EU and India chase down trade deal with wrangling over food

Late insertion of food and farm issues on the agenda of an EU delegation landing in New Delhi today suggests the talks on a future trade deal between the pair are now very advanced, according to sources in Brussels.

Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen has joined Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič in New Delhi “to represent the agricultural aspects and defend EU farmers’ interests”, an EU official confirmed.

The pair will remain in the Indian capital until tomorrow for high-level discussions with their counterparts on a trade agreement, with the primary agenda focused on security, defence, and foreign policy issues.

The late addition of food and farm issues onto the agenda — typically one of the trickiest in trade deals — is being read in Brussels as a sign the negotiations are nearing the "end game", one source familiar with the issue said.

An EU official told Euronews that the broad agri-food market access offer involved in any agreement would be discussed along with negotiations on the EU-India Geographical Indications (GIs) agreement, and general cooperation with India on agricultural matters.

Other EU sources said that sanitary and phytosanitary standards, public procurement, and non-tariff barriers might feature in the discussion. Some of the thorniest issues — such as wine and spirits, processed agricultural products, dairy, sustainability commitments, and business visas — are also expected to feature in the talks.

“This feels like the beginning of the end — to paraphrase Churchill,” one veteran EU trade negotiator told Euronews.

The former EU official noted that politicians like Commissioners usually intervene at the start of talks, midway through, and at the final stage. “Now it’s step three out of four — the moment that needs a political meeting to finalise and agree on key numbers,” the former official said.

India will demand compromise from the EU on agriculture — an issue that also proved contentious in its negotiations with the US.

“India fears unfair competition from foreign importers, as its agriculture is largely subsistence-based and dominated by small farms,” said Anunita Chandrasekar, from the Centre for European Reform.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited New Delhi in February to reinvigorate the partnership, with the aim of sealing a trade deal by year’s end.

The talks come against a backdrop of shifting global trade tensions. Washington’s aggressive tariff policy has nudged India and the EU closer, even as the US presses Brussels to sanction New Delhi over its purchases of Russian oil.

Another sticking point is the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which India denounces as “green protectionism.”

“It’s seen as a tariff on a developing economy,” Chandrasekar explained. “Many of India’s largest export sectors, such as steel and aluminium, are highly carbon-intensive.”

Experts suggest that Brussels and New Delhi might find a path forward by borrowing from the EU-Mercosur agreement, which includes a “rebalancing” clause allowing parties to reopen talks if unilateral trade barriers are introduced.

For now, negotiators are sharpening their pencils. The real numbers — and the real compromises — may not come until the very last round.