The latest round of the TTIP negotiations wrap up in Washington today and a new urgency in getting a deal is emerging. This was illustrated here on Thursday with Taoiseach Enda Kenny saying at the US Embassy in Dublin's annual economic conference yesterday, that it is important that the agreement "should be concluded by 2015 if at all possible."

It is widely thought that not much will happen in 2016 with US Presidential elections and the Taoiseach said as much yesterday.

With the Taoiseach and many other EU leaders of this view , it is clear that there is growing political impetus for a deal. The recently published report by Minister Richard Bruton, which showed basically every sector in Ireland benefiting except beef, suggests that the direction of travel is towards agreement.

Fast track

The momentum developed recently is on the back of agreement in the US to put in place a mechanism that could fast track the conclusion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) treaty with Asia. This has priority in the US administration and as recently as February when the Irish beef industry travelled en masse to the US to launch Irish beef, the view was that the TTP treaty was as much as could be achieved during this Presidency. It now looks like this changed.

Outside of Irish beef, there are many lobby organisations across Europe that are opposed to TTIP. There are fears that the National Health Service in the UK could be opened to US competition, plain packaging cigarettes legislation in Ireland could be challenged and others. Despite the opposition, we should prepare for agreement happening if the governments of the EU are that way minded.

Beef industry

While beef is vulnerable, good negotiation could minimise if not eliminate the threat. The big danger is that Europe will admit hormone produced beef, open the door completely on GM and allow uncontrolled access to cheaper US steak cuts. This would potentially create serious carcase imbalance for the European beef industry, and undermine the premium the market pays in Europe for these cuts compared with the US. However, for the first time ever, a trade agreement could also benefit the EU and particularly the Irish beef industry. Manufacturing burger beef is at a much higher price in the US than elsewhere in the world including the high value UK, market. If we had access to that market at present prices they pay for imported manufacturing beef, it would add €50/60 per beef animal.

The threat the Irish beef industry isn’t from TTIP in itself, rather the deal for beef that is negotiated. We need the red line issues for beef planted very firmly in the negotiators minds