At the handover of power at the Ministry of Agriculture on Monday, September 23, the new minister Annie Genevard set out her priorities: “reduce the paperwork”, “reduce the prohibitions”… The MP for Haut-Doubs since 2012 announced that she wanted to “move forward quickly”.
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As soon as her appointment was announced, agricultural unions had made it known that they expected rapid decisions from her. This Monday, September 23, during the handover ceremony at the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry, the new minister, Annie Genevard, responded to them: “I want and I must move forward quickly.” A speech during which she also displayed a “unwavering support for farmers”.
→ Also read: Barnier government: who is Annie Genevard, 68 years old, new Minister of Agriculture?
The new Minister of Agriculture, a figure of the Republican party, first established that she was working in an emergency context: “There is a lot of anxiety, there are huge expectations, I know, there is great impatience.” described the elected representative of Haut-Doubs. “I will ensure that in the coming weeks, the first results are seen in the farmyards.”
The electoral calendar has weighed too heavily on the agricultural world
Annie Genevard, Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry
Annie Genevard listed in particular: “a health crisis in livestock farming, too much water in some regions, not enough in others, falling yields in almost all production sectors”stating that many farms were weakened.
Among the solutions outlined by Annie Genevard: “to restore common sense to all the rules, to reduce the paperwork, to reduce the prohibitions”. “I will get to work on it” added the minister.
Annie Genevard, upon her arrival at the Ministry of Agriculture this Monday, September 23
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© Jérémy Chevreuil / France Télévisions
“The head of an agricultural business is overwhelmed by administrative procedures” denounced Annie Genevard, believing that we should not “overinterpret[er] a European standard”.
Example given by the elected representative of Les Républicains: the sugar beet sector, reference to neonicotinoids, pesticides nicknamed “bee killers”. “Let’s not ban before proposing solutions” she commented.
Accused of being “pro-hunting”, “pro-pesticides” And “pro-intensive farming”Annie Genevard directly targeted a section of environmental activists:
I have immense admiration for this difficult profession which too often suffers very unfair trials, sometimes expressed violently, and one can understand that this is unbearable to live with.
Annie Genevard, Minister of Agriculture
The Minister of Agriculture also castigated “declinism, degrowth, renunciation” : “It’s the opposite of what I am” she said.I share the feeling of revolt of some people in the face of activists who destroy the means of production and the essential work tools to feed us.” continued the elected official.
Another divisive subject: the wolf. If Annie Genevard was careful not to mention its name, she did not fail to mention the subject of “predators”, to which “cultivation of the land and livestock” are the most exposed according to his terms.
“I remember, Marc, your visit to Pontarlier during a great show” she said, referring to a visit by her predecessor, Marc Fesneau, in October 2022 to Haut-Doubs. “There had been a lot of predation” recalled the elected official. “I saw these farmers burst into tears.” she continued, before turning to Agnès Pannier-Runacher, the resigning Minister Delegate for Agriculture and new Minister for Ecological Transition: “I think, dear Agnes, that we will have to talk about the subject again.”
Annie Genevard also stated that she wanted to promote training in the agricultural sectors. She expressed her desire to meet with professional and union organizations in the field as quickly as possible.
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