opposed to Mercosur, farmers filter access to a Lidl platform near Lyon

There are around twenty of them taking turns since dawn. Farmers from the Rural Coordination union have been filtering access to the Lidl logistics platform in Saint-Quentin-Fallavier, around thirty kilometers south-east of Lyon, since Tuesday morning. They intend to protest against the discussions on Mercosur, but also the «surtransposition» French standard of European standards or controls judged “abusive”.

“We control the trucks entering or leaving and we block those transporting foreign goods except when it comes to products that are not made in France”explains Françoise Boyer, arborist and wine grower in Millery and president of CR 69. This foreign production is targeted to denounce competition deemed “unfair” by farmers in the face of more demanding French standards. Some heavy goods vehicles bear the brunt of the operation, remaining stuck.

46,000 square meters of warehouses

Inaugurated in 2018, this logistics platform houses 46,000 square meters of food warehouses for the German brand. It is strategically located along the A43 motorway, at the eastern entrance to the metropolis, to supply around sixty stores in the Lyon region.

Installed at 6 a.m. with loud honking, the tractors planned to stay until the arrival of a representative from the Isère prefecture, to make their grievances heard by state representatives. “It is above all the European discussions on Mercosur which will decide the outcome of the mobilization”underlines Françoise Boyer.

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For angry farmers, Mercosur as “ultimate provocation”

A mobilization which is struggling to coordinate for the moment while the sector's union elections are scheduled for the beginning of 2025. Last week, it was the FNSEA which demonstrated in front of the Musée des Confluences, in Lyon, where a handful of representatives had exchanged with the territory's parliamentarians.