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Lobby: 1,000 farms and 4,500 jobs at risk from Russian boycott

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December 16th, 2014


This article is more than 10 years old.

The ban on trade between Russia and the EU is hitting Danish agriculture hard

The agricultural interest organisation Landbrug og Fødevarer has warned that almost 1,000 Danish farms are on the verge of closing, at a risk of losing 4,500 jobs and 8 billion kroner in exports, as a result of the trade situation with Russia.

READ MORE: Russian sanctions threaten Danish agriculture

In August, Russia imposed measures to boycott products from the EU. Karen Hækkerup, the former justice minister and now head of Landbrug og Fødevarer, says that this is unfairly impacting on Danish agricultural sector.

“Farmers and food companies have unwillingly become victims of a crisis they’re not involved in,” she said.

“Therefore Landbrug og Fødevarer is calling on the government and parliament to immediately intervene so that growth and workplaces can be secured.”

Proposed 10-point plan
The price of food products has plummeted since the boycott came into effect and led to the European market being flooded with goods. The price of pork has fallen by 10 percent, while the price of milk has dropped by 23 percent.

Landbrug og Fødevarer has proposed a 10-point plan for easing the situation for farmers and associated industries. This includes completely stopping the introduction of new economic burdens for the agriculture sector, including a law that has already been proposed to reduce emissions of ammonia by 24 percent.


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Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

The FOLA parents’ organisation is shocked by the findings.

“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

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At the Børnehuset daycare institution in Silkeborg a meeting was called where parents were implored not to bring their sick children to school.

At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”