BRUSSELS

The European Parliament on Tuesday approved new safeguard clauses to protect EU agriculture amid trade liberalization with Mercosur countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay.

MEPs voted 483 in favor, 102 against, and 67 abstentions during a plenary session in Strasbourg to support additional measures to prevent harm to European farmers.

The regulation allows the EU to temporarily suspend tariff preferences on sensitive agricultural products such as poultry, beef, eggs, citrus, and sugar if imports surge and threaten domestic producers.

Investigations are triggered if imports rise 5% above the three-year average and if prices fall 5% below domestic levels, stricter than the 10% threshold initially proposed by the European Commission.

Investigations can also be requested by member states, industry representatives, or sector associations.

The European Commission will report to Parliament every six months on the impact of imports.

Spanish MEP Gabriel Mato, standing rapporteur for Mercosur, said the safeguards "strengthen market monitoring, introduce clear criteria to detect disruptions, and allow for faster action for sensitive products, providing farmers with stability and predictability while preserving the overall balance of the agreement."

The regulation will take effect once the Mercosur Interim Trade Agreement enters into force, following formal adoption by the EU Council and publication in the Official Journal of the EU.

Both the EU-Mercosur Partnership Agreement and Interim Trade Agreement still require ratification by the European Parliament, which has requested the European Court of Justice's opinion on their compatibility with EU treaties.

The European Commission may provisionally apply the agreement once at least one Mercosur country completes its ratification.

The Mercosur agreement was signed on Jan. 17 in Paraguay, following more than two decades of negotiations. Its adoption was delayed in December amid widespread farmer protests and opposition from several member states, including France, Ireland, Hungary and Poland.