Written by by Leslie Eastman at legalinsurrection.com
The last time we checked on the farmers’ protests in Europe, farmers in Belgium had surrounded the European Parliament area and had a special message for Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission. The demonstrators, who were focused on the green rule-making that has hindered the profitability of European agriculturalists, had a special message for the head of the agency: “Ursula, we are here!”
It appears the continent-wide demonstrations have made an impact, as the commission is rolling out some of its unrealistic green plans for a global utopia. Gone, for example, are rules to force the reduction of nitrogen (essential for fertilizers), methane (generated by cattle), and plans to persuade European citizens to eat less meat.
The European Union has caved in to angry protests from farmers, cutting its target to scrap specific agricultural emissions which formed part of the bloc’s net zero drive.
A demand to reduce nitrogen, methane and other emissions linked to farming by almost a third has been removed from a wider Brussels plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 90 per cent by 2040.
On Tuesday, Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, offered a further concession to demonstrating farmers by dropping her controversial proposal to halve pesticide use within six years.
A recommendation urging EU citizens to eat less meat was also removed from the plan.
The concessions came amid mounting demonstrations by farmers in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Poland and Romania ahead of this year’s EU elections.