MERCOSUR

Another factory in the European Union has announced that it will not process sugar beet next season, i.e. in 2026. Last year, five European factories of this profile notified about the cessation of activity. A total of 20 sugar factories in the EU have stopped working since 2017, according to Logos Press.

Trade officials from U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration have leveled accusations at the European Union over Brussels’ attempts to give European meat and cheese producers a de facto monopoly in the South American market as part of a sweeping trade agreement with Mercosur countries, Logos Press reported.

EU member states on Jan. 9 gave the green light to sign an agreement with Mercosur, paving the way for the creation of a vast trade bloc between Europe and Latin America, Logos Press reported.

Ambassadors from the 27 EU member states are voting Jan. 9 in favor of the Mercosur deal, with a positive outcome that could allow European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to sign the agreement in Latin America next week, Logos Press reported.

Despite a ban on large farm vehicles traveling through the French capital, angry farmers rallied at the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower and the National Assembly to force French authorities to take a tougher stance on a free trade agreement with the South American bloc Mercosur and to take more effective measures to combat the epizootic of nodular dermatitis, a highly contagious disease for cattle. – Logos Press reports.

The EU executive is seeking the support of a majority of the 15 EU members to approve the signing of a free trade agreement with South American bloc Mercosur by Jan. 12, but so far has been unable to achieve a sustainable margin, Logos Press reported.