EU - Mercosur Agreement: AVEC strongly opposes provisional application – Parliament must not be bypassed!

Brussels, Belgium – AVEC, the Association of Poultry Processors and Poultry Trade in the EU, reacts with deep concern to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s announcement that the EU–Mercosur trade agreement would be provisionally applied before the European Parliament has given its consent.

AVEC strongly opposes provisional application in this case. Proceeding in advance of Parliament’s vote would empty democratic scrutiny of its meaning and undermine the institutional balance foreseen by the EU Treaties.

The European Parliament is not a formality; it is the EU citizens’ directly elected representative body. Implementing a far-reaching trade deal affecting agriculture, food systems and rural jobs before Parliament can decide is, in spirit, a denial of democratic accountability.

The Parliament has asked the Court to review legality — implementation must wait

AVEC further stresses that the European Parliament has formally decided to request an opinion from the Court of Justice of the EU on the agreement’s conformity with the EU Treaties.
In this context, moving ahead with any form of implementation (especially provisional application) would be politically and institutionally indefensible. If the EU’s top court is being asked to assess the agreement’s legal foundations, the responsible course is clear: wait for the Court’s opinion before any implementation begins.

Food standards are not negotiable: the Commission’s own audit raises serious concerns

AVEC also points to the European Commission’s recent audit on Brazil (published 25 February 2026), which follows up on controls relating to residues and prohibited substances in animals and animal products.
The audit concludes that, regarding a critical recommendation meant to ensure that products from cattle treated with oestradiol 17β are not exported to the EU, the action plan “has not been implemented as proposed” and the measures were not fully effective in excluding such meat from export to the EU.
The report also notes a significant deviation from earlier commitments and that a key decision was not communicated to the European Commission.

This is a clear warning: before considering additional market access under EU–Mercosur, the EU must be fully confident – based on verifiable controls and enforcement – that exporters can meet EU requirements in practice, not only on paper.

AVEC calls on the Commission and Member States to:

1. Stop any move toward provisional application of EU–Mercosur prior to the European Parliament’s consent;
2. Commit publicly that there will be no implementation of the agreement, provisional or otherwise, until the Court of Justice has delivered its opinion requested by the European Parliament;
3. Take full account of the Commission’s audit findings on Brazil and ensure EU production standards are fully demonstrable and enforceable before any additional access is granted.

Europe’s trade policy can only be credible if it is democratically legitimate and consistent with the EU’s standards and enforcement expectations. Provisional application must not be used to shortcut Parliament’s role, nor to ignore the Commission’s own evidence of persisting compliance weaknesses.

-ENDS-