What to Know About the Farmer Protests in Europe
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Belgian Prime Minister Aleksander De Croo and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte met with farmers representatives in Brussels on Thursday, following Europe-wide demonstrations of agricultural workers angry about the impact of low wages, heavy regulation and the influx of cheap imports.
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00:00 We had a very constructive, a very good meeting.
00:04 We listened to the main complaints and worries and concerns of the farmers
00:10 and we discussed some of the short-term measures we have already taken,
00:14 for example concerning fallow land, but also the mid- and long-term concepts.
00:19 We are working together with the farmers in the strategic dialogue for the future
00:24 of agriculture in the European Union. So this was a very good meeting.
00:28 It's very important that we find common solutions.
00:31 We share the goals, for example the protection of nature,
00:34 because we all live in nature and with nature,
00:36 and the best ambassadors for nature are the farmers themselves.
00:40 And important is for us that we find common solutions how to reach the goal,
00:45 for example to protect the environment and nature.
00:48 What can be additional measures?
00:51 Now we've just taken measures.
00:54 An additional measure will be that we will propose how to reduce the bureaucratic burdens,
01:00 and this will be under the Belgian presidency discussed in the agricultural council.
01:05 Well, I think that it was a really honest discussion for the first time.
01:09 I think that something changed in the European Commission.
01:13 I think obviously elections are coming,
01:15 but I feel a real honest conversation with the Prime Minister and the President of the Commission.
01:21 She understood very precisely that we are suffering a lot of red tape.
01:27 We need to stop the bureaucracy. That's a real clear point.
01:31 And also she understood the necessity to put mirror clauses in every single trade agreement,
01:36 for instance in Mercosur.
01:38 And the last point that I think that it's super useful to mention,
01:41 she's really convinced about the necessity to approve new breeding techniques,
01:45 new genetic techniques to achieve the goals of the Green Deal.
01:50 Well, I think that it's a normal demonstration that we are, when we are a farmer,
01:55 you have a lot of coal because we are looking for some fire,
02:00 but I don't think that it's a violent deal.
02:02 If you've been there, you see also people eating, enjoying, speaking, even dancing.
02:08 So our main goal is to make a pacific demonstration.
02:12 So I think we had a good and a necessary meeting.
02:15 I think that a lot of the concerns that the agricultural world has are legitimate.
02:21 And what we see is they want to be a partner in the climate transition.
02:26 They've done a lot of efforts up to now,
02:28 but obviously they're confronted with what you could call a lasagna of measures
02:32 that all come at the same time.
02:34 I think the European Commission has shown their capability of taking rapid decisions.
02:39 The rule on 4% fallow land was being pushed in the future.
02:46 There is now also a clear timeline on how to work on administrative burden.
02:50 That will be a topic that the Belgian presidency will take up
02:53 by the Agri-Food, by the Agri-Meat, Agri-Council of February 26th.
03:00 There's also a longer term discussion on the economic model.
03:03 Our agricultural world is very productive.
03:08 It's the most sustainable in the world.
03:10 It delivers quality products.
03:12 We'll also need a pricing revenue that corresponds to that.
03:16 It is a complicated discussion.
03:18 But it is a discussion that we definitely need to have.
03:20 This was the first meeting.
03:22 We've been very clear that we want to work with the agricultural world
03:26 and not talk about the agricultural world.
03:28 And we'll continue doing that.
03:30 I'm going to listen to their requests.
03:32 We're going to see what we can do, in a reasonable way.
03:35 But I have a lot of understanding for their requests.
03:39 We're going to see how we can concretise that.