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Farmers and ranchers in the Region of Murcia are watching anxiously after MEPs in the European Parliament voted on Wednesday January 21 to challenge the EU-Mercosur free-trade deal. The deal would slash barriers for cheap South American farm imports like beef and citrus into Europe (Mercosur is the trade bloc of Brazil, Argentina and others), threatening local growers. This tight vote sends it to the Court of Justice for review, halting things for now and buying precious time; but no one's celebrating yet, with the risks still very real.

 

On Thursday January 29, growers will take to the streets in a major tractor protest against the deal, rising costs, the Transfer situation and Common Agricultural Policy budget cuts. Meat, honey and citrus fruits top the list of Murcia products at risk if it moves forward. Beef and chicken imports from Latin America could flood in, given their vast production there, while citrus growers eye Argentinian lemons and Brazilian concentrates like essential oils and juices warily. Honey and cereals face similar pressure, though pork might hold up better.

 

"We're going to have to work with competition that has infinitely lower production costs. In Brazil, costs are estimated to be 60% lower than what we have in Spain," says José Miguel Marín, president of Coag Murcia.

 

"There's a lack of interest in the profitability of producers, which is why young people don't want to join the sector. In a few years, we're going to be totally dependent on foreign countries for European food," warns Alfonso Gálvez, general secretary of Asaja (Asociación Agraria de Jóvenes Agricultores - Spain's largest farmers' union). Marcos Alarcón from UPA (Unión de Pequeños Agricultores, another major Spanish farmers' union) doubts the promised safeguards: "Experience tells us that the projected tonnage is exceeded and the guarantee mechanisms are not activated as they should be."

 

The deal includes border audits and checks to avoid market saturation, but farmers question their strength, noting just 1% of imports get proper scrutiny. Coag worries this could swap safe local food for produce from "large corporations over which we have no control."

 

Olive oil and wine might gain Mercosur markets after a 10-year tariff cut, but low buying power there dampens hopes. The regional government won't support it without tougher protections for locals.

Both Vox and Podemos welcomed the pause. "This is huge news for the Region of Murcia," said María Marín, Podemos deputy. Vox hailed it as a historic victory for Spanish agriculture.

 

For now, trade carries on unchanged, but with the CJEU ruling pending and protests near, uncertainty grips the fields.