BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Angered by rising costs, the EU’s environmental policies and plans to import cheap food, Belgian farmers blocked access roads to the Zeebrugge container port on Tuesday.
Farmers organizing the protests told Reuters they planned to ban access to the country’s second-largest North Sea port for at least 36 hours. They said the port was targeted because they feel it receives financial support at the expense of farmers.
A Port Authority spokeswoman said protesters blocked five roads open to trucks, but cars were allowed to pass. He said it was not yet clear how port operations would be affected and the port was in contact with organizers indirectly through the police.
The Alchemin Borensindicat (ABS, General Farmers’ Syndicate) union called on its members to take part in the protests.
Mark Wolfrank, head of policy at the ABS, said: “Farmers are desperate, really desperate. We have been warning the government for years that this was going to happen.” .
Mr Wulfranke called on policymakers to ensure that food prices reflect the additional costs that European farmers face in complying with Europe’s rising environmental standards.
“We want respect from governments, European governments. The only way to show respect is to have policies that are farmer-friendly and food-friendly. We need the right prices,” he told Reuters.
The Belgian protests have been fueled by similar actions in France. In France, farmers have set up dozens of barricades around Paris, blocking traffic and putting pressure on the government.
Belgian farmers also disrupted traffic during Tuesday morning’s rush hour. According to media, one of the blockades was near the Dutch border on the E19 motorway.
Prime Minister Alexander Decroo is scheduled to meet with farmers’ groups on Tuesday.
“It’s important that their voices are heard,” Decroo told reporters of the challenges facing farmers.
He said Belgium, which currently holds the six-month EU Council Presidency, would discuss a number of European agricultural regulations with the European Commission.
A group of farmers blocking off a square in central Brussels with tractors said they would remain in place at least until EU government leaders meet in the city on Thursday.
“We’re asking them to review the law,” said farmer Nicholas Fryers, who took part in the protest. “They talk about it being more environmentally friendly, but if that were to happen, there would be land that would no longer be cultivated, which is difficult enough as it is.”
The European Commission on Thursday appeared poised to propose some policy changes in response, proposing an exemption from rules requiring farmers to leave part of their land fallow when applying for EU subsidies. .
Regulations on fallow land were part of the grievances that led to protests in France and elsewhere in recent weeks.
(Reporting by Tashilo Hummel, Geert de Clerc and Kate Abnett; Writing by Charlotte van Campenhout and Kate Abnett; Editing by Sharon Singleton, Christina Fincher and Nick McPhee)
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