromise on safety and protection, but we can reach out and share our knowhow and technology, to help them lock in their own farm viability and sustainability.
“This launch is certainly not the end of the road; rather it is a conversation starter. Over the coming months, I hope to engage with the European Commission on this topic further,” MacManus said.