Loading ...French Farmers Call For EU Help to Offset Russian Import Ban
10:56a ET August 7, 2014 (Dow Jones) Print
French Farmers Call For EU Help to Offset Russian Import Ban
By Inti Landauro
PARIS–French farmers Thursday called on the European Union to help offset the impact that a Russian ban on imports of a wide range of food products could have on domestic prices.
The closure of Russian borders to European food will be negative for farmers and could lead to a glut of some products in European markets, pressuring prices downwards, said Xavier Beulin, the president of France’s largest farmers union.
“Producers will try to sell the products they can’t deliver in Russia on their home markets at whatever price they can,” he said. “The EU can use crisis funds to mitigate the effects the ban could have.”
Peter Stano, a spokesman for the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said it was “premature to discuss specific actions before we fully assess the extent of the impact Russian measures will have.”
Even though Russia is a huge producer of cereals, it imports large amounts of fruits and vegetables as well as meat and dairy products.
Russia annually imports between 700 million euros ($935.5 million) and EUR1 billion worth of food products from France, Mr. Beulin estimates. Wines and spirits–which are not covered by the Russian ban–make up 40% of Russian imports from France, while fruit, such as peaches, apples and melons, vegetables, cheese, pork and beef account for the rest.
Earlier Thursday, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev laid out the details of his country’s response to Western sanctions, banning imports of a wide range of foods, including fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy products from the EU, U.S. and other countries.
By targeting imported foods, the Kremlin is sending the message that the country is ready to make sacrifices in order to stand up to the West. The EU said the Russian ban was “clearly politically motivated.”
In picking products that have a short lifespan, Russian authorities are ensuring the effects will be felt immediately by European farmers and Russian shoppers, Mr. Beulin said.
“I hope they will change to a more critical attitude towards their president when they realize products they are used to buying are disappearing from shelves,” he said.