Ref. Ares(2017)1576942 - 23/03/2017
All redactions are made under art. 4(1)(b)
Ref. Ares(2018)1186223 - 02/03/2018
CC(17)2517:1
Mr Vytenis Andriukaitis
Commissioner for Health and
Food Safety
European Commission
200, rue de la Loi
BE-1049 Brussels
Brussels, 23rd March 2017
Re:
Possible impact of the large-scale meat fraud detected in the state of Paraná
in Brazil
Dear Commissioner,
Copa and Cogeca are extremely concerned about the adverse impact in the EU of the large-scale
meat fraud detected in the state of Paraná in Brazil. This is not the first time that the Brazilian
authorities are facing fraud. Unfortunately, we have not seen sufficient corrective measures put
in place, in particular when it comes to their exports to Europe. Negative media coverage on the
matter could have a disastrous effect on consumption of meat in Europe, no matter what the
origin. In fact, EU meat producers could end up paying the price of food fraud and the relaxed
food safety rules and their enforcement in other parts of the world.
Copa and Cogeca strongly support the European Commission’s decision to reject the European
veterinary certificate for meat imports from the four Brazilian sites affected by food fraud.
Nevertheless, this decision does not go far enough to prevent such a situation from reoccurring
in the long term. We need to recognise that the missions carried out by the Food and Veterinary
Office (FVO) and the controls undertaken at EU borders have unfortunately been unable to
detect the weaknesses in the Brazilian food safety system which have apparently being going on
for more than ten years.
Copa and Cogeca call on the European Commission to closely monitor the steps taken by the
Brazilian authorities to ensure that no other production sites have the same problem, and to
draw up a road map for addressing such fraud in the future. The European Commission needs to
ensure that imports to the EU meet the high EU standards.
European farmers and their cooperatives cannot afford to lower EU food safety standards or put
EU consumer confidence at risk due to fraud in non-EU countries. Moreover, they are
committed to EU production standards which in the case of beef provide full individual
traceability of cattle throughout the animals lifetime. This is the only way to ensure the proper
implementation of food safety standards. Copa and Cogeca refuse to allow double standards in
food safety for meat to be applied vis-a-vis imports on the EU single market.
Brazil is a key world player in meat production and is home to major multinational companies.
We consider that the minimum traceability requirement of 90 days at state level or the 120 day
rule if the animal is transported from one state to another is not acceptable. The reality is that
Brazil has failed to comply with both world food safety standards and our own high EU food
safety standards. Copa and Cogeca consider that the European Commission needs to take much
Copa - Cogeca | European Farmers European Agri-Cooperatives
61, Rue de Trèves | B - 1040 Bruxel es | www.copa-cogeca.eu
EU Transparency Register Number | Copa 44856881231-49 | Cogeca 09586631237-74
stronger trade action, such as imposing a temporary ban on Brazilian imports to the EU, which
has already been done by many other non-EU countries.
Brazil’s failure to apply and monitor EU-equivalent food safety standards for meat raises serious
concerns about the ongoing EU-Mercosur trade negotiations. In beef, we therefore reiterate our
request to implement the full individual traceability scheme. We believe that this scheme is a
prerequisite for the next stages of the Mercosur trade negotiations.
European farmers have made a major effort over the decades to improve traceability along the
chain, from day one of an animal’s life right through to the slaughterhouse, carrying the
financial burden of meeting consumer demands and maintaining consumer confidence.
Furthermore, the European system has proven effective in tackling possible food fraud. We
therefore call on the European Commission to launch a promotion campaign on EU production
standards for specialised beef production in the EU. This is the only tool available which can
maintain European consumer confidence in red meat.
Please be informed that a copy of this letter has been sent to your fellow Commissioners, Cecilia
Malmström and Phil Hogan.
Yours faithfully,
Pekka Pesonen
Secretary General
Cc: Cecilia Malmström and Phil Hogan
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