Europe

How Farmer Protests Across Europe Played a Role in the Recent EU Elections

Thu, 13 Jun 2024 20:59:23 GMT

Farmer protests across Europe are heating up again leading up to the elections in Europe, and the outcome of the European Parliament elections over the weekend sent a clear message. One agricultural economist says it’s not just frustrations from farmers that fueled the election results. It’s also EU voters who are worried about the cost of environmental reforms.

The issue has been brewing for the past year, with farmer protests showing the frustration.

“Things have been slowly coming to the boil over the last 12 months or so. But really, the origins of all this are traceable back to when the last European Commission came into place, which was in 2019,” says Trevor Donnellan, who is the head of economics at the Rural Economy Research Centre based in Ireland.

After the 2019 election, and the Green Party become more dominant, the push to fast-track climate policies and regulation was swift.

“European environmental policy around agriculture is significant. That’s the first thing people in the us need to understand, and it is becoming more significant,” he says. Regulation around things like greenhouse gas emissions is becoming an issue regulation around water quality, the usage of fertilizers, what we do with animal waste, these are all becoming more serious issues.”

Related Story: Why Farmers Are Protesting In Europe

In Donnellan’s own country of Ireland, agriculture is required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2030. He says for a country that has a large dairy and beef production footprint, that could require farmers to reduce their herd size to reach such a lofty goal.

In the Netherlands, environmental policy has already forced livestock producers to get rid of animals, even pushing some farmers out of business.

Those increased regulations are what propelled farmer protests over the past year. The scene drew international attention with farmers using tractors to block traffic on major highways across Europe, to even protesting outside the parliament, and it’s those protests that sent a loud message ahead of the elections.

“The protests, I think, have been significant in making politicians and the general public aware of the importance of taking into account the farmer perspective in setting all these regulations,” says Donnellan.

Related Story: Exploring the Root Causes of Global Farmer Protests Against Ag Policies

That message was apparently on the minds of voters this past weekend as the 27-nation bloc’s parliament membership shifted to the right. The surge by Nationalist and Populist parties will make it much harder for the assembly to approve legislation on issues ranging from climate change to agriculture policy.

“When we look at it in terms of what it might mean, for agriculture, the kind of political perspective in this new parliament has moved a little bit further to the right, which probably is a little bit more aligned with the interests of farmers. And farming is very important. In the context of the European Union, it’s one of the reasons why the European Union was created in the first place,” Donnellan explains.

He says that could mean less of an emphasis on green issues than what the EU has seen dominate policy the past 5 year.

“Looking at it from an agricultural point of view, it could mean that the pace of change in terms of pushing the environmental regulation could maybe slow down a little bit, or there might be a little bit of a rethink on some aspects of it. But it’s probably a parliament that might be a little bit more sympathetic to the concerns of farmers than the one that has just come to an end,” he adds.

Related Story: Will Europe’s Farmer Protests Make Their Way To The U.S.?

While it’s not clear exactly what will happen with EU climate policy in the years ahead, Donnellan says what’s happening in Europe is setting an example for the rest of the world.

“That might sound a little bit grand, but that’s kind of the thinking behind this politically in that Europe will demonstrate to the rest of the world what’s achievable in terms of having an more environmentally compliant economy, including in agriculture, and that the rest of the world should potentially follow suit from a policy perspective in the future,” he says.

U.S. and EU Announce Beef Trade Deal

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:50:26 GMT

The United States will nearly triple its annual duty-free beef exports to the European Union (EU) over the next seven years under a new trade agreement signed at the White House.

American ranchers will be guaranteed a bigger share of Europe’s beef market, with annual duty-free exports expected to grow from $150 million to $420 million when the agreement is fully implemented.

“American ranchers produce the best beef in the world. Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, this new agreement ensures that American ranchers can sell more of that beef to Europe,” said U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, who signed the agreement with the Honorable Jani Raappana of Finland, representing the Presidency of the EU, and Ambassador Stavros Lambrinidis of the Delegation of the EU.

Jennifer Houston, President of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), was at the signing ceremony and applauded the agreement.

“Today is a good day for America’s cattlemen and cattlewomen. President Trump and his trade team deserve a lot of credit for standing up for America’s cattle industry and securing this important market access to Europe,” Houston said. “For many years it has been difficult for us to sell our high-quality U.S. beef to European consumers because of the restrictive tariff and non-tariff barriers, but the establishment of this 35,000 metric ton duty-free quota sends the signal to America’s cattle industry that Europe is ready for U.S. beef. All across America, our beef producers go to great lengths to raise safe and delicious beef products that are enjoyed by consumers around the world. It is exciting to know that European families will enjoy more of the delicious U.S. beef that we feed our families.”

The new agreement establishes a duty-free tariff rate quota (TRQ) exclusively for the United States. Under the agreement, American ranchers will have an initial TRQ of 18,500 metric tons annually, valued at approximately $220 million. Over seven years, the TRQ will grow to 35,000 metric tons annually, valued at approximately $420 million.

Under the current agreement, U.S. duty-free beef exports to the EU are only approximately 13,000 metric tons annually, valued at approximately $150 million, and risked declines going forward.

In 2016, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, U.S. Meat Export Federation, and the North American Meat Institute requested the U.S. Trade Representative to take tariff action under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to enforce the World Trade Organization dispute finding in favor of the United States against the EU’s ban on the use of hormones in cattle production. USTR held a public hearing on February 15, 2017.

Negotiations resulted in a new agreement, which was approved by the European Council on July 15, 2019. It will go into effect following the European Parliament’s approval, which is expected this fall. With the EU providing a country specific duty-free quota for U.S. beef, the United States has agreed as a part of the agreement signed today to conclude the proceedings under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 initiated in December 2016.

France Seeks to Wean Cows Off Soybeans as China Dominates Demand

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 02:05:01 GMT

France will pay farmers to grow faba beans and other crops that can add protein to livestock rations as Europe’s largest beef producer seeks to cut its dependence on imported soybeans, where China’s rising demand threatens supply.

The government will allocate 49 million euros ($61 million) a year to pay a premium for sowing protein sources such as peas or sweet lupine, Agriculture Minister Stephane Le Foll said at a news conference in Paris today.

“We need to develop a plant-protein strategy for France,” Le Foll said. “The flow of protein feed to Asia is becoming greater and greater. For Europe, security of supply is not guaranteed in the long term.”

France grows about 60 percent of the protein crops eaten by its cows, pigs and poultry, importing the rest, while Europe is about 35 percent self-sufficient, according to the agriculture ministry. China gobbles up about 60 percent of global soybean exports, driving up prices, the ministry said.

The European Union will import 12.75 million metric tons of soybeans and 19.8 million tons of soybean meal in the year through September 2015, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts. China may take 74 million tons of soybeans, or 66 percent of global imports, and 50,000 tons of meal, the data show.

“In time, the import flows originating from the Americas that now benefit Europe could be diverted to the advantage of Asia,” the ministry wrote.

Faba Beans
The government will pay growers 100 to 200 euros a hectare ($51-102/acre) for sowing protein crops such as beans and 100 to 150 euros for alfalfa, according to Le Foll’s presentation. The annual budget includes 35 million euros for peas, lupine and faba beans, 6 million euros for soybeans and 8 million euros for alfalfa, clover and similar crops.

The aid could boost the protein-crop area to 750,000 hectares (1.85 million acres) from about 278,000 hectares, according to the ministry. The plan runs until 2020, with the first payment available for crops planted by May 15, 2015.

Planting of faba beans, peas and lupine doubled to about 400,000 hectares in 2010 from a year earlier when a temporary aid measure was in place, according to Antoine Gautier, a feed analyst at Offre & Demande Agricole in Bourges, France.

“The area will probably increase,” Gautier said. “Also because the prices of grains and oilseeds are relatively low, particularly for rapeseed.”

The government plan will lower the cost of protein in feed for French livestock breeders, according to Gautier. Still, soybean growers in France have a hard time competing with U.S. farmers because they’re limited to non-biotech soybeans that produce lower yields, he said.

Protein Content
Soybeans have higher protein content than peas or faba beans, meaning France’s poultry and pig producers will continue to rely on imports to augment their feed rations, he said.

Using protein plants as cover crops can also increase productivity per hectare, for example as an additional crop in corn mono-culture, according to Le Foll. France is the EU’s biggest corn grower.

“We have a large potential in France because we have long seasons,” the minister said. “I don’t know if we’ll reach self-sufficiency, what I know is that we have to increase our autonomy.”

Le Foll announced a 10-year research program to boost protein-crop yields and select varieties. An additional 98 million euros is available to boost production of pulses for fodder by livestock breeders, mainly for cattle, according to the ministry.