Tuesday’s debate in the European Parliament agriculture committee in Brussels on the agriculture component of trade deals currently being negotiated and to come in the future was dominated by the tainted meat scandal in Brazil. (see EUROPE 11749).
Against the background of the so-called “carne fraca” – or Brazilian tainted meat – scandal, several MEPs questioned whether a trade deal should be negotiated with the Mercosur countries. They could not understand why import checks to Europe had failed to detect that anything was wrong.
The European Commission representative confirmed that a meeting of EU member state chief veterinary officers will take place on Friday 24 March. He pointed out that, even before this scandal, the Commission had a “very strict (import) policy” (matured, boned meat from approved establishments). He noted imports of Brazilian meat into Europe had “fallen significantly over the years”. For example, Brazil no longer exports any pigmeat.
Tightening checks. The Commission called on the countries of the EU to tighten checks on imports of animal products from Brazil and physical health checks (taking of samples to detect bacteria). “If the tighter controls at the border highlight that there is a systemic problem, even though I have every confidence in the Brazilian authorities which have promised to resolve the issue, there will be consequences”, the Commission representative warned.
The EU has already asked the Brazilian authorities to make sure that the companies involved are no longer allowed to export goods to Europe. Of 21 refrigerated warehouses suspected of irregularities, “at least” four are authorised to export to the EU, the Commission said. It has, therefore, asked Brazil to remove these establishments form the list of operators approved for exports to the EU. The EU is “concerned at the level of corruption and dubious practices that exist within these establishments and inspection bodies”, the Commission representative said.
Finger of blame pointed at Commission too. “The European Commission is not up to the job”, said John Stuart Agnew (EFDD, UK), suggesting that European inspectors should be sent to Brazil but there should be rotation of personnel to avoid any attempts to corrupt them. “What happened with the inspections that we ought to have carried out? Why did we not notice anything?” wondered Diane Dodds (non-attached, UK). José Bové (Greens/EFA, France) called for a complete review of Brazilian health monitoring system. “Checks at the border should have worked – but they didn’t”, complained Paolo De Castro (S&D, Italy).
Agreement with Mercosur further criticised. “How can we consider trade negotiations with a partner we are catching red-handed committing fraud?” asked Bové. “We are quite reticent in the European Parliament about agreeing to a trade deal that would open up our markets to Brazilian beef”, stated Mairead McGuinness (EPP, Ireland). De Castro said that this scandal should give us cause to reflect on all negotiations with the Mercosur countries.
Snowball effect? “Nothing was picked up in checks in Europe”, Clara Eugenia Aguilera Garcia (S&D, Spain) pointed out. She noted that among the four Brazilian establishments suspected of wrongdoing is the world’s largest exporter of beef and poultry. Michel Dantin (EPP, France) said that the scandal could affect consumer confidence and indirectly harm the European livestock sector which is already experiencing difficulty. “Consumers have to be reassured and those who have cheated need to be punished”, argued Eric Andrieu (S&D, France). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)