France drops plan to decrease farmers' diesel disc
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"We will go right into Paris to highlight our rage, our grievances," said farmer Matteo Legrand.
MIXED REACTIONS
Quote:
Attal's pledges received mixed reactions, with some farmers calling them an encouraging start and others saying they were inadequate.
The muscular farming union FNSEA is expected to respond later on Friday.
Earlier on Friday, the finance and farm ministers held emergency talks with food industry officials about fair prices for produce - a "number one priority" for farmers who say they are on the sharp end of the government's drive to lower consumer prices.
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said the government would "double down" on enforcing a law aimed at guaranteeing fair farm-gate prices and vowed to be "pitiless" towards the supermarkets.
Le Maire has previously spent months pressuring food retail giants such as Carrefour and Danone to lower their prices after a phase of high inflation, thereby earning the ire of farmers.
France is the European Union's biggest agricultural producer.
France's protests follow similar action in other European countries, including Germany and Poland, six months ahead of European elections in which the far right - for whom farmers represent a growing constituency - are seen making gains.
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/french-f...024-01-26/