Survey by SPAR and Greenpeace: Nine out of ten Austrians demand a clear rejection of EU-Mercosur from the federal government

2023-07-13 04:00:29

Chancellor Nehammer must do his utmost to oppose the trade pact at the forthcoming EU-Latin America summit

Vienna (OTS) – A vast majority of 87 percent of Austrians calls on the federal government to do everything in its power to oppose the EU-Mercosur Pact. This is the result of a representative online survey carried out by the market research institute Integral on behalf of the retail chain SPAR and the environmental protection organization Greenpeace. 85 percent of those surveyed also fear that the trade agreement could have a negative impact on the climate and environment. EU-Mercosur is already on the agenda at the EU-Latin America summit early next week. Together with SPAR, Greenpeace is calling on Chancellor Karl Nehammer to clearly reject the trade pact at the summit meeting.

“A clear majority in Austria resolutely rejects the EU-Mercosur pact. Chancellor Nehammer must ensure that this ‘No’ is heard very clearly in the EU and that the destructive pact is stopped once and for all,” says Melanie Ebner, spokeswoman for agriculture at Greenpeace in Austria. One of the reasons for the negative attitude: 85 percent of those surveyed fear negative consequences for the climate and environment. In the Mercosur countries (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay), 120,000 hectares of forest are already being cleared every year in order to produce more feed soya for the EU, among other things. With the trade pact, the destruction would increase significantly. 90 percent of Austrians also assume that the trade pact would put domestic agriculture under pressure. “The Austrian and many European farmers work at the highest level to supply Austria and Europe with valuable food. We must work together to ensure that domestic agriculture can continue to fulfill this important task in the future,” says Markus Kaser, CEO of SPAR Austria.

As early as 2019, the National Council committed itself to a binding “No” to EU-Mercosur in any form. The EU Commission is now threatening to circumvent this veto with a procedural trick known as “splitting”. The EU Commission hopes to push through the trade pact against resistance from countries such as Austria and France. SPAR and Greenpeace are demanding that Chancellor Nehammer defend Austria’s veto at the EU-Latin America summit on July 17th and 18th and reject the trade pact.

The link to the results of the online survey can be found at:

Questions & contact:

Greenpeace:
Melanie Ebner
agriculture spokeswoman
Greenpeace in Austria
Tel.: [phone]
E-Mail: [email protected]

Réka Tercza
press secretary
Greenpeace in Austria
Tel.: + 43 (0)664 85 74 59 8
E-Mail: [email protected]

SPAR:
Mag. Nicole Berkmann
Company spokeswoman SPAR Austria
Tel: [phone]
E-Mail: [email protected]

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