SCOTTISH MEPS have been briefed about the threat that poorly negotiated trade deals pose to Scotland’s iconic beef industry.

The European Commission is currently negotiating a free trade agreement with the South American trading bloc Mercosur – which involves bulk beef producers Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Recent reports are that the EC is considering allowing as much as 70,000 to 90,000 tonnes of beef per year to freely enter the European market through the deal.

Scottish farmers and crofters are concerned that this South American beef, which is produced at lower standards, will be damaging to the market currently available to Scottish producers.

NFUS livestock committee chairman Charlie Adam, a beef farmer in Aberdeenshire, said: “The idea that the EC would consider allowing greater access to South American beef following the ‘rotten meat’ scandal that rocked Brazil earlier this year is absurd, particularly after the recent EU food safety audit which found that Brazilian authorities could not guarantee export requirements.

“Beef farmers in Scotland and across the continent are currently facing great uncertainty over the impact that Brexit may have on the market for our beef," he noted. "The EC must not treat our excellent food safety and high-quality standards as a bargaining chip simply to rush through a damaging trade deal so they can tick it off the ‘to do’ list.”