Slovak farmers will join the protests organized in several European countries in recent weeks, according to the Slovak Agriculture and Food Chamber (SPPK). They see the protests as a consequence of the EU’s “green fanaticism”, which is causing great damage to European agriculture.
In recent weeks, there have been numerous protests by European farmers over the removal of tax breaks on diesel, increased fuel costs and general EU environmental legislation. Tractors have blocked major roads in Germany, France and Belgium.
Slovak farmers are now joining the EU protests, Euractiv reports. The SPPK says that Brussels is the root cause of the protests, along with its green policies, but also problems stemming from the mismanagement of the Slovak Agricultural Paying Agency (APA) and the National Strategic Plan for Agricultural Policy.
It points out that for the first time in the 19-year history of EU membership, Slovakia has failed to deliver promised financial support to farmers.
The European Commission last week agreed to some of the farmers’ demands, but the SPPK says this is not enough, calling it a “pseudo accommodation”.
– Farmers protesting, burning tires, pouring manure on administrative centers in half of the EU countries – this is just a consequence of what is often caused by green fanaticism in the EU, says SPPK president Emil Macho.
“Europe can feed itself”
Macho also points to the many farmers who are no longer working in the fields, but are forced to sit in offices and try to “fill in the EU’s often meaningless administrative forms”.
– In addition, thousands of tons of crops, meat and poultry are shipped through ports and imported into Europe from the other side of the world. That is why EU farmers are blocking the ports: they want to show that Europe can feed itself and still export, he says.
Macho says Slovak farmers are ready to protest and will do so in coordination with farmers from neighboring countries. He also warns that they will bring “hundreds of tractors” to the streets, similar to the other protests.
