Anger of farmers: what to remember from the measures "complementary" announced by the government
Measurements “complementary” to turn the page on the agricultural crisis? The government did a new series of announcementsSaturday April 27, three months after the blockages which shook France. “We are working on concrete measures for our farmers”underlined the Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, during a visit to Pirou (Manche). A news “phase” opens, quickly greeted the majority agricultural unions, the FNSEA and the Young Farmers. But they promise to be of one “extreme vigilance” to monitor the implementation of these measures and the vote this summer on a new agricultural law. Franceinfo summarizes the main news for farmers.
The final version of the Ecophyto pesticide reduction plan will be published by “may’s beginning” with the European indicator, instead of the French used until now. This change in method is denounced by several NGOs who criticize the EU barometer for less clearly differentiating the harmfulness of pesticides. In its battery of new measures, the government also assures that it wants to formalize a principle of “no ban without solution” and support farmers who “want to go out” phytosanitary products.
For farmers’ cash flow, the public investment bank BPIfrance will provide new financing of at least 100 million euros in the form of personal cash loans (up to 75,000 euros) or guarantees for loans from private banks (up to 200,000 euros). The executive also wishes “pprotect against unfair competition and strengthen competitiveness of our agricultural operations thanks to a reduction in the tax on undeveloped land”. He also promises a “improvement in the operation of the precautionary savings allocation”.
The agricultural pension reform will apply “from 2026” on the best 25 years of career, announces the government. At the start of 2023, Parliament indeed adopted a bill so that farmers’ pensions are no longer calculated over their entire career. The agricultural unions have since been waiting for the executive to accelerate its implementation. With the timetable now set, “this reform will require an increase in the contributory effort of farmers to align the level of contributions on that of self-employed workers in reality”the government said on Saturday.
As a goal “to adapt agriculture to climate change, and in particular reservoirs”the government has also committed to accelerating 50 agricultural water storage or irrigation projects by June, and 50 others by the end of 2024. Solutions highly contested by environmental associations and certain farmers, Who see it as a symbol of unreasonable agriculture, giving priority to yields rather than protecting the environment.
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