Czech farmers protest against Mercosur, food imports from Ukraine
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Euractiv | 27 February 2025
Czech farmers protest against Mercosur, food imports from Ukraine
Par : Aneta Zachová
PRAGUE – Czech farmers took to the streets across the country on Thursday, with hundreds of tractors to protest against food imports from non-EU countries.
Protests also occurred at border crossings, where Czech farmers were joined by colleagues from Slovakia, Hungary, and Austria. In the country’s south, they temporarily blocked a road connecting the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
The farmers are calling for the cancellation of the EU’s agreement with Mercosur, the Latin America trade bloc or, at the very least, the exclusion of agriculture from the deal.
"We see the agreement as hypocritical because European growers and breeders are required to comply with much stricter standards than those in other parts of the world," Jan Doležal, president of the Czech Agrarian Chamber, told during the protest.
Slovak Agricultural and Food Chamber chief Andrej Gajdoš aligned with his Czech counterpart on unfair competition, adding that the deal could pose a risk to consumer health, as some Latin American countries use growth hormones or pesticides banned in Europe.
Austrian representatives echoed these concerns, stating that the agreement is neither fair, just, or right.
"The agreement between the EU and the Mercosur countries will not push Czech farmers out of the market; imports from South American countries are minimal," Czech Agriculture Minister Marek Výborný told the Czech News Agency.
However, he emphasised that he was open to discussions at the European level to ensure equal conditions for European and Latin American farmers.
Farmers are also protesting against duty-free imports from Ukraine, like they did last year. While they support assistance to Ukrainian farmers, they insist it should not come at the expense of European agriculture.
The farmers’ organisations stressed the need for a new EU-Ukraine agreement ensuring fair competition and urged the government to push for such measures in cooperation with other European countries.
Alongside national flags, banners with slogans such as "Protect our farmers," "Stop grain from Ukraine," and "Green Deal is suicide" appeared during the demonstrations.
