Report on cattle breeding: "I was a little startled too", reacts Pierre Moscovici

The report of the Court of Auditors "on public support for cattle breeders" continues to be talked about. Published yesterday, it advocates a “significant reduction” in French livestock to meet France's commitments to reduce methane emissions. What arouse the ire of French farmers … and the surprise of the first president of the institution. "I was a little startled too, I admit," admitted Pierre Moscovici, guest in the morning of France Inter this Thursday.

Underlining his surprise at reading the recommendation of the auditors, the number one of the Court of Auditors wanted to clarify the role of the institution. “The Court is not a power [...] but an independent institution which fuels public debate. We make expert reports that can be discussed. We must take this report as a contribution to the debate”, argued Pierre Moscovici. In an attempt to appease the controversies, the representative recalled that "the report also underlines the essential nature of cattle breeding, good for the soil, good for sovereignty, and good for employment".

Since the publication of the report, several political personalities have come to the aid of the breeders. In a tweet published Tuesday evening, the Minister of Agriculture Marc Fesneau sharply criticized the conclusions of the Elders, without ever explicitly mentioning the institution. "We can never move forward by stigmatizing and giving the sole perspective to an entire profession of popular condemnation and disappearance," he said. The president of the FNSEA, Arnaud Rousseau, for his part described as a “real wound” the charge of the Court with regard to the farmers.

"There is no hostility from the Court to cattle breeding," replied Pierre Moscovici. The former Minister of the Socialist Economy expressed his empathy for breeders. “I want to tell the farmers that I understand their emotions and that I share them,” he said, before offering the farmers to “meet with him to discuss the report”. Beyond the agricultural case, the controversy has lesson value for the institution: "The Court of Auditors must also better take into account social concerns in the future", concluded the senior official.