PARIS (Reuters) – Convoy of farmers departed on Sunday to blockade roads surrounding Paris in protest against perceived unfair competition from overseas and burdensome regulations. Farmers hailing from France, the European Union’s primary agricultural powerhouse, spearheaded continent-wide demonstrations at the outset of 2024. However, the protests waned as the year progressed.
Nonetheless, recent strides by the EU and South American nations within the Mercosur bloc to unveil a provisional agreement on a free trade pact have reignited fervor among French farmers who oppose the Mercosur arrangement. Additionally, French farmers continue to voice discontent over regulations that they claim are denting their profits. Representatives from farming trade unions are scheduled to convene with French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou on Jan. 13 to articulate their apprehensions.
Amelie Rebiere, vice president of the Co-ordination Rurale farming trade union, lamented to BFM TV, “They do not grasp the extent of the hardship and distress that farmers are currently enduring.”
Advocates of the EU’s Mercosur accord, including Germany, argue that it presents an avenue to reduce dependence on trade with China and safeguard EU countries from the repercussions of trade tariffs being threatened by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Nevertheless, numerous European farmers, prominently those from France, have persistently demonstrated against the EU-Mercosur deal, contending that it would usher in inexpensive imports of South American products, particularly beef, that fall short of EU safety standards.
