BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) 鈥� Supermarket giant Carrefour鈥檚 support for against a trade agreement between the European Union and the South American bloc Mercosur has sparked a strong reaction in Brazil, including a refusal to supply beef to Carrefour stores in Brazil.
Carrefour CEO Alexandre Bompard announced in social media posts last week that the French company would stop buying beef from all Mercosur countries, which also include Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Bompard wrote that he agrees with French producers' arguments that Mercosur beef is an unfair competitor due to lower production costs resulting from fewer environmental and sanitary requirements.
The executive encouraged other retailers to follow suit.
Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture called Bompard's move protectionist, saying it was made 鈥渨ithout any technical criteria.鈥�
The decision also angered Brazil's meatpackers. Though France makes up just a tiny sliver of Brazil鈥檚 beef exports, meatpackers worried that Carrefour鈥檚 decision would hurt its reputation in other markets.
Beef giants and Marfrig halted supplies last Friday to Carrefour's extensive supermarket chain in Brazil, including the food warehouse giant Atacadao. Both companies refused to comment on the boycott to The Associated Press, but Minister of Agriculture Carlos F谩varo confirmed it.
鈥淲e support the reaction of the meatpackers. If Brazil麓s beef isn鈥檛 good enough for Carrefour鈥檚 shelves in France, it isn鈥檛 good enough for Carrefour鈥檚 shelves in Brazil either,鈥� Fav谩ro told Folha de S.Paulo newspaper on Monday.
Carrefour Group in Brazil acknowledged the boycott in a statement, though it said there's not yet a shortage of beef in stores. It said it has 鈥渆steem and confidence in the Brazilian agricultural sector, with which it maintains a solid relationship and partnership.鈥�
鈥淯nfortunately, the decision to suspend the meat supply has an impact on customers, especially those who rely on the company to supply their homes with quality and responsible products,鈥� the statement said. 鈥淚t is in constant dialogue in search of solutions that will make it possible to resume the supply of meat to its stores as quickly as possible, respecting the commitments it has to its more than 130,000 Brazilian employees and millions of Brazilian customers countrywide.鈥�
The backdrop for the conflict , which would increase agricultural imports to EU countries from South America. French farmers fear it will affect their livelihoods. An initial agreement was reached in 2019, but negotiations have faltered since then due to opposition that also includes some European governments.
Brazil鈥檚 agribusiness sector also fears that the pending European Union will outlaw the sale of forest-derived products within the EU鈥檚 27-nation bloc if companies can鈥檛 prove their goods are not linked to deforestation. Its scope includes soy and cattle, Brazil鈥檚 top agricultural exports. Almost half of the country鈥檚 cattle is raised in the Amazon region, where 90% of deforested land since 1985 has turned into pasture, according to MapBiomas, a nonprofit network. The date of its implementation remains uncertain.
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Fabiano Maisonnave, The Associated Press
