French farmers protest at Paris agriculture fair
Angry French farmers made a dramatic entrance into a major Paris farm fair on Saturday, just before a visit from President Emmanuel Macron, voicing their frustrations over increasing costs, bureaucratic red tape, and environmental regulations.
Confronted by a sizable police presence at the trade fair, the farmers loudly booed and called for Macron's resignation, directing expletives at the French president.
Macron, who had planned to have breakfast with leaders of the French farmers' unions, intended to tour the trade fair's alleys afterward. However, he scrapped plans for a debate at the farm fair with farmers, food processors, and retailers scheduled for Saturday, after farmers' unions indicated they would not participate.
The protest is part of a broader wave of demonstrations by farmers across Europe, who are demanding higher incomes, and reduced bureaucracy, and are protesting against the unfair competition posed by the importation of cheap Ukrainian goods, aimed at supporting Kyiv's war effort.
