Specific Details
Brazil Investigation
Intended results
To seek support from Irish Ministers, TDs and MEPs to ensure that the EU Commission urgently remove the beef and poultry import concessions planned under the EU–Mercosur agreement in.
To highlight that a delegation travelled across key beef-producing regions in Brazil, visiting farms, live markets, slaughter plants, meat plants and veterinary supply outlets. At every stage of the production chain they observed practices that raise serious questions about equivalence with EU standards, particularly regarding antimicrobial resistance (AMR), animal identification and traceability, and animal welfare.
To highlight that antimicrobials, antibiotics and other restricted drugs in the EU were freely available without prescription, without verification of diagnosis and without any apparent recording of use.
To highlight that there were systemic failures in animal identification and traceability, with animals presented at markets and slaughterhouses untagged or with easily removable tags.
To emphasise that a pattern was observed whereby free access to antibiotics and anti-inflammatories may be used to compensate for poor husbandry and weak biosecurity, masking underlying disease and welfare problems instead of addressing them. This reliance on “treatment by syringe” is at odds with EU citizens' expectations on animal welfare and with the preventive, high-welfare systems that EU farmers are being asked to deliver under the CAP and the Farm to Fork Strategy.
To stress that EU farmers are making significant changes, at real cost, to reduce antibiotic use, improve biosecurity and raise welfare standards. Allowing large volumes of beef from production systems where critically important antimicrobials are freely available over the counter, and where traceability is demonstrably weaker undermines both EU farmers and EU public-health objectives.
To seek the support of the Irish Government to request the EU Commission to
1. Remove the beef and poultry import concessions proposed under the EU–Mercosur agreement.
2. Mandate an urgent, targeted DG SANTE audit in Brazil focused specifically on (a) practical enforcement of prescription-only rules for veterinary antimicrobials, (b) control of highest-priority critically important antimicrobials, and (c) the effective operation of national cattle identification and traceability systems.
3. Ensure that the EU's internal AMR and animal-welfare commitments are fully reflected in the conditions attached to beef and poultry imports, so that public-health protection and high welfare are not compromised for the sake of trade concessions.
Aodhán Ó Ríordáin
MEP (European Parliament)
Barry Andrews
MEP (European Parliament)
Barry Cowen
MEP (European Parliament)
Chris MacManus
MEP (European Parliament)
Christopher O'Sullivan
Minister of State (Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage)
Ciaran Mullooly
MEP (European Parliament)
Cynthia Ní Mhurchú
MEP (European Parliament)
Helen McEntee
Minister (Department of Education)
Ivana Bacik
TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)
James Lawless
Minister (Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science)
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill
Minister (Department of Health)
John Cummins
Minister of State (Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage)
Kathleen Funchion
MEP (European Parliament)
Luke Ming Flanagan
MEP (European Parliament)
Lynn Boylan
MEP (European Parliament)
Maria Walsh
MEP (European Parliament)
Michael Healy-Rae
Minister of State (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Michael McNamara
MEP (European Parliament)
Micheál Martin
An Taoiseach (Department of the Taoiseach)
Nina Carberry
MEP (European Parliament)
Noel Grealish
Minister of State (Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine)
Norma Foley
Minister (Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth)
Regina Doherty
MEP (European Parliament)
Sean Kelly
MEP (European Parliament)