Farmers increasingly on the streets across Europe

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - Protests by agricultural producers are becoming increasingly frequent and intense across Europe. This sector was the first to be hit by the crisis that has engulfed the entire world, but also by the limitations related to the European Union's "Green Deal".

The disruptions affecting farmers are diverse. The biggest problems are low purchase prices and high production costs, primarily for fertilizers and fuel. An increasing part of the population supports farmers, reports Agroklub.

Poles Protested in Warsaw

In April, Polish farmers, led by Agrounia, a national farmers' organization, protested in front of the Polish ministry building, bringing over a ton of apples. They highlighted the problem of purchasing this fruit, which has led many to bankruptcy or to abandon their farms.

Organized by Agrounia, grain was recently spilled in front of the office of Jacek Sasin, the Deputy Prime Minister. The excessive amount of Ukrainian grain that entered the Polish market caused an artificial crisis.

A large farmers' protest was held in Warsaw on July 7, expressing dissatisfaction with policies that do not support peasant producers and do not fight inflation, but instead impose increasing margins and devalue domestic agricultural products.

Grains in Poland have the lowest price in the entire European Union, and no one wants to buy grain from the new harvest. Farmers have no way to sell their crops and will not have the financial means for the next sowing.

It's Getting Harder to Be a Farmer in Spain

Farmers have again blocked roads, mostly in the Andalusia region. The protests are directed against high fuel and basic food prices. In March, 150,000 farmers from all over Spain protested.

By June, inflation was above ten percent. Andalusian farmers are protesting primarily due to inflation and the enormous increase in energy and food prices. Dressed in yellow vests, they took to the highways with their tractors.

The Netherlands on its Feet

The government is trying to contain and stop the protests that have shaken the Netherlands in the past few days. A series of laws attempt to implement regulations on nitrogen and ammonia emissions. This means reducing the number of livestock on farms, but a large number of livestock farmers, especially near nature reserves, would have to completely cease agricultural production. The government has prepared money for buyouts, but farmers are not giving up the fight for their properties.

The protests are intensifying day by day. Livestock farmers began expressing their dissatisfaction by locking cows in barns, protesting grazing permits. This was followed by blockades of highways and then distribution centers. There were also intrusions onto the property of Minister Christianne van der Wal, as well as police exceeding their authority and shooting at a farmer in a tractor.

Footage showed that such an intervention occurred without reason. Three tractor drivers were arrested, one of whom was a sixteen-year-old boy whose head was grazed by a bullet. Farmers protested in front of the prison. The police later released the three, but there were new arrests.

Virginijus Sinkevičius, the European Commissioner for Environment, said in a debate in Strasbourg on European biodiversity goals that nitrogen reduction measures should have been taken earlier, and there certainly would not have been such a drastic reaction from farmers. He emphasized the importance of implementing nature protection measures and cited examples from Champagne.

Among Dutch farmers, there are rumors that they are standing in the way of EU plans for mass migration, which is part of the "UN Population Replacement Plan," and that this is the reason for the confiscation of their properties.

Farmers from Germany joined them. Together, they blocked a roundabout in Heerenberg near the border.