Anger of farmers: what will the emergency cash flow plan look like?

Barthélémy Philippe // Credits: Ludovic MARIN / POOL / AFP 7:31 a.m., February 26, 2024

An emergency cash flow plan for farmers on the brink of financial collapse.

This is one of Emmanuel Macron's strong announcements during his eventful visit to the Agricultural Show.

From this Monday, the prefects will be responsible for identifying the farms most in difficulty.

At the same time, Bruno Le Maire and Marc Fesneau will bring together banks and farmer representatives to put this aid in place.

But at this stage, the terms of this plan remain to be defined.

Which farms affected?

What are the criteria for obtaining aid?

Many questions still remain unanswered.

Unfortunately for the executive, farmers are in a hurry.

Those who are drowning in debt have no time to wait.

This is the case of Raphaël, a cattle breeder who came from Corsica to the Show, who does not hide his dismay from Europe 1: “We are just waiting, we need proof now, we need actions, not always words. Otherwise , it’s a matter of time before we talk about ourselves in the past tense.” 

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The government in the dark 

The government, which wants to avoid taking out the checkbook, still seems in the dark.

Guest of the Grand Rendez-vous Europe 1, CNEWS, les Echos, Sunday morning, the Minister of Agriculture was hesitant about the procedure to follow to implement this plan.

"You are going to ask the banks to have a moratorium. But we have to look with them at what form that can take. Is it a rescheduling, a moratorium, an extension? Postponing a deadline is not not necessarily just the additional expense,” he said.  

An additional confusing factor is that the main agricultural unions are in favor of the measure.

But divided on its implementation.

Patrick Legras, spokesperson for rural coordination, wants a blank year for farmers' bank deadlines.

“It’s a good solution, we skip a year which we pay back at the end with a little interest. But it’s a lifeline for those who have a lot of investments,” he explains. . 

For his part, the vice-president of the FNSEA Luc Smessaert is calling for loans at subsidized rates and reductions in social charges.

But above all, no blank year.

“We did the white year in 2016. For five years we spread out the payments and when we find ourselves two years later with a drought, we don't know how to cope, so it's simply postponing the problem , that’s not what we want,” he says.

Union dissensions which could complicate the government's task.