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| Dutch farmers will bring their surpluses to local food pantries |
I mentioned already that the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
was meant to make sure the Europeans had enough food but worked so ‘well’ that
it caused surpluses. During the last decennia some changes in the policy where
made to avoid overproduction. It should have caused the European farmers producing
enough food to feed their own inhabitants. But nothing is more true than that.
We live in a (officially) capitalist union. When the market
wants more, the price will rise. When the price rises, production grows and
finally prices can go down again.
Despite the CAP and some protective measurements described
by the European Union farmers still have to compete with their colleagues
producing goods for prices way below theirs. As long as fuel stays below a
certain price and the European wages stay high, it is cheaper to import beans,
potatoes, unions and the like from far away countries than producing them
ourselves.
These exotic products
are a serious threat to the European agriculture. Products produced with a lot
of love and efforts are worthless since they are too expensive for the
conscious consumer.
Price is just relative. One product can be more expensive than
the similar looking one next to it but that won’t say that it will give the
producer a better price. A ‘cheaper’ potato from Egypt might have become cheap
because of taxes or development money enabling the producer to compete with the
EU farmers.
I won’t say you only have to buy produce from your own
country even though there are many reasons to do so. I just want to make you
aware that the prices on display are not always the real prices. Think twice
before you choose.
