AN agricultural expert has spoken out about the potential impact farmers' protests in the EU could have on the UK.
As part of the new episode of The National's Our Friends in Europe podcast, columnist Assa Samake-Roman spoke with the Bosch foundation’s Dr Louisa Prause.
The latest podcast focuses on the recent agriculture protests which have swept Europe including in the likes of France, Germany, Spain and Poland.
Prause is a senior expert in climate change with the Robert Bosch Stiftung foundation and her work focuses on the topics including the socio-ecological transformations of the agro-food system.
Across Europe, farmers have said they are facing falling sale prices, rising costs, heavy regulation and are also suffering from the impact of climate change.
Last month, hundreds of tractors made their way into Brussels city centre and farmers threw eggs at the European parliament.
Asked how the issues facing farmers in the EU might affect those who are not inside it, including in Scotland, Prause said: “It’s an interesting question. My feeling is that the issues you’re struggling with in the UK are probably similar.
“I’m not too familiar with the setup of agriculture in the UK but my feeling is the issues we are seeing, the grievances of farmers we are seeing, it’s not just European issues.
“If we look at other countries, there are similar issues and challenges and I’m pretty sure farming in the UK faces the challenge of ecological transformation.”
Farmers’ costs, particularly for energy, fertiliser and transport, have risen in a number of EU countries, particularly since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Others have expressed anger at cheaper imports coming in from further afield while extreme weather events are also hitting production.
For example, wildfires wiped out around 20% of Greek annual farm revenue last year.
Asked specifically how the protests themselves might have an impact, Prause said: “I’m not sure if there will be a direct impact of the farmer protests on agriculture or even consumers in the UK.
“So far I don’t think there’s necessarily been an impact on prices or on how much we produce so I don’t think there is a direct impact right now but of course both agriculture sectors are interwoven.
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“There’s still a lot of food import/export between the UK and Europe so of course you also can’t really say that what’s happening in Europe will never effect the UK.
“But I kind of feel like we will see this long-term. And I think we will see this long-term once the new European commission will come in after the next election has also given a pass forward of how we’re going to continue with the support, the subsidies but also the ecological transformation in the agriculture sector.”
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