He considers it to constitute "a clear political surrender to US pressure."
MADRID, 22 (EUROPA PRESS)
In a statement, the Union of Farmers and Ranchers (UNFAA) lamented the formalization of the tariff agreement between the European Union and the United States "without including any sensitive products in the sector as tariff exceptions," which constitutes "a clear political surrender to US pressure."
The agricultural organization emphasized that the agreement presented yesterday—which consolidates the imposition of a 15% tariff on European agricultural exports—will facilitate the entry into the European market of a "wide variety" of American agricultural products, such as nuts, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, and pork.
"This will mean increased competition for domestic producers, particularly in the case of nuts and especially almonds, of which Spain is already the largest European importer, with almost a third of the almonds the EU buys from the United States," the Union of Unions emphasized.
The agricultural organization also explained that strategic sectors such as wine and olive oil, "pillars of Spanish agri-food exports," are subject to the 15% tariff "without any relief."
"For Spain, the impact is considerable across both sectors. In the case of wine, the pact threatens to curtail the significant expansion (around 30%) that Spanish exports to the United States experienced last year. Regarding olive oil, it cannot be overlooked that this production represents nearly 30% of Spanish agricultural exports to the US, and the imposed tariff could significantly curb that market. This will also depend on the tariff agreement the United States reaches with other olive oil-producing countries," noted Unión de Uniones.
For Unión de Uniones, the agreement "is not bilaterally balanced." "The European Commission has failed to include any European agricultural product on the 'MFN-only' list (zero or near-zero tariffs), even though some of them, such as olive oil itself, do not compete significantly with the American agricultural sector," the organization added.
MEETING WITH THE MINISTER OF ECONOMY
On the other hand, Unión de Uniones has expressed its "concern" about the possible dismantling of the deforestation regulation for US exporters, as it imposes a "negligible risk" of deforestation on US producers.
"It's incredible to make this concession while European livestock farmers are going to have to struggle to comply with this regulation on our farms," criticized the Union of Unions, stating that it is "another example of how the European Commission continues to put the squeeze on its producers compared to their competitors in third countries."
Unión de Uniones has asserted that "something similar can be said" about the negotiations that will open regarding barriers related to sanitary and phytosanitary conditions, regarding which it considers "unacceptable" any licensing or relaxation of standards applicable in the EU for the entry of products from the United States.
In turn, the agricultural organization continues to demand that the European Union implement a trade policy that protects its production model—"the most ethical in the world"—evaluate the consequences of this agreement on the affected products, and implement measures to "counteract the negative impacts on vulnerable sectors."
Unión de Unions has announced that it will hold a meeting on August 26, along with other organizations, with the Minister of Economy, Trade, and Business, Carlos Cuerpo, regarding the joint declaration between the United States and the European Union.
