The EU-Mercosur agreement undermines EU progress on animal welfare.

At AnimaNaturalis, we urge the abandonment of the agreements in their current form, given their devastating impact on millions of animals.

Mercosur countries (Argentina, Brazil , Paraguay, and Uruguay) are already the EU's main trading partners for beef and chicken. The EU-Mercosur agreement will provide significant additional market access for these products, which are produced under intensive livestock farming conditions. The vast majority of these animal products are produced under conditions significantly below EU standards, further fueling cruel practices such as feedlot feeding and overcrowded poultry farms.

Despite the inclusion of additional provisions on sustainable development, the agreement does not condition tariff preferences on compliance with stricter animal welfare standards, something citizens have long demanded. The only animal welfare condition concerns shell eggs, which are traded in insignificant volumes with Mercosur countries, making this provision, although an important precedent, largely symbolic.

Moreover, the updated trade agreement introduces a so-called "rebalancing mechanism," which could have a chilling effect on future EU legislation. Mercosur countries can challenge new EU laws, even if they are fully compliant with WTO rules, if they believe they will impact the benefits of the agreement.

Wildlife and their habitats will be among the first to suffer from the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. By increasing trade in beef, leather, and soy for animal feed, the agreement is expected to lead to further deforestation in ecosystems such as the Cerrado, Gran Chaco, and Pantanal. This threatens biodiversity and further endangers already endangered wildlife, while undermining the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) by allowing certification schemes that the EU previously considered insufficient.

The EU-Mercosur free trade agreement also sends a counterproductive signal to European farmers and producers currently struggling to transition to sustainable food systems. By permitting increased imports of animal products that do not meet EU standards, the agreement undermines the competitiveness of European producers. The safeguards proposed by the European Commission do not offset this unfair competition.

The European Commission also adopted a modernized trade agreement between the EU and Mexico. Although the agreement includes a separate chapter on animal welfare, it does not make future preferential imports contingent on compliance with animal welfare standards. This is another missed opportunity to ensure animal welfare in trade agreements.

We welcome the European Commission's announcement that it will prepare legislation to accompany the agreement to ensure that EU animal welfare standards are applied to imported products. However, agreements such as the EU-Mercosur Animal Trade Agreement should not be ratified until such legislation is implemented. We urge EU member states to withhold their consent to this agreement and to ensure full respect for democratic norms, including through national parliaments.