PARIS: More than 350 tractors parked near the French parliament building on Tuesday after driving down the Champs-Elysees avenue, as farmers protested a litany of woes, including the EU-Mercosur trade deal.
The protests reflect a deep sense of malaise afflicting France's agricultural sector, with the planned signing of an accord between the European Union and the Mercosur bloc seen as the last straw.
French farmers have complained about economic uncertainties and environmental rules, and have since December staged protests and set up roadblocks over the government's handling of a lumpy skin disease outbreak.
Arriving from towns around Paris and beyond, the protesters parked their tractors not far from the National Assembly in central Paris.
"We're at the end of our tether," said one of the activists, Guillaume Moret, 56.
"We haven't made any money from our farms for three years," said the head of the FNSEA union for the Paris region.
"The peasant revolt continues," read a banner unfurled in front of the legislature.
The FNSEA, France's leading agricultural union, and another union, Jeunes Agriculteurs, are demanding "concrete and immediate action" from the government.
Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard, who came out to meet the farmers, said Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu would make a new announcement later Tuesday.
The protesters also spoke with Yael Braun-Pivet, head of parliament's lower house.
No cows at agriculture show
The government last week already announced a planned 300-million-euro package to support the farmers, as well as other measures including an increase in the number of wolves that can be killed.
In a move highlighting the atmosphere, France's biggest agricultural show will this year feature no cows, for the first time since the event's creation in 1964.
Farmers, driven by health concerns and a sense of solidarity with breeders affected by the lumpy skin disease outbreak, have refused to present their cattle at the fair in February.
The event's chairman, Jerome Despey, called the move a "blow to the show."
The first convoy of about 15 tractors rolled into the French capital shortly before 6:00 am (0500 GMT). Joined by dozens of others, they drove down the Champs-Elysees honking their horns.
"We won't leave without measures that allow us to catch our breath a little," said protester Guillaume Moret.
Several days before the scheduled signing of the EU-Mercosur agreement in Paraguay on Saturday, the FNSEA union reiterated its opposition to the deal and also listed several national "priorities" to be defended on Tuesday.
The union is calling on the government to address a number of issues including wolf predation and the use of fertilisers.
Police said some 400 protesters had gathered near the parliament building. The FNSEA union put turnout at over 500 tractors and 800 farmers.
Dissatisfaction
Most of the European Union's 27 nations back the Mercosur trade deal, which supporters argue is crucial to boost exports, help the continent's ailing economy and foster diplomatic ties at a time of global uncertainty.
The deal, more than 25 years in the making, would create one of the world's largest free-trade areas, boosting commerce between the EU and the Mercosur bloc comprising Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina and Uruguay.
It would see the European Union export machinery, chemicals and pharmaceuticals with lowered tariffs applied.
But farmers in France and several other countries fear being undercut by an influx of cheap beef and other agricultural products from South America.
Thousands of farmers in France and Ireland staged protests over the weekend.
In France, politicians across the divide have also been up in arms against the deal, which they view as an assault on the country's influential farming sector.
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