Farmers’ protests in France have seen a decline as the holiday season approaches, with reduced participation and fewer actions compared to mid-November. Recent demonstrations in Dijon involved tractors and dump trucks expressing opposition to government censorship and the EU-Mercosur trade deal. The protests have shifted focus towards lawmakers, particularly targeting members of the New Popular Front. Amid ongoing agricultural challenges, rival unions are competing for visibility, with some protests resulting in police interventions and arrests.
In mid-November, farmers’ protests in France surged but are now beginning to wane as the government remains vacant and the holiday truce approaches.
On Wednesday, a convoy of tractors obstructed the heart of Dijon, voicing their discontent against government censorship and the controversial EU-Mercosur trade agreement with Latin American nations.
Dump trucks, loaded with old tires, straw, and slurry, released their contents in front of the House of Europe. A heavy police presence deterred similar actions in front of the prefecture, maintaining order amid the protests.
Jacques de Loisy, president of the FDSEA (the predominant agricultural union) of Côte-d’Or, assured attendees amid the cacophony of honking machinery, “We will persist with robust and significant actions.”
Nonetheless, the intensity of the mobilization has noticeably diminished.
Authorities indicated that on Wednesday morning, there were eight actions across various departments, engaging over 400 farmers and approximately a hundred tractors—a stark contrast to the considerable turnout during the initial protests in mid-November, when the FNSEA-Young Farmers (JA) coalition organized widespread demonstrations.
As the festive season draws near, agricultural mobilizations continue, albeit with a notable decline in both actions and participation, creating challenges for unions to rally support effectively.
Last week, Quentin Le Guillous, the deputy head of the JA, conveyed to AFP that the farmers’ tactics would “intensify,” expressing dismay over the government’s inaction in Paris and the recent EU-Mercosur free trade agreement, which they consider an “existential threat.”
– Rivalry Among Unions –
The recent fall of Michel Barnier’s government has shifted the focus of protests towards demonstrations in front of the offices of MPs, which have been vandalized, painted over, or subjected to manure dumping.
These protests have primarily targeted members of the New Popular Front (NFP), including former president and Corrèze deputy François Hollande, as well as the National Rally (RN), who supported the government’s censorship measures last week.
Farmers argue that the censorship has halted the fulfillment of commitments made to unions following the major protests of last winter.
On Wednesday, Yaël Braun-Pivet, president of the National Assembly, strongly condemned these actions, stating that more than 30 deputies had been targeted within a week.
“The distress and concerns, however legitimate, should not manifest as intimidation towards democratically elected officials,” she remarked in a press release.
Agricultural protests have reignited against a backdrop of turmoil in the sector, with new animal diseases ravaging herds, subpar grape harvests, and disappointing cereal yields in several regions, all while professional elections approach that will shape the governance of agricultural chambers and union subsidies.
In a competitive atmosphere, the FNSEA-JA alliance and its rival, Rural Coordination (CR), are engaged in a contest to orchestrate striking actions that capture public attention.
On Wednesday morning, around fifty CR members from Lot-et-Garonne, Haute-Garonne, and Gers attempted to hinder the flow of refrigerated trucks north of Toulouse to protest the EU-Mercosur agreement, but their efforts were swiftly obstructed by a significant police presence.
Simultaneously, under the direction of FNSEA-JA, farmers briefly blocked the A16 highway in the Boulogne-Dunkerque direction at Coquelles, near the Channel Tunnel, to voice their opposition to the Mercosur treaty.
Detours were established, and authorities confirmed that the protest did not disrupt operations at the cross-Channel platforms, including the Channel Tunnel and the port of Calais.
In previous demonstrations, members of the CR, identifiable by their “yellow hats,” had entered the offices of the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB), demanding its dissolution.
On Wednesday, four members were taken into police custody in Guéret, while about twenty farmers gathered later at the local police station in Creuse to support their colleagues, asserting their intent to avoid causing disturbances, according to union representatives.