2023-11-11 17:01:00
“Hypocritical state”: the slogan is everywhere, on tractors and on banners in recent demonstrations by farmers, who defend aid intended to support the ecological transition of their farms.
“If we want to make progress on the environment, we have to do what we need to do!”, asserts Didier Lucas, vice-president of the Chamber of Agriculture of Brittany, addressing the ministry.
But there you have it: more farmers than expected want to change their practices and ask to benefit from this aid for environmental protection and the funding from the State, which was committed, does not follow.
According to an estimate from Régions de France, the regional institution, “between 250 and 300 million euros are missing nationally”, not budgeted by the State.
A new demonstration by farmers, with goats and sheep, is planned for Tuesday in Paris to try to make themselves heard by the government. With one slogan: denounce the “hypocrisy of the State”.
These measures, known under the acronym Maec (agro-environmental and climatic measures), “bring together all the farmers. The State cannot resign from its commitments. We demand respect for the contract”, explains Rémi Goupil, breeder in Taden (Côtes d’Armor), in front of one of his hedges made up of oaks, hazel trees, hawthorn, gorse and cherry trees.
“Hedges are good for the soil, for animals, plants and biodiversity in general,” insists the 39-year-old man.
In addition to hedges, the Maec also encourage grass-fed farming, animal welfare and the preservation of ancient breeds threatened with extinction.
“It is a key tool for the implementation of the agro-ecological project for France,” assures the Ministry of Agriculture on its website.
Funded mainly by the European Union through the CAP (Common Agricultural Policy), this Maec aid compensates for the “additional costs and shortfalls resulting from the obligations to be respected” in terms of ecology, according to the ministry.
– “Not a priority” –
“An outdoor cow fed on grass will produce less milk than another, locked up and fed on corn”, which also consumes water and pesticides, observes Rémi Goupil. A production differential supposed to be compensated by this aid.
Despite all his efforts and his desire to continue on this path, Rémi Goupil fears losing the Maec aid from which he has benefited until now. “On my farm, it represents around 16,000 euros per year”, or the cost of his part-time employee.
For Brittany, according to sources, between 45 and 60 million euros are missing. The situation is the same in other regions. In New Aquitaine, “Maec requests reach 340 million euros while the available envelope is 115 million”, according to the Confédération Paysanne.
Several dozen parliamentarians contacted the government: “It is not possible to leave farms on the side of the road (….) committed and voluntary in the agro-ecological transition due to under-budgeting of funding,” they wrote to him.
An amendment to this effect was even adopted Tuesday evening in the National Assembly. But it has become obsolete since the government once once more used 49.3 to pass the finance bill (PLF) for 2024 at first reading without a vote.
“There is a big gap between speeches and practice (…) It is not a priority for the government,” regrets Fabrice Charles, organic dairy farmer in Quessoy, near Saint-Brieuc and president of Cedapa, an association which encourages farmers to move towards autonomy on their farm.
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