Protests against subsidy cuts: At the beginning of the week, farmers protested in Wiesbaden, and on Thursday they will go to Frankfurt.
Image: Frank Röth
After a year of record profits, farmers in Hesse are also complaining about cuts in subsidies. On Thursday they protested in Frankfurt. But their economic situation is more complex than the balance sheets show.
Man does not offend farmers when they are described as an economic splinter group – at least in quantitative terms. Of the 3.4 million employed people in Hesse, just 25,000 work in agriculture. Even fewer can make a living from their farms as self-employed farmers: According to the most recent count from 2020, there are almost 15,000 agricultural businesses in Hesse, but only a minority have enough for their main occupation. In around two out of three companies, the farmers also have second jobs in other sectors, such as in retail, catering, in associations or in the public service.
So farming doesn't seem to be worth it. That sounds astonishing, given the approximately 217 million euros in agricultural subsidies that the European Union alone transfers to Hessian farmers every year. These EU funds related to the respective areas make up the majority of the subsidies, plus federal and state funds. On average, every Hessian farmer receives around 48,500 euros from the state every year.
#Farmer #protests #Hesse #million #euros #subsidies
