The French government has adopted an amendment that establishes a temporary tax credit of €2,500 to support farmers who decide in 2021 or 2022 that they will no longer use products containing glyphosate.
It is also investing an additional €80m, taking the total amount to €215m, to enable farmers to change their agricultural equipment. It says it is putting into place mechanisms to offset costs incurred as a result of farmers not using glyphosate.
“A farmer who invests to phase out glyphosate does not benefit from immediate value creation – - the price of produce remains the same unless they convert to organic. On the basis of work done by the French National Institute for Research (INRAE), loss of glyphosate results in an additional cost of up to €80/hectare for field crops, or up to €7,000 for an average farm of 87ha,” says the French government.
Julien Denormandie, Minister of Agriculture and Food says: “The creation of this tax credit and the release of an additional envelope of €80m for agricultural equipment are the result of a strong will from government to support farmers. Any transition has a cost and must therefore be financed.”