Madam, - Following the "ban" (which isn't a ban) on Brazilian beef imports, there has been a good deal of crowing by Irish farmers' leaders and politicians.
For the record, the ban will cease to exist as soon as a new list of export-ready Brazilian farms is approved - likely to be in the next few weeks. And whatever the presence of foot-and-mouth disease in Brazil (which is not "endemic", as some have claimed) it is a scientific impossibility that the virus can be exported in matured, deboned, chilled or frozen beef. The EU's concern has been about traceability: Brazilian farmers' willingness to adopt European-style farm bureaucracy, now accepted as inevitable for those who wish to export.
Given that the Irish claim to have struck a blow for animal health has been exposed as a scientific lie, the real reason for the glee must be pure protectionism. This is bad for consumers and a bad reputation for a food exporting nation to acquire on the world stage.
There is great potential to develop strong economic links between Ireland and Brazil, not only in agriculture but in many other industries. Brazilian expertise in energy management and biofuel production, for example, could be of great benefit to an energy-thirsty Ireland.
Scoring cheap, and ultimately futile, political points at home is unlikely to help build such bridges. - Yours, etc,
ROBERT METCALFE, Director, Brazilian Beef Information Service, Fitzroy Square, London W1.