NZ-EU trade deal has painful compromises for Europe's producers, farming group says

• Published date: 13 July 2022
• Publication title: West Coast Farming Times, The

In a statement, Copa-Cogeca said its dairy, sheep and beef sectors were the "sacrificed lambs" of the deal

The farmers' group said it recognised the high consumer protection standards in New Zealand, and the eff ort made by the European Commission to protect geographical indicators and EU production standards in the deal, but painful compromises had been made on sensitive sectors.

"As far as agriculture is concerned, important concessions have been made in already sensitive sectors in Europe. This will increase our structural negative trade balance which was roughly €750 million in 2021 on agriculture, in a period where we are struggling to continue investing in sustainability.

"Our products, such as wine and pig meat, already perform in the New Zealand market, leaving little margin to balance our trade for the benefit of the EU...