Organizer of farmers’ demonstration in the Netherlands: We are not extremists

This organization is behind the demonstrations of Dutch farmers against the agricultural policy of the government and the EU. Van Keimpema argues that the restrictions imposed on the European agricultural sector under the so-called The Green Deal is extremely undemocratic and disadvantageous to all Europeans.

Critical words towards the EC

Let’s go back to 2019, when the new European Commission was formed. Mrs. von der Leyen appeared, although she was not a candidate for the position of President of the European Commission, but was imposed on us by German politicians. And suddenly she presented us with the +Green Deal+. This is a program of the World Economic Forum. This is not the result of democratic reflection or consultation. A group of people – operating outside our democratic process – decide how we live, work and eat. Our preferences and choices are not taken into account by them – we are bombarded with regulations to which we have to adapt. Farmers feel this particularly acutely, but it applies to all EU residents, emphasizes the activist, who in the past was, among others, President of the European Milk Board (EMB).

The EU is leading to the destruction of animal agriculture

– Soon we won’t be able to choose what we want to eat because everything will be of plant origin – said van Keimpema. According to her, “steak and pork chop will become taboo – just like cattle breeding.”

This is why new restrictions are being imposed on farmers in the EU. Their main effect is a decline in production, the disappearance of independent farmers and an increase in imports from outside the EU. Not only do we not know where it actually comes from and how it is produced, but the prices are increasingly higher and food safety is not guaranteed. Not to mention animal welfare, argues van Keimpema, emphasizing that Europe needs food produced locally. Food from our countries, from our regions, is the best, the most sustainable and the safest. Europeans need European food,” he points out.

In her opinion, the only way to guarantee this is a political breakthrough on a European scale.

– Politics today influences the smallest aspects of everyday life. It goes everywhere. That’s why we need a different policy. And change is only possible if the current political class is replaced. Today’s politicians are destroying our entire community, says van Keimpema. – Let’s join forces. We must act together. We cooperate with our German colleagues from LSV (Landwirtschaft verbindet Deutschland – an agricultural organization founded in 2021), with Polish colleagues from the Institute of Agricultural Economics. We invite all farmer leaders in Europe to contact us and act together. We need to convince people to vote very carefully on June 6-9 (European elections). The inhabitants of each country know best which parties have never helped them, never really stood up for them. This is the simplest criterion, notes the protest organizer.

He reminds that in the Netherlands, the Farmers Defense Force organized the “Vote them away” campaign.

We placed crossed-out logos of the parties on the posters that we wanted to eliminate from the world of politics. People understood this perfectly and “voted” them – in March last year from the Senate, and in November from the lower house. The farmers’ campaign worked brilliantly, van Keimpema boasts. It’s high time to restore normality. The media tries to label us as far-right, extremists. We are not extremists. We are the people who put food on tables. Food doesn’t grow in a courier’s bag, it is grown and grown by farmers. If you want to eat, you need farmers. You can live without politicians, but you cannot survive without farmers. Food is essential to life, so it should be widely available and affordable. Above all, we should be able to decide for ourselves what we eat. This is not some whim, but a human right. And it’s supposed to stay that way, he concludes.