By CIARÁN GILES and MONIKA SCISLOWSKA
MADRID (AP) – Farmers in Spain and Poland demonstrated Friday as part of ongoing protests against the European Union’s agricultural policies, threatening soaring production costs, declining profits and conflicts with non-EU countries. It called for measures to counter fair competition.
The move follows similar measures in other EU member states in recent weeks, with 27 countries whose environmental and other policies have become an economic burden, making domestic products more expensive than non-EU imports. Farmers are complaining that the
The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, has made some concessions to farmers in recent weeks, including shelving plans to halve the use of pesticides and other dangerous substances. But the protests grew.
In Poland, farmers angered by imports of cheap grain, milk and other agricultural products, particularly from Ukraine, drove tractors across the country to reduce traffic and block major roads, with some saying, Some held signs that read, “We are ruining the lives of farmers.”
“The protests are directed at the European Union’s policies, the Green Deal, and the policy that allows the unrestricted influx of agricultural products from Ukraine,” Adrian Wawrzyniak, a spokesman for the Union of Individual Farmers’ Solidarity, told The Associated Press. .
He said that in 2023, prices would fall by 40% as storage warehouses were filled with Ukrainian grain. As demand for Polish sugar, milk and meat falls, farmers are holding back on investment.
Farmers also fear that the EU’s Green Deal, which calls for limits on the use of chemicals and green gas emissions, will lead to lower production and incomes. They say the EU’s requirement that 4% of agricultural land be dedicated to biodiversity and landscape protection will also have a negative impact on agricultural production.
Spanish farmers took similar actions during their fourth consecutive day of protests.
In addition to EU policies, Spanish farmers say laws aimed at ensuring wholesalers at large supermarkets pay fair prices for their products are not being enforced as consumer prices soar. claims.
Friday’s protests were centered in the northern cities of Oviedo, Pamplona and Zaragoza, with tractors clogging several city streets and commuter roads. In many places, farmers continued their protests throughout the night.
Groups not affiliated with Spain’s three main agricultural associations called on farmers to move to Madrid at midnight to join Saturday’s protest near the headquarters of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist Party.
Demonstrations are expected to continue in the coming weeks, with a large protest planned to be organized in the capital on February 21st.
Spanish media outlets have reported that many of the protests are linked to conservative and far-right groups.
Police said 20 people were arrested during this week’s protests.
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Monika Scislowska reported from Warsaw, Poland.