It’s laborious to grasp the place of the FNSEA, which known as for a gathering on the capital’s headquarters on Monday, when that its leaders are near the federal government. Like Arnaud Rousseau, head of a multinational meals firm…
The Prime Minister’s soothing phrases over a straw bale on Friday haven’t calmed the anger of all farmers. The bulk unions, FNSEA and JA, have introduced “a siege of the capital” for this Monday, January 29, 2024 “for an indefinite interval”, in accordance with their press launch. “All main roads resulting in the capital will likely be minimize off by farmers”, they are saying.
Will the Rungis market be blocked?
Following a name from the Coordination rurale du Lot-et-Garonne, different indignant farmers have determined to dam Rungis, the most important agricultural market in France and even Europe. This prompted a right away response from Franck Delvau, President of the UMIH (Union des métiers de la restauration), for whom the blockade of Rungis would jeopardize 30,000 eating places, bars and cafés within the Ile-de-France area.
To not point out the large visitors jams that will paralyze the capital and create indescribable chaos. Gabriel Attal’s measures have lifted a few of the roadblocks. However not all. As a result of not all farmers have the identical pursuits.
Requirements and unfair competitors
French agriculture is underneath the twin tutelage of France and Brussels, says Medef President Patrick Martin, who’s imposing ever extra requirements and constraints on French farmers. On the identical time, France imports 60% of what it consumes, notably fruit and beef, however not completely. But imported merchandise, typically from European international locations, don’t essentially meet the identical well being and environmental necessities as these imposed on French farmers (Spanish olive oil, Brazilian or Ukrainian rooster, meat from Australia, and so forth.).
Substantial CAP support
In an try to calm issues down, the pinnacle of the FNSEA requested the federal government to reply to 100 or so calls for, together with the fast cost of European subsidies, due since October, and the easing of environmental requirements. These final two calls for should not impartial on the a part of the pinnacle of the highly effective farmers’ union, who will likely be elected within the spring of 2023. Arnaud Rousseau, 50, farms 700 hectares of rapeseed, sunflower, wheat and beet together with his spouse in Trocy-en-Multien, Seine-et-Marne, a commune the place he has been mayor since 2014. Consequently, he advantages from substantial CAP subsidies.
Chairman of the Avril holding firm
Arnaud Rousseau, a former reservist and graduate of the European Enterprise Faculty in Paris, started his profession on the monetary markets in agricultural commodities brokerage and buying and selling, earlier than organising on the household farm in 2002.
However the farmer from Seine-et-Marne can be a shrewd businessman on the head of 5 corporations and a holding firm. Avril, certainly one of Europe’s strongest agri-food teams with gross sales of €9 billion by 2021, doubles as an funding firm. “In February 2017, Arnaud Rousseau grew to become President of the French Federation of Oilseed and Protein Producers (FOP). He’s additionally appointed Chairman of the Board of Avril Gestion, following the sudden loss of life of Xavier Beulin. He thus turns into the primary consultant of agricultural shareholders inside Avril, the commercial and monetary group of the French vegetable oil and protein sector.
Briefly, a giant CAC 40 boss. A far cry from the goat farmer of Larzac…
Le président de la FNSEA est aussi président du groupe Avril.
Vous comprenez que ce pauvre homme se préoccupe jour et nuit des agriculteurs…
Remark ces derniers peuvent-ils se laisser trimbaler par un tel personnage ?
Un mystère… pic.twitter.com/bWpFrpnBcJ— 🇫🇷Jacques Clostermann (@jaclostermann) January 28, 2024
