Following meetings in Budapest and Vienna, French Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty Annie Genevard, Hungarian Minister of Agriculture István Nagy, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó, and Austrian Federal Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, Climate Protection and the Environment Norbert Totschnig issued a joint statement expressing opposition to the deal in its current form, warning that it could severely harm European agricultural interests.
Hungarian Minister István Nagy stressed that “large volumes of imported goods produced under lower standards could displace European agricultural products, leading to lower purchase prices and undermining the profitability of EU agricultural production.” He added that this could threaten production, development, and investment—ultimately endangering Europe’s food security and sovereignty.
The ministers pointed out that the agreement lacks a clear safeguard mechanism for sensitive European agricultural products, making it fundamentally unbalanced in favor of Mercosur exporters.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó called agriculture "the soul of our rural territories" and warned that the agreement, if enacted, would damage this essential pillar of European sovereignty.
Austrian Minister Norbert Totschnig emphasized the role of agriculture in securing food independence and economic growth within the EU, stating that these can only be sustained by maintaining competitive regional agricultural production.
French Minister Annie Genevard concluded that “even in times of geopolitical uncertainty, a bad agreement remains a bad agreement,” underlining the unified stance of the three countries against ratifying the deal as it stands.
euromeatnews.com