French Farmers Protest EU Free-Trade Agreements, Citing Unfair Competition
French farmers are up in arms over the European Union’s (EU) free-trade agreements, claiming that they create unfair competition by allowing products from overseas to flood the European market. These trade deals, according to farming unions, are making it increasingly difficult for them to remain financially viable, especially at a time when the EU is urging farmers to adopt more sustainable agricultural practices that often come with higher costs.
The main concern for French farmers is the potential influx of Chilean apples, Brazilian grains, and Canadian beef into the European market, which they believe will undermine their livelihoods. To voice their discontent, French farmers have taken to the country’s motorways, staging protests against rising costs, over-regulation, and free-trade agreements. The EU has signed several free-trade agreements in recent years with the aim of facilitating the movement of goods and services. However, farmers argue that these agreements pose insurmountable challenges.
Elvire Fabry, a senior researcher at the Jacques Delors Institute, a French think-tank dedicated to European affairs, explains that these agreements aim to reduce customs duties and establish maximum quotas for certain agricultural products. They also have a broad regulatory scope to promote European standards for investment, intellectual property protection, geographical indications, and sustainable development standards. This means that products from non-EU countries can enter the European market more easily, creating unfair competition for French farmers.
One particular trade deal causing concern is the draft agreement between the EU and the South American trade bloc Mercosur. This trade partnership between Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Paraguay would create the world’s largest free-trade area, encompassing 780 million people. French farmers are particularly worried about the impact this deal could have on agriculture. The most recent version of the agreement introduces quotas for Mercosur countries to export significant amounts of beef, poultry, and sugar to the EU with little or no customs duties imposed. In exchange, duties on exports from the EU on many “protected designation of origin” (PDO) products would also be lowered. French unions argue that this would open the door to massive imports of products that do not meet the same environmental standards as those originating in Europe, creating unfair competition.
The impact of these free-trade agreements varies across different sectors. Fabry explains that negotiations aim to calibrate the opening up of trade to limit negative impacts on the most exposed sectors while allowing them to benefit from other agreements. However, the agricultural sector experiences a disparity in the benefits. The wine and spirits industry, as well as the dairy industry, stand to gain more than livestock farmers. Free-trade agreements lower or abolish customs duties for many PDO products, benefiting these sectors. However, the impact on meat is less clear-cut, with poultry exports declining as a result of the agreements.
Beyond the agricultural sector, Fabry argues that the debate on free-trade agreements must consider other issues. The EU seeks to secure its supplies of strategic minerals, such as lithium, cobalt, and graphite from Brazil. Germany supports the agreement with Mercosur as it sees it as an outlet for its industrial sectors. However, French farmers believe that agriculture is often used as a bargaining chip in these agreements, with France needing help to produce high-quality lamb, for example.
There is also a question of influence. These agreements allow the EU to promote its environmental standards and negotiate ecological transition with its partners. Marc Fesneau, the French Minister of Agriculture, argues that most agreements have been beneficial to French agriculture and will be even more so if European standards are respected.
As protests continue across France, the government has been trying to reassure agricultural workers about Mercosur. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal acknowledged that France is opposed to the signing of the Mercosur treaty. The Élysée Palace announced that EU negotiations with the South American bloc had been suspended due to France’s opposition. However, discussions are ongoing, and before being adopted, the agreement would need to be passed unanimously by the European Parliament and ratified individually by the 27 EU member states.
French farmers are determined to protect their livelihoods and ensure fair competition in the European market. They argue that free-trade agreements must take into account the specific challenges faced by the agricultural sector and ensure that European standards are upheld. As negotiations continue, the fate of these agreements hangs in the balance, with French farmers standing their ground and demanding a fair deal for their industry.