Mercosur scandal speech in parliament: NEOS mandate Gerald Loacker insulted the farmers’ association in the most nasty way during a debate because they massively opposed the free trade agreement out of concern for domestic agriculture. Farmers and climate activists are shocked by the pink outing about a “stupid tenderloin”.
“Then trade your cows and goats with each other,” said the pink Ländle mandator, shaking with anger, accusing the local farmers of being “small-scale” in a way he had never experienced in Vorarlberg’s furthest valley. NEOS boss Beate Meinl-Reisinger acknowledged this speech with malicious laughter.
“Deppertes Beef Tenderloin”
Another delicacy from Loacker’s angry and insulting anger: “The entire ÖVP is being targeted by the farmers’ association because of a few kilos of beef. That’s provincial thinking and all because of a stupid tenderloin…’
Farmers demand an apology
Paul Nemecek, director of the Lower Austrian Farmers’ Association, sees red in the light of “these humiliations of his profession”: “I call on Mr Loacker to apologize on behalf of the Austrian farmers and to see these unqualified statements as an incentive to to become even more involved in the fight against Mercosur.”
NEOS have nothing to do with agriculture
Election campaigning EU MP Alexander Bernhuber (ÖVP) echoes the same sentiment: “We take the concerns of farmers and consumers seriously. This agreement is dead and will remain dead.” What angers Bernhuber even more is that Anna Stürgkh, who is running for second place on her pink party’s list, thinks that agricultural policy is “not what moves people.” The topics are mainly border protection, education, innovation and research.
There is also harsh criticism from climate activists. Greenpeace Europe boss Alexander Egit: “It is unacceptable that NEOS economy spokesperson Gerald Loacker is trampling on legitimate ecological concerns. The trade agreement between the EU and Mercosur is a bad deal across the board – both for nature and for Austria’s farmers. The pact would not only lead to low-quality meat flooding the European market and putting enormous pressure on our agriculture. The Amazon would also be further evacuated. Trade deals that only benefit big companies must be stopped.”
It’s tons of cheap meat
Once again Greenpeace puts the facts on the table: the EU-Mercosur pact provides, among other things, for an increase in the import quota of cheap beef from the current 200,000 tons to 300,000 tons per year. The import quota for sugar must be increased by 10,000 tons, while the import quota for bio-ethanol – also made from sugar cane – is increased by 650,000 tons.
The pact would further fuel slash-and-burn agriculture in the Amazon, while putting sugar beet farmers and livestock herders in Austria under enormous economic pressure. The Union already imports agricultural products that are directly responsible for the destruction of 120,000 hectares of forest every year in the four Mercosur countries alone (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay). That’s a football field of forest every three minutes, complains Greenpeace boss Alexander Egit.
The population is also against the agreement
As a reminder, the Austrian National Council had already committed to saying “no” to EU-Mercosur in 2019. This decision is still supported by the population: according to a survey published in 2023 by retail chain Spar and Greenpeace, a large majority of 87 percent of Austrians strongly reject the trade agreement in any case.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
