Why are farmers protesting in Europe like India? Description of main issues world News

New Delhi: Thousands of Indian farmers are camping at Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana as part of the “Delhi Chalo” protest march. Not only India but farmers of European Union countries are also protesting. For months, Europe has been seeing waves of protests by farmers who are unhappy with their situation. They have taken to the streets, blocked roads and even surrounded the French capital with tractors. Whereas farmers in India are demanding legal guarantee on Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their crops.

Implementation of Swaminathan Commission recommendations, no hike in pensions, electricity rates, withdrawal of police cases and “justice” for victims of 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence in Uttar Pradesh, restoration of Land Acquisition Act, 2013, and compensation to families Give. The farmers who died during the agitation against the three farm laws in 2020-21 have other demands from farmers in India.

Some of the main reasons behind the dissatisfaction of European farmers are as follows:

Squeeze out low prices, high costs

The biggest challenge facing farmers is the difference between their expenses and earnings. Many of their costs, such as energy, fertilizer and transportation, have increased, especially after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Meanwhile, their prices have dropped, as governments and retailers try to keep food affordable for consumers.

According to Eurostat, the average farm-gate price – the price farmers receive for their products – fell nearly 9% between the third quarter of 2022 and the same period in 2021. Only some products, such as olive oil, which faced shortages, saw an increase.

threat of cheap imports

Another source of frustration for farmers is competition from foreign imports, which they consider unfair and harmful. In parts of Europe, such as Poland, Hungary and Slovakia, farmers have protested against an influx of cheap products from Ukraine, which had benefited from EU trade concessions after Russia’s invasion. The EU imposed some limits on Ukrainian exports, but they were not enough to satisfy farmers.

Farmers in other parts of Europe, such as France, are concerned about the impact of trade deals with other regions, such as Mercosur, the South American bloc. They fear that these deals will expose them to products that do not meet the same standards as EU products, such as sugar, grains and meat.

climate change challenge

Farmers are also feeling the effects of climate change, which is making their work more difficult and unpredictable. Extreme weather events such as drought, floods and wildfires have caused damage to crops and livestock in many countries. For example, in Spain, some reservoirs are only 4% full, while in Greece, fires destroyed about 20% of annual agricultural income in 2023.

Farmers in southern Europe have not protested much so far, but the situation could change if their governments impose water restrictions or other measures to deal with the crisis.

pressure of EU regulations

Farmers also complain that they are overly regulated by the EU, which imposes rules and standards that they find burdensome and unrealistic. They feel caught between the conflicting demands of providing affordable food and protecting the environment.

The EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which provides €55 billion a year in subsidies to farmers, traditionally favors large-scale and intensive farming. This has led to consolidation and concentration in the sector, with the number of farms falling by more than a third since 2005. Many small and medium-sized farms struggle to survive in a low-margin market, while many larger farms are deeply in debt.

The EU recently adopted a new strategy, called “farm to fork,” as part of its ambitious green deal to make the bloc carbon-neutral by 2050. The strategy aims to make farming more sustainable and healthy by setting goals. Reduce pesticides by 50%, fertilizers by 20%, and increase organic farming on 25% of land by 2030.

However, many farmers are skeptical and concerned about the impact of these targets on their productivity and competitiveness. They argue that they need more support and encouragement for change, and that they should not be penalized for their contributions to food security and rural development.