Author Topic: Europe pays farmers to destroy food (Read 755 times)

Matthew · « **on:** August 18, 2014, 03:52:54 PM »

Europe pays farmers to destroy food hit by Russian ban
By Mark Thompson August 18, 2014: 9:23 AM ET

LONDON (CNNMoney)
Vladimir Putin continues to unsettle Europe's economy.
The latest: Farmers in Europe will be paid to destroy or give away fruit and vegetables to stop prices from collapsing after Russia banned imports in retaliation for Western sanctions.
EU officials said Monday they were setting aside 125 million euros ($167 million) to compensate producers for not selling a range of perishable items, harvesting them before they ripen or leaving them to rot.
"This is a measure aimed at reducing the level of supply so the prices don't drop to crisis levels," said European Commission spokesman Roger Waite.
Russia hit back at the latest round of Western sanctions over Ukraine with its own year-long ban on imports of food from Europe, the U.S., Australia, Canada and Norway.
The emergency assistance will take effect immediately and run until November, under existing EU rules covering support for farmers' incomes in times of crisis.
Related: Putin factor snuffs out European growth
The products include apples, pears, tomatoes and cucuмbers, and are all in full season. Farmers have few options to store them or find alternative markets, and prices for some products have already fallen by more than 50%.
EU exports of fruit and vegetables to Russia were worth about $2.7 billion last year. Countries hardest hit by the Russian ban include Poland, Spain, and Lithuania.
EU officials hope much of the withdrawn produce will be given away for free -- to food banks, prisons, schools or hospitals -- but some will be left on trees or in the ground, or harvested early and then destroyed.
European farmers and food cooperatives welcomed the move but warned that the Russian ban could cause long lasting damage to the sector, and the cost would be much higher than the money earmarked for support.
Officials will continue to monitor food markets, and could provide support to producers of other foodstuffs as needed.

Matthew · « **Reply #1 on:** August 18, 2014, 03:54:28 PM »

Europe can stop playing the victim. They started it by putting sanctions on Russia for absolutely nothing.

And despite the lies told in the media, Europe is going to suffer much more than Russia from these sanctions. Russia will find its goods elsewhere.
Europe was already teetering on the edge of a Great Depression BEFORE all this mess.

Viva Cristo Rey · « **Reply #2 on:** August 19, 2014, 01:26:31 AM »

I heard Russia is not taking US beef.

poche · « **Reply #3 on:** August 19, 2014, 02:56:38 AM »

I remember when the United States used to do that. My mother's uncle had a farm. Every year there were problems. Too much rain, Not enough rain, wind, blight, one after another they all contributed to destroying the crop. Then if everything went ok and there was an abundant harvest, all the profit went in paying the farm labrers in harvesting the crop. The only time they made any money was when the government paid them to not grow anything that year. And to make sure that they were not cheating the government sent planes overhead to make sure they were not growning anything.

claudel · « **Reply #4 on:** August 19, 2014, 06:54:14 AM »

Quote from: poche

I remember when the United States used to do that.

I hope you don't imagine that the federal government has stopped paying farmers both not to grow and to destroy "excess" crop yields! Now that the bulk of US farms are agribusiness operations, subsidies (however they have been renamed to deceive the few remaining unwary voters in nonfarm states who don't yet worship the government unquestioningly) remain at historic highs.

glaston · « **Reply #5 on:** August 19, 2014, 01:03:49 PM »

Quote from: Matthew

Europe can stop playing the victim. They started it by putting sanctions on Russia for absolutely nothing.

And despite the lies told in the media, Europe is going to suffer much more than Russia from these sanctions. Russia will find its goods elsewhere.
Europe was already teetering on the edge of a Great Depression BEFORE all this mess.

I long realised the corruption and systematic theft supported by Brussels!

Take Romania - it should be the richest country in Eastern Europe with all it's Gas and Oil fields.

I was speaking with a Roma immigrant the other day who had good command of English.

He said Romania is utterly corrupt, even their equivalent of free hospital treatment, all the Doctors demand extra cash before treating patients.
A few elites systematically strip Romania of all its wealth creating the Exodus of its citizens who are left in complete poverty to starve!
(These same elite scuм are supported by the elite scuм in Brussels - who would not hesitate to vote to take out a Sadaam or Gaddafi outside Europe)

The Hypocrisy of Brussels, corrupt, unelected, so-called 'Politicians' (dictators)

Another massive con is EU subsidised sugar beet growing - which undermines foreign cane growers (keeping the workers at subsistance levels of pay)