MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
EC report on trade and investments criticizes Mercosur protectionism
The European Commission in its latest report on trade and investments complains about Mercosur protectionist policies, restrictions to maritime transport and to the export of commodities particularly from Brazil and Argentina. Read full article
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Disclaimer & comment rulesYou have to be joking. The EU and UK farming sectors exist if not for protectionism. If they were liberated sectors, there would be pristine forests all over Europe again (instead of the environmental wasteland Europe is today).
Feb 28th, 2012 - 01:03 am - Link - Report abuse 0they are a bunch of jokers. They are protectionists themself and of course they are desperate for a “free trade” to export themself out of the mess Europe is in. Of course other nations in the Mercosul/Mercosur organization will not accept that. Free trade is dead and we need to go back to local.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 01:45 am - Link - Report abuse 0bunch of hypocrites. Mercosur has stated countless times they would be more than willing to engage in free trade with the EC IF they open the farming sector - which they never did and continues to be heavily subsidized. The days when THEY dictated the rules of free trade are over, but they didn't get the memo yet it seems.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 01:50 am - Link - Report abuse 0@1
Feb 28th, 2012 - 02:07 am - Link - Report abuse 0Exactly. Si te gusta el durazno bancate la pelusa. If they want us to be free trades so they should be.
They want free trade in cars, fine cheese, furniture, and liquor (ze germans, le frenchies, gli italiani, and the Brytysh), but not in foodstuffs and steel.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 02:14 am - Link - Report abuse 0I'm all for trade, just as long as both sides don't heavily subsidize. That's not what is happening today, but I still favor exchange because countries that close themselves to trade become inneficient and eventually have mass unemployment because the over protected industries become obsolete and go under as soon as imports are reopened (which happens inevitably because people demand it)
@5 “i'm all for trade”
Feb 28th, 2012 - 06:02 am - Link - Report abuse 0Well, thats a relief!
And before you respond, i am only jesting with you so dont get too upset!
Funny, the argentines complain we are protectionist over our farming industries, yet they are just the same with theirs. Why should we open up our farming to countries who would under cut the prices, when doing so would likely cause the collaspe of our framing industry. Beside the farming trade would insignificant, do we not already by some farm products from south america like corned beef? I would hardly say we are being protectionist when we freely buy additional farm products from other parts of the globe in addition to what we produce ourselves.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 10:08 am - Link - Report abuse 0@7 Argentina and Brazil don't need to be protective of their farming industry since its extremely competitive. Argentina especially has a widely accepted competitive advantage in this sector. It has the technology and the pampas are up there as the most fertile lands in the world.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 10:14 am - Link - Report abuse 0The problem with the farming sector is that the EU has very strict animal husbandry laws which do not exist in South America. This would give SA an unfair advantage in their cost base if they won't implement similar legislation.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 10:42 am - Link - Report abuse 0As for the common agricultural policy - it is a scandal that should be abolished. It is merely a way for France to heavily milk the EU budget - though it's sold as the way we are self sufficient in food. That may have been true 50 years ago but today it is a nonsense.
I'm not really convinced that Argentinians understand what free trade blocks do. Oh well.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 10:43 am - Link - Report abuse 0@9 I agree, and we have those stricter laws for very good reasons too, not to mention to protect human health. I would have thought Argentina would follow soon once they realise they president has Mad cows disease lol
Feb 28th, 2012 - 12:43 pm - Link - Report abuse 0@10 - i agree, they think free trade is where you get something that was never yours for free. E.g. attempt to steal it or borrow and not pay for it or pay back what they borrow. Now thats argentinia's definition of free trade lol.
Let me fill you in on a little secret: I watch French news, German news, Spanish news. Last year they had a terrible outbreak in Germany from a deadly bacteria. They, even the Germans, could not figure out the source (first it was Spanish cucumbers, then it was Egyptian sprouts, then it was Tomatoes)... Of course we all remember the Mad Cow outbreaks in England, Netherlands... They had a health outbreak in Spain some time last year. In France the poultry is infested with antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 02:16 pm - Link - Report abuse 0The reason for that is Europe has bet the farm (pun intended) on mechanized farming, and not just mechanized farming, giant mechanized farms. They are taking over northern Europe and Germany, and now England. Even France is now adopting them as well as northern Italy. These are veritable factories where you have 1000 cows who are born, live, and die inside huge hangars and actually never see the sun or a meadow with grass, or a stream of running water in their LIFETIME. Or tens of thousands of hens and roosters...
The media in your countries have done extensive recent coverage of this trend, and then you wonder why in spite of all the “health protections”, people are getting ill, getting mad cow, and dying from bacteria that are invincible?
These animals in Europe are treated like machines, irradiated with antibiotics, fed their own animals offal... that's the only way European farming can stay competitive and produce in enough quantities. I would think twice before eating farm products in Europe!
@12 For someone who seems clinically obsessed with all things European, there is a simple answer, don't eat our food then.I won't be going to the Argentinian Restaurant down the road either. They probably just shout something about the falklands at people who enter the shop.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 03:28 pm - Link - Report abuse 0If you don't want to eat it, don't eat it. Just eat nothing but corned beef from Argentina.
If you want to see the real extremes of industrial scale farming then watch the documentary “Food Inc” about the food industry in the USA
Feb 28th, 2012 - 03:43 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Yes tobias, no matter how much strict control you have, there will always been outbreaks due to people breaking those rules imposed. But hey, hows the foot and mouth in south america!
Feb 28th, 2012 - 03:56 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Greek you did not deny anything I said before going of on the tangent. I didn't say don't eat food made in Europe. I do as a matter of fact when I can afford it (since most is boutique stuff). But there are questions being raised as to how good is your food supply really, in spite of the GMO and other environmental fronts that are made.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 05:19 pm - Link - Report abuse 0But again, the problem is that if Europe did agriculture in a more sustainable way, it would be uncompetitive, unless it could somehow transform into a ultra-premium brand only selling top meats, cheeses, and legumes to those who want high culture around the world. Of course that is done to some extent now, but for every day consuption most people even Europeans do not eat this they just want good prices, and that's where the problem is.
There's no law against protectionism.Its only an issue when it's not the Yanquis or Europe doing it.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 06:39 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Protection of a local market happens all the time,and is a legitimate method of managing the economy.Its only capitalist puppets who like to pretend it does happen.The same as they pretend price fixing has been abolished.
The continental cooperation on economic matters and in other areas is the manifestation that is disagreeable in mouths of the Europeans on this occasion.And justifiably for them,south America is no longer dominated.
@17 Yuleno
Feb 28th, 2012 - 07:28 pm - Link - Report abuse 0“continental cooperation on economic matters and in other areas”
Like the European Union for instance!
Where do you get your ideas of what is or is not disagreeable to Europeans?
South America is still dominated by its European settler population to this day.
Yes 18#.Good enough for Europe to cooperate to resist yanqui imperialist ambitions,good enough for SA to cooperate to free itself from being trapped in yanqui/European exploitation.
Feb 28th, 2012 - 11:26 pm - Link - Report abuse 0I get my ideas of what is disagreeable to Europeans from their expressions of looking to SA to help them in their crisis and expecting conformity to their views of what that entails.Where else could I get them from?
I'm sure Greece and its journey on the road to recovery will be torturous as the 'big nations' give their comments on what is acceptable and what is not acceptable to them.Of course,it will be embedded in the IMF,World Bank,ect,reports and press releases.Happy days for EU club members.Not really together are they?
No they are not really together, and not everything works as it should in the EU, this is very true. However they are trying and eventually they will get it more and more right. A long and difficult road no doubt.
Mar 01st, 2012 - 07:00 pm - Link - Report abuse 0A process which no doubt will happen in SA, but has not yet really started.
To free yourself from foreign (include China here) exploitation (a good objective), you first need to stop internal exploitation. Corruption and good governance is what stops SA as a whole from achieving anything like its true potential.
We don't expect conformity of views from within Europe, never mind from outside Europe.
You have to feel for the average Greek, economic collapse and diktat from Europe. However Greece as a country did lie to get in the Euro zone, and spent well above earnings for several decades. The bill had to be paid.
Maybe Greek officials lied and deceived but the people didn't.So why didn't the IMF or OCED or any other entity spot anything,because like the banking crisis,has this money that didn't exist now truly vanished and isn't in someone's pocket?I think it is in the pocket of the perpetrators and they were already rich.
Mar 01st, 2012 - 11:10 pm - Link - Report abuse 0Commenting for this story is now closed.
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