Bombay Durpun - Thousands of Irish, French farmers protest EU-Mercosur trade deal

In central Ireland, tractors streamed into the roads of Athlone for a demonstration, displaying signs including "Stop EU-Mercosur" and with the European Union flag emblazoned with the words "sell out".

"We have good quality Irish beef and and good standards here, and they don't have the same standards in South American countries," said Trisha Chatterton, a 50-year-old farmer. "There is not a lot of traceability on their beef."

The agreement is widely opposed by farmers for fear it will result in an influx of an extra 99,000 tonnes of cheap beef from South America, disrupting European agriculture.

The Irish Farmers' Association (IFA), Ireland's main farmers' lobby group, called the result "very disappointing".

It said it would "renew" focus on securing a majority against the deal in the European Parliament.

"We expect Irish MEPs to stand behind the farming community and reject the Mercosur deal," said IFA president Francie Gorman in a statement.

- Roads blocked in France -

In France, police on Saturday ejected farmers occupying a fuel depot near Bordeaux in the south-west.

Later in the day other farmers tried to block road traffic to the port of Le Havre in the north-west.

Two highways remained blocked Saturday in the south-west of France, farmer unions said.

Farmers on Friday also marched in Poland and blocked roads in France and Belgium as the EU gave the green light to the trade deal.

While the accord has been welcomed by business groups, European farmers have bitterly criticised it.

The deal, more than 25 years in the making, would create one of the world's largest free-trade areas, boosting commerce between the 27-nation EU and the Mercosur bloc comprising Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay.

Major Mercosur exports to the EU include agricultural products and minerals, while the EU would export machinery, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals with lowered tariffs applied.

Many European farmers fear their livelihoods will be undercut by a flow of cheaper goods from agricultural giant Brazil and its neighbours.

Such concerns prompted Ireland, France, Poland, Hungary and Austria to vote against the accord.

At the Saturday protest, farmers carried signs calling for an "Irexit" and accusing the Latin American bloc's beef exports of not following the same standards.

But wine makers across Europe are generally in favour of the accord, as it promises to enlarge their access to South American markets.

The Mercosur deal still has to be approved by a majority of MEPs in the European Parliament in the coming months, where voting coalitions have become more volatile and unpredictable.

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R.Kohli--BD