Earlier this year, France’s farmers blockaded ports, motorways and – for a short time – the world’s largest wholesale fresh produce market in protest at government and EU policies that, they said, were making their lives impossible.
They won concessions from the government. But, after a poor harvest, they say they’re seeing little improvement in their situation, and feel that promises to make farming more sustainable are not being honoured.
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Jérôme Bayle, who organised the earliest blockades, told Sud Radio on Friday that a new round of protests were in the pipeline pending a meeting with new prime minister Michel Barnier – but added: “We’re not going to give the dates, we need to create a surprise effect.”
He said: “A farmer’s job is not to spend his time blocking roads and inconveniencing people. But at the end of the day, at national level, we’re going to have to build a healthy, sustainable agriculture, with a future.”
A few days earlier, Arnaud Rousseau, president of the Fédération Nationale des Syndicats d’Exploitants Agricoles (FNSEA) told RMC, “the anger has not been answered.”
“For the past year, the change we asked for has not been forthcoming,” he said. “A number of promises made in January have not been met with the expected responses.”
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Summer 2024 has been difficult for farmers, with harvests down because of unusual weather conditions, and a health crisis affecting livestock farming.
“This cocktail is explosive because farmers have the impression that what they had to say has not been heard,” Rousseau said.
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“We were told we’d only have a single administrative control, but the transformations aren’t there. Farmers don’t feel that things have changed”.
He cites several examples, such as the aid owed to farmers, which former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal had promised to pay by March 15th. “I took stock on Wednesday in Vendée, and there are still 150 files that have not been settled. The administrative machinery hasn’t been overhauled, and the appointment we made hasn’t arrived.”
Under these conditions, farmers expect rapid action from Barnier, who is still settling into his role at Matignon. “What counts is what he will do for farmers in the coming months.”
The FNSEA has already put forward a number of proposals, and hopes that the future government will work on a bill with measures concerning agricultural pensions, the recognition of agriculture as being of major general interest, and measures to improve farmers’ incomes.
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