The terms Prosecco, parmesan, and feta remain unaffected in Australia after the country walks away from an unbalanced trade deal with Europe.
The European Union (EU) and Australia have been in talks since 2018, with the latter keen to boost agricultural exports by removing EU tariffs and expanding quotas and Europe looking to gain more access to the country’s minerals industry.
However, Minister Farrell withdrew from finalising the agreement because the EU’s latest offer was deemed “still not good enough”. This is the second time within a few months that the deal has fallen apart during ongoing negotiations.
In a statement, Minister Don Farrell said, “I came to Osaka with the intention to finalise a free trade agreement with the European Union. Since I became Trade Minister, I have been to Europe three times to progress a deal that benefits Australia’s national interest. My job as Australia’s Trade Minister is to get the best deal that we can for our producers, our businesses, our workers, and our consumers. Unfortunately, we have not been able to make progress.”
The EU is a massive, high-income trading bloc of 445 million people and is one of the few markets with whom Australia currently has no free trade deal, ABC reports.
As a result, the EU imposes strict quotas and high tariffs on Australian agricultural imports, which negotiators have been trying to remove or, at the very least, substantially reduce.
In 2009, Italy changed the name of the Prosecco grape to ‘Glera’ within the EU, claiming that the name Prosecco referred to an Italian region. The deal would have limited the use of the name Prosecco to wines produced in Italy, essentially preventing the production of Australian Prosecco.
The deal would also prohibit Australian manufacturers from using common food item names such as “feta”, “parmesan”, and “balsamic”.
EU Ambassador to Australia, Gabriele Vantin, said she “regretted” the lack of progress made in Osaka, as “there was optimism that a deal was within reach”.
“Our negotiating teams made good progress over the recent weeks, including in the days leading up to the Osaka meeting,” Ambassador Vantin said. “The European Commission stands ready to continue negotiations.”
The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) has expressed concern that the proposed trade agreement between Australia and the EU would unfairly benefit the EU. The agreement, as it stands, would not significantly improve market access for products such as red meat, sugar, and dairy while imposing European-mandated restrictions on local farming practices.
“The message from Australian farmers is clear and united,” Fiona Simson, president of the NFF, said. “If it’s a dud deal, keep the signing pen in your pocket.”
Despite all the hiccups, Minister Farell expressed his optimism and said negotiations would still continue.
“I am hopeful that one day we will sign a deal that benefits Australia and our European friends,” he said. “I would like to thank my European counterparts, including Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis, for their work, especially Australia’s talented negotiating team led by Alison Burrows.”
This story first appeared on our sister publication Inside FMCG
