EU and Mercosur countries sign landmark free trade deal • Hacker News Board

Re: EU and Mercosur countries sign landmark free trade deal

#181

Post by surgical_fire » Tue, Jan 20, 2026, 3:10 PM UTC

lm28469 wrote: post #179

surgical_fire wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because that part of the deal is not shitty. You are just fearmongering based on lies. "Hormone raised cattle", and shit like that. South America likely has the best beef in the world (I can speak from experience having lived on both sides of the pond). Good that I might have access to real meat here for once.

> South America likely has the best beef in the world lol > Good that I might have access to real meat here for once. lmao It's one of the most corrupt part of the world and they 100% definitely use antibiotics and hormones banned in europe for safety reasons

> 100% definitely use antibiotics and hormones banned in europe for safety reasons

No it's not. South American meat, particularly from Argentina, Uruguay, and Southern Brazil is phenomenal. It's just the perfect geography and climate for cattle.

You are just crying for protectionism. If a less than 2% quota over the European production threatens you, it speaks more about your inability to do your job properly.

Re: EU and Mercosur countries sign landmark free trade deal

#182

Post by trollbridge » Tue, Jan 20, 2026, 3:19 PM UTC

coryrc wrote: post #53

trollbridge wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What’s wrong with pasture raised beef like they raise in Argentina?

Methane emissions, I assume. (Solvable with 2% seaweed in the diet) Also possibly rainforest destruction for crops, but I'm not as sure about that.

Rainforest in Argentina?

Argentina beef are raised in pasture. About as eco friendly as it gets. Converting pasture to row crops is far more devastating to the environment (topsoil loss, GHG emissions from loss of biomatter in topsoil, fossil fuel derived fertiliser and more.)

Re: EU and Mercosur countries sign landmark free trade deal

#183

Post by trollbridge » Tue, Jan 20, 2026, 3:26 PM UTC

expedition32 wrote: post #103

trollbridge wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What’s wrong with pasture raised beef like they raise in Argentina?

Absolutely nothing it is just European farmers crying. As if the EU doesn't already spend billions on farming subsidies. Even if WW3 breaks out we can turn all of Europe into a vegetable garden in less than a year- the UK did this in 1940. Nobody is going to starve FFS.

That’s a pretty bold claim. I think people who want to eat need to be comfortable producing their own food.

Being utterly reliant on, say, the U.S. means ultimately the U.S. will tell you what to do.

Re: EU and Mercosur countries sign landmark free trade deal

#184

Post by port11 » Sat, Jan 24, 2026, 6:07 PM UTC

tpm wrote: post #180

port11 wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A consistent argument against the deal was precisely that the Mercosur partners won’t be able to stick to the same quality standards that we impose on the Bloc, or they might but then their prices will have to go up to accommodate the added bureaucracy and expectations in terms of agricultural practices. Another more cynical take is that were simply offloading to poorer countries the greenhouse gas emissions of our a…

I think quality standards are a bit different from other trade barriers like tariffs and quotas. We in the EU are importing lots of foods from over the world and the quality standards are already in place and checked (or not, in any case we have to police this ourselves), so probably not much will change for e.g. Argentinian beef in that regard. > but then their prices will have to go up But again their prices would…

There’s been a recent scandal concerning the watering of tomatoes in Morocco. I’m sure we test food quality where we can, but it won’t be feasible to ensure all producers grow their food ‘properly’.

European farmers are held to a higher standard that can be controlled with random testing any time, can we do the same for external partners? Can we prevent them from selling sugar syrup as honey, as was controversially happening in the UK? Is the ‘organic’ label as strict for, say, Peru?

This isn’t rhetoric. Yes, we have solutions and can mitigate everything. The issue that many have is that the affordances of a free-trade deal disincentive the practices we demand of local farmers. A continent struggling with suicide and bankruptcy among farmers might want to rethink how it ensures its own food security in the coming decades of destabilised climate and growth seasons.