What is the Mercosur Agreement, and why are so many people protesting it? What does it mean for modern farming? And why does the European Union want us to agree to it? How this will impact Ireland and the rest of Europe, one can only guess. But Europe’s citizens are not fools, and we can make our voices heard.
The Shift Away from Home and Local Food Production
Across the EU, the number of farms has been falling sharply over the past two decades. Between 2005 and 2020, the total number of farms in the EU dropped from about 14.4 million to around 9.1 million, a decline of roughly 37% – around 5.3 million fewer farms overall. Much of this loss has been among small, mixed-activity farms, reflecting long-term structural change in European agriculture towards fewer, larger holdings.
In Ireland, small-scale and family farms have been declining steadily for decades which EU policies have accelerated. Since joining the EEC in 1973, Ireland’s farmers have faced incentives to specialise and scale up under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), favouring larger commercial holdings over traditional mixed farms. Recent official figures confirm a drop of around 5% in farm numbers over the past ten years.
Similar trends occurred across Europe, where subsidies, production quotas, and policies encouraged industrialised agriculture. As rural landscapes became more economically productive they became less socially and environmentally diverse. The result has been a reduction in family-run farms, a loss of local food knowledge, and weaker connections between people and the land.
The EU–Mercosur Agreement: An Overview
The EU–Mercosur agreement is a proposed trade deal between the European Union and four South American countries (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay) that would reduce tariffs and increase imports and exports – so, primarily for economic and strategic reasons. Most Mercosur agreements and legal texts can be found online. The Mercosur agreement is widely opposed.
Many people across Europe protest the deal, seeing it as a threat to farmers, food standards, and the environment, as well as to democratic accountability.
Farmers fear being undercut by cheaper imports produced under lower animal welfare, pesticide, and labour standards.
Environmental groups warn that the deal could accelerate deforestation and biodiversity loss in South America while undermining the EU’s climate commitments.
Others object to the lack of transparency in negotiations and the limited ability of national parliaments and citizens to influence the outcome. These concerns have sparked protests from farming, environmental, and civil society groups across multiple EU countries.
Recent Developments and Ongoing Concerns
Yesterday, on the 9th of January, EU member states voted. Five countries, some probably for domestic optics, voted against the Mercosur deal: Ireland, France, Hungary, Poland, and Austria. Belgium abstained. Despite this opposition, a qualified majority was reached and the agreement was approved for signing.
Disappointing, yes. However, this vote isn’t the final step for the EU–Mercosur agreement. Even after a vote, it still needs approval from all EU Member States, the European Council, and the European Parliament, plus a formal signature by the European Commission.
The deal can still be stopped if enough countries or MEPs reject it, or through public pressure, legal challenges, or opposition from civil society and farmers. There’s no single deadline – the agreement is symbolically signed around 12th of January 2026, but final ratification by the European Parliament and national parliaments will follow, likely this spring.
What You Can Do to Oppose
For people across Europe, you can email or write to your own MEPs, contact the European Commission’s Trade Commissioner and Commission President, and raise concerns with your national government, all of whom play a role in approving the deal.
Adding your name to EU-wide petitions or environmental organisations already campaigning at EU level, and sharing clear, factual objections publicly all help build visible pressure. Here are a couple of petitions:
Even small actions, taken by many people in different countries, matter – especially when decision-makers in Brussels and Strasbourg see the same concerns repeated across Europe.
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