Farmers in Brittany held crisis talks with the French government on Monday, after smashing half a million eggs in protest against falling prices.
The farmers in question have threatened to slaughter tens of thousands of hens to raise prices if their demands are not met.
The union representing the egg producers, UGPVB, is currently seeking a 5 to 10% cut in total egg production in France in an effort to bring prices up. UGPVB says that the EU has 15 to 20 million too many laying hens, of a total of 350 million.
France’s largest farming union, the FNSEA, said it did not back the militant action, as “you don’t solve the problem by smashing eggs”.
© 2013 - ESM: European Supermarket Magazine by Ellen Lunney
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