Overview

• The Commission validated the text and forwarded it to EU governments and the European Parliament, urging approval before end‑2025 during Mercosur’s Lula presidency.
• France welcomed the gesture yet will scrutinize whether the safeguard is legally strong, including a single‑country trigger and temporary application pending a final decision.
• The addendum commits to fast investigations, provisional measures within 21 days, activation on price or volume swings above 10%, and a pledge to bolster CAP compensation if needed.
• Major farm groups including FNSEA, Copa‑Cogeca and Coordination rurale denounced the pact and announced protests in Brussels on Thursday, calling the assurances insufficient.
• The accord would open more Latin American markets to EU industry while limiting agricultural inflows via quotas—99,000 tonnes of beef, 180,000 of poultry, 190,000 of sugar—without requiring renegotiation, and France cannot block it alone under EU voting rules.