https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed French farmers’ anger remains high, despite Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu’s promise of “emergency legislation before the summer”, and blockades continue on Wednesday, including at Toulouse airport. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260114/protesting-farmers-leave-paris-but-more-block-toulouse-airport Wed, 14 Jan 2026 11:20:38 +0100 protesting-farmers-leave-paris-but-more-block-toulouse-airport A French farming union has called for 'blockades across France' in an increasingly bitter dispute with the government over the culling of infected cattle. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251212/french-farming-union-calls-for-blockades-across-france-in-standoff-over-culls Fri, 12 Dec 2025 16:33:29 +0100 french-farming-union-calls-for-blockades-across-france-in-standoff-over-culls France’s top constitutional authority has blocked a controversial law that would allow the reintroduction of a pesticide virulently opposed by environmental groups. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250808/france-strikes-down-return-of-banned-bee-killing-pesticide Fri, 08 Aug 2025 10:41:47 +0200 france-strikes-down-return-of-banned-bee-killing-pesticide A student-initiated petition against a law permitting farmers to use chemical deadly to bees has sparked a grass-roots movement in France that commentators say could be a sign of people’s growing frustration with political elites. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250725/french-anger-over-toxic-chemical-in-farmers-bill-piles-pressure-on-macron Fri, 25 Jul 2025 11:06:00 +0200 french-anger-over-toxic-chemical-in-farmers-bill-piles-pressure-on-macron Farmers threw manure and rubbish at environmentalist party offices in south-west France in a direct-action protest against an online petition calling for the repeal of the controversial farming law known as the Loi Duplomb. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250723/french-farmers-dump-manure-and-throw-eggs-in-petition-counter-protest Wed, 23 Jul 2025 13:50:17 +0200 french-farmers-dump-manure-and-throw-eggs-in-petition-counter-protest The head of the largest union representing French farmers has called for more demonstrations at the end of the month, arguing the government has not kept promises made to farmers after the last round of protests. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250515/french-farmers-union-calls-for-more-demos-in-may Thu, 15 May 2025 11:47:01 +0200 french-farmers-union-calls-for-more-demos-in-may Shoppers in French supermarkets may have reported shortages of eggs in some areas, but experts insist there’s no chance of US-style ‘eggflation’ panic here. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250402/egg-shortages-reported-in-french-superstores Wed, 02 Apr 2025 15:17:00 +0200 egg-shortages-reported-in-french-superstores As a group of French carrot farmers lose their appeal, reporting shows that France's farmers are a particular target for criminal gangs seeking to profit from an illegal market worth an estimated €5 billion. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250312/on-trial-frances-e5-billion-illegal-pesticide-industry Wed, 12 Mar 2025 18:39:23 +0100 on-trial-frances-e5-billion-illegal-pesticide-industry The humble tomato has become the unlikely target of French farmers’ frustrations at the Salon de l’Agriculture in Paris. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250227/tomato-wars-moroccan-tomatoes-at-centre-of-a-french-farming-storm Thu, 27 Feb 2025 17:42:31 +0100 tomato-wars-moroccan-tomatoes-at-centre-of-a-french-farming-storm France's annual Agriculture Show has become a hotbed of protest by farmers, exasperated by low produce prices, heavy regulations and global competition, against the government they say doesn't care for them enough. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250222/frances-agriculture-show-an-outlet-for-angry-farmers Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:40:52 +0100 frances-agriculture-show-an-outlet-for-angry-farmers The NGO Générations Futures has published data highlighting the areas of the country with the highest pesticide purchases, which, they suggest, could be the best indicator of where the chemicals are most heavily sprayed in France. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250114/where-in-rural-france-do-farmers-use-the-most-pesticides Tue, 14 Jan 2025 10:09:30 +0100 where-in-rural-france-do-farmers-use-the-most-pesticides Farmers in France have threatened to "march on Paris" and "blockade" Paris on Sunday unless French Prime Minister François Bayrou agrees to meet with them. https://www.thelocal.fr/20250102/french-farmers-warn-of-paris-blockade-in-new-ultimatum-to-pm Thu, 02 Jan 2025 11:27:18 +0100 french-farmers-warn-of-paris-blockade-in-new-ultimatum-to-pm Germany and Spain hailed the conclusion of a controversial free-trade deal between the European Union and South America's Mercosur bloc while France said the deal was still unacceptable and farmers' unions expressed dismay. https://www.thelocal.fr/20241208/spain-germany-hail-mercosur-deal-but-france-and-eu-farmers-fume Sun, 08 Dec 2024 17:13:20 +0100 spain-germany-hail-mercosur-deal-but-france-and-eu-farmers-fume French lawmakers have overwhelmingly backed President Emmanuel Macron in rejecting a free-trade deal between the EU and South America’s Mercosur bloc. https://www.thelocal.fr/20241127/french-lawmakers-back-macron-in-rejecting-eu-mercosur-trade-deal Wed, 27 Nov 2024 10:40:09 +0100 french-lawmakers-back-macron-in-rejecting-eu-mercosur-trade-deal French farmers protesting pay and conditions and a prospective EU-Latin America trade deal on Wednesday lifted a blockade on the Spanish border after an expression of support from Prime Minister Michel Barnier - although other farmer protests across France continued. https://www.thelocal.fr/20241120/french-farmers-lift-spanish-border-blockade-after-talks-with-pm Wed, 20 Nov 2024 16:09:28 +0100 french-farmers-lift-spanish-border-blockade-after-talks-with-pm French farmers are planning a new wave of protests from Monday, amid fears the European Union is about to sign a major free trade deal with South American trade bloc Mercosur. https://www.thelocal.fr/20241113/french-farmers-plan-new-nationwide-protests Wed, 13 Nov 2024 10:21:48 +0100 french-farmers-plan-new-nationwide-protests French farmers are threatening to start another round of road blockades this week. Here is what you need to know about the proposed protests. https://www.thelocal.fr/20241112/what-to-expect-from-new-farmers-protests-in-france-this-week Tue, 12 Nov 2024 11:57:05 +0100 what-to-expect-from-new-farmers-protests-in-france-this-week Earlier this year French farmers managed to bring large parts of the country to a standstill via roadblocks and tractor convoys - now farming unions are calling for a restart of the protests in November. https://www.thelocal.fr/20241022/french-farmers-call-for-fresh-protests-in-november Tue, 22 Oct 2024 16:57:34 +0200 french-farmers-call-for-fresh-protests-in-november Angry French farmers are paving the way for a new set of protests including blockades and roadblocks, saying that government promises have not been fulfilled https://www.thelocal.fr/20240920/french-farmers-plan-more-roadblocks-but-wont-say-when Fri, 20 Sep 2024 19:23:55 +0200 french-farmers-plan-more-roadblocks-but-wont-say-when Heavy rainfall, hail and mildew have ravaged most of the wine harvest in eastern France’s Jura region for this year, leaving winegrowers struggling. https://www.thelocal.fr/20240913/bad-weather-slashes-wine-harvest-in-frances-jura-region Fri, 13 Sep 2024 11:02:06 +0200 bad-weather-slashes-wine-harvest-in-frances-jura-region