The Mercosur trade deal will be referred to the European Court of Justice.
The majority of MEPs voted for the move in the European Parliament today.
Farmers say the deal leaves Ireland at risk to hormone treated beef from South America.
But Fergal O'Brien, Executive Director of Lobbying and Influence at IBEC, says the deal presents huge opportunity for Ireland:
He said: "We will see important trade opportunities in areas such as live sciences products, or pharmaceuticals and medical devices which is such important in industries right around Ireland, in terms of our drink sector and parts of our food industry as well."
Speaking from Strasbourg, IFA President and COPA vice President Francie Gorman said today’s outcome in the European Parliament that has referred the Mercosur trade deal to the European Court of Justice lays down an important marker for how trade issues are negotiated.
“The referral was the right decision for this trade deal and future trade deals. Farm organisations across Europe, as part of COPA, lobbied morning noon and night and it worked,” he said.
“When we met our fellow EU farm leaders in Brussels last week, I knew that the vote would be close. This is a great result for the European umbrella farm group COPA COGECA.
“The ECJ will now test the deal and see if it stands up to scrutiny. For this, and for future trade deals, it is important that the legality is established before any further steps.
"The EU Commission has been too hasty in trying to push this through,” he said.
Francie Gorman said this is just the latest step in what has been a decades-long campaign.
