The two major French farm organisations announced on Thursday 1 February that protests would be suspended and road blockades lifted following days of nationwide outrage.

The news came shortly after prime minister Gabriel Attal announced a new suite of measures, which the Young Farmers Union and the National Federation of Agricultural Operators' Unions (FNSEA), described as “tangible progress”.

Alongside blocking roads with tractors, French farmers have sprayed manure on public buildings, dumped rotting produce and covered roads with soil.

The Mercosur trade deal and imports from Ukraine have been highlighted by French farmers as key issues.

IFA protest

Meanwhile, at home, Irish farmers took to the streets around Ireland on Thursday night in an act of solidarity with European counterparts.

Every Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) county branch had hundreds of tractors and trucks turn up to their individual protests around the country.

Many farmers at the protests felt they were being legislated out of farming, just like those in Europe. However, despite having similar issues, the IFA protest was a peaceful protest, with little disturbance to traffic or in towns.