On Tuesday, May 26th, at the meeting of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council in Brussels, Belgium, Member States will discuss trade issues related to agriculture, as well as the availability of fertilisers in the EU.
Member States will hear a report from the European Commission (EC) on current developments in the EU’s external trade in agricultural products. Discussions are expected to cover the EU’s bilateral trade relations, progress on new free trade agreements and developments within the World Trade Organization. Issues related to imports from Russia and Belarus are also on the agenda.
Member States will also exchange views on the situation in the EU fertiliser market. In light of rising energy costs, disruptions to global supply chains and the impact of the geopolitical situation on the fertiliser market, ministers will discuss possible short-, medium- and long-term measures to support farmers, strengthen the resilience of food systems and ensure the competitiveness of the agricultural sector.
The discussion will also assess whether the measures proposed in the EC’s 2022 Communication on ensuring the availability and affordability of fertilisers remain appropriate in the current situation and what additional solutions may be needed to ease pressure on farmers’ production costs and promote more stable fertiliser supplies.
On Monday morning, May 25th, Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Economics Jurģis Miezainis contacted Latvia’s representatives to the EU and the European Commission to stress the need to closely monitor the implementation of the Comprehensive Partnership Agreement with the four South American countries – Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay (the Mercosur countries) – and to protect the interests of Latvian farmers and food producers. Minister of Economics Viktors Valainis is currently serving as Acting Minister for Agriculture.
Although the agreement is intended to make trade between the EU and these four South American countries easier and more attractive, opening the EU market to South American agricultural products must go hand in hand with protecting local farmers, strict monitoring of the agreement’s implementation and fair rules. Otherwise, the agreement would not represent free trade, but a new threat to rural areas in Latvia and other EU Member States. If the EU opens its market, it has a responsibility to ensure that Latvian farmers do not become hostages to compromises in global trade.
It was also stressed that the Ministry of Agriculture must continue to insist on including Russian and Belarusian fish products and fertilisers on the EU sanctions list, as higher import tariffs are an effective way of reducing imports of agricultural and fishery products from the aggressor countries into the EU.