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Farmers In France Protest

V

Vicinalvictor

Well-known Member
PARIS (REUTERS) - French farmers are protesting against a squeeze on earnings they say is suffocating the
agricultural industry.

Farming union representatives have this week been in talks with retail giants. The unions say farmers are
not earning enough to cover costs. Retailers argue consumers cannot afford to pay more.
Tractors on parade
 
(quoted from post at 04:53:37 04/06/21) PARIS (REUTERS) - French farmers are protesting against a squeeze on earnings they say is suffocating the
agricultural industry.

The protest looked well-organized, spreading manure was a nice touch. Don't know about dumping trash, seemed excessive, will just come off as being overly antagonistic.

Clermont-Ferrand is a really beautiful region and is where most chestnuts there are grown (I know this because I happen to love chestnuts). Also, headquarters and factory for Michelin Tires is there.

I hope the protests result in some tangible results for the farmers, thanks for sharing the news.

Gerrit
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If I am not mistaken the government makes them buy the fancy new tractors to meet emissions requirements.

Of course farming has tended to be a bit more profitable over there. Less land means less product means higher prices means more profit for the farmers which they can invest into newer equipment.

What I don't understand is why is the attitude among farmers that they HAVE to suck hind udder protuberance ALL THE TIME? Why should a farmer have to suffer and struggle with old junk equipment just so they can pay the bills? Don't they work every bit as hard if not harder than any other hard working person? Why should they not get paid a fair price for their product? Middlemen and retailers have been taking advantage of farmers for hundreds of years, because farmers are conditioned to think that this is the way it's supposed to be.
 
Over production creates a flood of farm commodities on the market so the prices remain low.No company that buys corn,wheat,cattle,etc to process is going to
pay more than the the going price.Working hard guarantees a person nothing,working smart does and keeping on over producing year after year expecting a different result isn't working smart.Consumer tastes are changing and ultimately what consumers want and spend their money on will be what sells and what money can be made producing it.Farmers cannot force consumers to want or accept what they produce just that simple.As always the people that spend the money determines the market.So it means farmers and farming will have to change just like any other industry has to do.
 
Yet the food processing companies like Tyson are making money hand over fist on the scamdemic because theres a food shortage
 
No shortage of food as a raw material just a shortage of processor production and if companies like Tyson are smart,which they are, they will continue to keep the products in short supply.By doing that they get more for their finished products and pay less for the raw materials,simple economics.
 
My thoughts, my opinion. I do not think the average citizen can understand the amount of capital required to operate a farm. Driving $250,000.00 tractor through a village/town , while most people probably dont have that much investment in their homes, is hardly going to draw sympathy. There is a overwhelming disconnect between consumers and farmers. In the population, rule of thumb, only 1.5% of people are farmers. So farmers must be rich !! And elite group, with tremendous wealth, that is what these kinds of images show folks watching on the news. Regulations to protect food quality, water quality, animal welfare, air quality and climate change are all very real cost to farmers, but consumers dont see, know or understand these things. They want cheap , low cost food, if the highest quality. Grown in the most humane and organic ways possible. And it seems obvious to the casual observer that these multi millionaire farmers are getting more than their fair share of the food dollar. This kind of action gets attention, but does it send the right message??
Let the food prices rise to meet the cost of production, and cut out direct and indirect and decoupled subsidies. There would be more farmers overnight and smaller farms, and less new fancy equipment, and without government money. What would the government use to bait farmers into conformity? Following a constant flow of me regulations. And the population would have less money to spend on entertainment, fashion , cell phones, fine automobiles or vacations. Yes, let them pay the true cost of their food, and let the farmers stop over production!! Just my thoughts, we all have different view points.
 
This morning I made pancakes. The price of wheat is around $6.11/bu. A bushel is equal to 149 cups. So $6.11 / 149 cups = $0.04 per cup. So if the price of wheat doubled with all other costs (marketing, packaging, processing, etc.) remaining the same, I would have paid $0.08 for the flour in my pancakes. I think almost everybody can afford that increase. I know its not that simple, there are other factors such as efficiencies and difference in weight of flour vs grain, etc. But for the sake of discussion, my point is the price of grain seems to me to have very little to do with the cost of food in the grocery store. The real increases in food comes from the middle men. As a kid I would see prices go up on the farm and up at the grocery store. But when prices went down on the farm, the prices didnt necessarily follow in the store. MHO is that if you doubled farm prices, it should not double, or anywhere close to to double, the price in the grocery store.
 
(quoted from post at 10:22:45 04/06/21) This morning I made pancakes. The price of wheat is around $6.11/bu. A bushel is equal to 149 cups. So $6.11 / 149 cups = $0.04 per cup. So if the price of wheat doubled with all other costs (marketing, packaging, processing, etc.) remaining the same, I would have paid $0.08 for the flour in my pancakes. I think almost everybody can afford that increase. I know its not that simple, there are other factors such as efficiencies and difference in weight of flour vs grain, etc. But for the sake of discussion, my point is the price of grain seems to me to have very little to do with the cost of food in the grocery store. The real increases in food comes from the middle men. As a kid I would see prices go up on the farm and up at the grocery store. But when prices went down on the farm, the prices didnt necessarily follow in the store. MHO is that if you doubled farm prices, it should not double, or anywhere close to to double, the price in the grocery store.
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That's because and precisely why subsidies exist for crops. They are put in place to keep food prices affordable for the consumer. What we pay for food doesn't necessarily reflect market prices for grains and crops. If subsidies went away, food prices would change quite a bit.
 
I really don't believe food prices would change much if US crop subsidies disappeared. Farmers are naturally over optimistic: when grain or livestock prices go up someone always bids up the prices of inputs back to near break-even profitability; when prices fall farmers increase production to try to maintain their income. I don't see that changing as long as everyone and his brother wants to farm because you can't loose money farming.

40 Percent of the US corn crop goes into ethanol, that is more than now goes into food production. IMHO, crop subsidies are now for stabilizing farm income and to avoid another 1980's style farm crisis. Livestock producers don't get the same level of support. Crop subsidies actual work against livestock producers.
 
(quoted from post at 11:05:03 04/06/21) No shortage of food as a raw material just a shortage of processor production and if companies like Tyson are smart,which they are, they will continue to keep the products in short supply.By doing that they get more for their finished products and pay less for the raw materials,simple economics.
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Same for lumber, there is no shortage when the sawmills are over flowing with product.
 
"
"What I don't understand is why is the attitude among farmers that they HAVE to suck hind udder protuberance ALL THE TIME? Why should a farmer have to suffer and struggle with old junk equipment just so they can pay the bills? Don't they work every bit as hard if not harder than any other hard working person? Why should they not get paid a fair price for their product? Middlemen and retailers have been taking advantage of farmers for hundreds of years, because farmers are conditioned to think that this is the way it's supposed to be."

Because farmers can not stick to a price point for their wares.
No matter what any group of farmers (union, etc.) decide what their sell price shall be, there are enough farmers that will sell for less. Not enough farmers willing to hold back on any agreed upon price.
 
(quoted from post at 07:05:03 04/06/21) No shortage of food as a raw material just a shortage of processor production and if companies like Tyson are smart,which they are, they will continue to keep the products in short supply.By doing that they get more for their finished products and pay less for the raw materials,simple economics.
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Except, like farmers, they will not be able to agree on a course of action, and sooner rather than later, one of them will haul off and stab the rest in the back. The whole scheme will fall apart and the old race to the bottom will resume as before.
 
Except, like farmers, they will not be able to agree on a course of action, and sooner rather than later, one of them will haul off and stab the rest in the back. The whole scheme will fall apart and the old race to the bottom will resume as before.
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That could be possible if there were numerous players involved. But there aren't. Tyson, Cargill, and JBS are the meat industry. You think they don't work together?
 
(quoted from post at 12:10:29 04/06/21)
Except, like farmers, they will not be able to agree on a course of action, and sooner rather than later, one of them will haul off and stab the rest in the back. The whole scheme will fall apart and the old race to the bottom will resume as before.
Click to expand...
That could be possible if there were numerous players involved. But there aren't. Tyson, Cargill, and JBS are the meat industry. You think they don't work together?
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Nope. If that's truly all there are, they all want to be THE meat industry. Alone. Nobody to have to "cooperate" with. There isn't a one among them that wouldn't hesitate to turn on the others.
 
Double, you kinda hit a sore nerve on me today! I have spent the morning and mid day on the phone and driving around town trying to do business, and no one is
working any more. Ive gotten tired of it.

Insurance co isnt open, works from home, call and get an auto system that eventually dumps me into a recording that no one is around.

The vet doesnt allow anyone inside, so cant stop there just drive by.

The grocery store deli started remodeling this morning, no food.

The three fast food places are drive through only, Im tired of sitting in thr pickup in the parking lot eating out of a bag with my legs crossed, its not like fast food would
be fine dining to begin with....

The family restaurant is reduced to 4 days a week open, closed today.

Couple other places I had no luck today.

Im getting tired of me working the past year like normal, and everyone else not even available. I have to try to work around thrm.

My vent for the day.

Paul
 
(quoted from post at 15:28:04 04/06/21) Double, you kinda hit a sore nerve on me today! I have spent the morning and mid day on the phone and driving around town trying to do business, and no one is
working any more. Ive gotten tired of it.

Insurance co isnt open, works from home, call and get an auto system that eventually dumps me into a recording that no one is around.

The vet doesnt allow anyone inside, so cant stop there just drive by.

The grocery store deli started remodeling this morning, no food.

The three fast food places are drive through only, Im tired of sitting in thr pickup in the parking lot eating out of a bag with my legs crossed, its not like fast food would
be fine dining to begin with....

The family restaurant is reduced to 4 days a week open, closed today.

Couple other places I had no luck today.

Im getting tired of me working the past year like normal, and everyone else not even available. I have to try to work around thrm.

My vent for the day.

Paul
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aul, I'm sorry that you missed the government hand out (I mean tax payer hand out) that would allow you to sit around doing nothing while still getting a check. :(
Why go to work? But you will be well on your way to being controlled!
 
$172.00 per acre is what it cost me today to put fertilizer in the fields just to get started, time I'm done
it could be over $300.00 per acre. Yes, Farmers deserve a fair price for their product, and should be able
to afford decent equipment to work with.
 
(quoted from post at 17:31:01 04/06/21) $172.00 per acre is what it cost me today to put fertilizer in the fields just to get started, time I'm done
it could be over $300.00 per acre. Yes, Farmers deserve a fair price for their product, and should be able
to afford decent equipment to work with.
Click to expand...
won't disagree with you, but supply & demand still set prices,............. when there isn't government interference. As for the video of demonstration, I do not see how that is helpful!
 
Deserve? From who or what? Farming just like any business the market needs to be researched and then the producer figures their costs against what price they can get for their product,if the numbers don't work then it shouldn't produced.Every farm situation is different,the same price for a product can make one farmer go broke while another farmer will be made a profit.
 
Not going to happen if you sell or quit renting land you farm there will be a line of farmers or would be farmers just waiting to take over where you left off.
 
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