unblocking of the port of Bordeaux announced on Friday; purchasing centers still blocked in Charente, Lot-et-Garonne, Landes and Tarn

The blockade of the port of Bordeaux by farmers will be lifted Friday morning, Agence France-Presse learned Thursday, November 21 from the Rural Coordination (CR), the second agricultural union, which believes that the Prime Minister has responded to his claims. “We asked Barnier to commit to overtransposition [des règles européennes], (…) he said [devant le Sénat] : the farmers are right, there are too many standards”declared José Pérez, co-president of the CR of Lot-et-Garonne (CR47).

Some 200 farmers from the union have been blocking access to the port with dozens of tractors since Wednesday evening to demand measures of « simplification » and denounce the « surtransposition » European Union rules in French law.

At the end of the morning, the authorities identified 596 farmers and 224 agricultural machines mobilized in 16 departments. Thursday evening, they were still blocking purchasing centers in Charente, Lot-et-Garonne, Landes and Tarn. In Gironde, the gendarmes smoothly released access to two large-scale retail logistics platforms. Rural Coordination also targeted buildings of the Mutualité sociale agricole and departmental administrative directorates in Mont-de-Marsan (Landes).

At the other end of France, members of the CR came to the center of Strasbourg with around ten tractors to distribute 600 kilos of apples. In Lille, members of the CR parked their tractors Thursday afternoon in front of the Hauts-de-France regional council, where a delegation was received by the office of its president Xavier Bertrand.

Professional elections

The Minister of Agriculture, Annie Genevard, made her first field visit to Pas-de-Calais on Thursday since the return of farmers to the streets, who denounce in particular the proposed commercial agreement between European Union (EU) and Mercosur, the South American free trade zone.

During his visit, M^me Genevard once again estimated that pesticides authorized in Europe should be “also in France”. “We cannot consider that the twenty-six other European countries which grant treatment authorizations [phytosanitaire] do so with disregard for the health of their population,” declared the minister, who also promised “In the coming days, announcements regarding simplification”.

Wednesday, M^me Genevard reiterated the government's opposition to the agreement with Mercosur and its desire to bring together a blocking minority within the EU to prevent it. “We are working hard on it”assured M^me Genevard, adding: “We are going to do everything we can to prevent this agreement which is bad. »

On the mobilization of farmers, M^me Genevard ruled Wednesday evening that“we cannot accept that there are excesses”. “We have set the framework which does not exclude dialogue, which does not exclude protest”she added, while her interior colleague, Bruno Retailleau, had mentioned on Sunday a “zero tolerance” in case of “long-lasting blockage”.

This new episode of demonstrations comes a few weeks before professional elections. The CR intends to break the hegemony of the majority alliance between the FNSEA and the Young Farmers. These two unions had warned that they would mobilize until mid-December against the trade agreement with Mercosur countries, against the standards they consider excessive and for a better income. The third representative union, the Peasant Confederation, also organized actions to denounce all free trade treaties.

The president of the FNSEA, Arnaud Rousseau, announced that the next demonstrations led by its members would take place next week, “Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday”.