Farmers have many grievances, from poorly regulated cheap imports to overbearing environmental regulations, but a series of bureaucratic practices almost immediately angered them all.
advertisementOn his farm in northern Belgium, not far from hundreds of tractors blocking Europe’s second-largest port to demand respect for farmers, Bert Dossey turns on his computer. Ta.
He waits for a government program to load a map of his land, but next to it is an empty digital box asking him to fill in statistics about fertilizers. Insecticideproduction and harvesting.
“They are also using satellite imagery and even drones to monitor us,” Dochy said. His complaints highlight a huge gap in trust and understanding among European farmers.
They have come to think of themselves as a nanny state, combing every barnyard and analyzing how every drop of liquid fertilizer is being applied.
In recent weeks, tens of thousands of farmers and their supporters have taken part in protests across Europe, from Greece to Ireland and the Baltic States to Spain. It was enough to put the plight of farmers on front pages across the continent and make it an important theme. EU parliamentary elections in June.
Farmers say capricious regulations are unacceptable
Farmers have always lived according to the whims of nature. However, capricious regulations are unacceptable.
“That’s what creates this level of mistrust. It’s like living in Russia or China instead of the fertile plains of Flanders in northwest Belgium,” he said.
Many complaints have been received from farmers. But the array of bureaucracy, from poorly regulated cheap imports to overbearing environmental regulations, almost immediately made everyone uncomfortable. But the EU is also the hand that feeds them, with around 47 billion euros each year being channeled into a huge network of programs related to agriculture in various forms.
Instead, farmers have to cover their own expenses, which are becoming increasingly difficult.
Mr. Dochy, 51, is a far cry from the angry militant farmers who set fire to hay bales and sprayed government buildings with fertilizer. His office, which is as essential to the life of today’s EU farmers as the barn, bears a warning: “God is watching – no cursing here.”
He comes from generations of traditional farmers, conservative Christian Democrats who have traditionally been the backbone of European agriculture.
Once Dossie has finished processing 900 pigs and about 30 hectares of corn or potatoes, he swaps his blue overalls and rubber boots for a three-piece suit. He is also the mayor of Redeghem, a farming community 120 kilometers west of Brussels. This is where much of the EU’s hated agricultural bureaucracy comes from.
“Even the slightest mistake can result in a fine.”
Over his morning coffee, his father, France Docy, 82, recalled how, as a young man, he would spend hours harvesting beets by hand through the cold, thick soil. Still, with 2024 bookkeeping, he says, “I would have been kicked out of the farm a long time ago.”
He sees how his son has to register his arrival. artificial fertilizer within 7 days. “Of course, it has to be done even during the busiest times on the field,” Bart Dossey said.
“And we have to record exactly how each small piece of land is being sprayed, how many kilometers and how,” he says, pointing to several thick folders in his office. He explained as he examined it.
“And even the slightest mistake results in a fine.”
Dossie said he often hears from the town’s dozens of farmers that a single wrong click of the mouse can result in fines amounting to hundreds of euros. The same story comes up in every peasant protest – Italian, French, Dutch, Spanish.
Farmers blocked roads around the Belgian port of Antwerp, Europe’s second largest, for almost a day on Tuesday. The unrest followed earlier protests at the port 60 kilometers (60 kilometers) north of Ledegem and other parts of the country.they have cost tens of millions of euros Transport delays, product damage, etc.
advertisementWhat really frustrates Dossie is when bureaucratic deadlines are imposed, such as having to sow certain crops or green fertilizers by September 1st.
“If there is incredible rain in the last week of August, you will not be able to sow properly. But you still have an obligation to sow, otherwise you will be fined. “It’s possible,” he said.
“In fact, farmers live in a conflict between a government that wants to be responsible and nature, which is still responsible. And you can’t actually change anything about nature,” Dossie said. .
Rules also change rapidly, making it increasingly difficult to invest wisely, Dossey said. In northern Belgium, these issues center around agricultural nitrate pollution and the rules to contain it.
Too far or not far enough?
Years of political wrangling and court challenges have left no clear picture of what the future holds.
advertisementBut EU officials say stricter regulations are needed after decades of lax regulations. In the past, soil pollution was widespread due to excessive fertilizer dumping into gutters and rivers. The stench that permeated parts of Dochy was so bad that several decades ago the department was popularly renamed Mesto (Fertilizer) Flanders instead of West Flanders.
Farms needed to thoroughly check whether they were spending their subsidies correctly.
But now the pendulum has swung the other way. As a result of building up more and more complex rules over the years, Politicians realize they may have gone too far.
“Our farmers continue to face major challenges,” European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic told EU parliamentarians this week, making sure to mention “administrative requirements”.
“We hear farmers loud and clear. We know your struggle. And politicians need to do better!” Sefcovic said.
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