Projection of the Conflict between Agriculture and Society in France

Gyuris, Árpád

Keywords: French agriculture, pesticides, media, Q18, R10, K32

This paper deals with the meaning of the term agribashing and the interactions between agriculture and society. The term was first used by French farmers and tries to describe the perceived or real “harassment” of the agricultural producers or the agricultural sector from certain groups of society. Crime also appears in this context and, unfortunately, producers can also lose their patience in their protests, which can even lead to acts of violence. The topic is also not irrelevant to Hungarian science and society. If we think about the adoption of this concept for the Hungarian situation, we should proceed with caution, because the concept is not sufficiently clear, there are many other problems in agriculture, and its continued unjustified use can hinder social dialogue.
The question may arise how well-founded this term is, whether there is legitimate criticism or suggestions from society that the growers should take into account, and how wise it is from the side of the state to take part in this debate, or what position it should take. In this paper, I review studies on French agriculture that discuss the acts that fall within the scope of agribashing from different perspectives, as well as the concept itself. The topic is not irrelevant to Hungarian science and society either, as the relationship between agriculture and society raises many questions here as well.
Agribashing and attacks on agriculture can even be seen as a crisis phenomenon. In the article, I indicate several problems that have an impact on French agriculture (i.e., whether it is possible to survive financially, issues related to pesticides, imports) rather than misunderstood criticisms. In the article, I indicate several problems that have an impact on French agriculture (i.e. whether it is possible to survive financially, issues related to pesticides, imports), which should be addressed instead of the issues that are currently under critique.

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