In matters of agriculture even more than in other areas, Europe has a good back.
Brussels, with its excessive environmental rules and standards, is said to be responsible for most of farmers' ills.
The rulers themselves do not hesitate to blame this bureaucracy.
In reality, France has room for maneuver regarding community policy.
Firstly because it is the leading agricultural power in the EU, and the CAP – common European policy – alone accounts for a third of the European budget: 53.7 billion euros for the 2023-2027 budget.
Then, because Paris, wanting to be a good European student, tends to further tighten European directives, for example on the banning of certain insecticides.
An action called “overtransposition”.
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In the vast majority of cases, however, France acts in Brussels as a fervent defender of its agriculture.
So she fought a few years ago to maintain the CAP, and therefore financial support for farmers, at its usual level.
The “frugal countries” concerned about budgetary rigor (Scandinavia, Austria, the Netherlands, etc.) wanted to reduce this spending.
Emmanuel Macron had made an agreement with Chancellor Merkel, then in power in Germany, to save the CAP.
“Because of its weight, France has a knock-on effect on its partners,” argues a source close to the Élysée.
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