Approximately 10,000 farmers and demonstrators from across Europe have flocked to Brussels to protest against the European Union’s agreement with the South American Mercosur countries.
At the same time, a summit of EU leaders is taking place in the Belgian capital, where one of the main topics will be the free trade agreement, which, as many politicians, experts, and even farmers themselves emphasize, will lead to disaster for European agriculture.
Police have already deployed water cannons and tear gas as small-scale battles broke out with riot police.
🇧🇪JUST IN: Police fire tear gas at protesting farmers in Brussels.
10,000 farmers are in Brussels to protest the South American Mercosur free trade agreement, which will destroy food security in Europe and lead to harmful pesticides in EU supermarkets. pic.twitter.com/WA1MVDfQOt
— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) December 18, 2025Water cannons were also deployed against the protesters despite the cold weather.
Utilisation de canon à eau contre les #agriculteurs à #Bruxelles devant la Commission Européenne.
Des milliers d'agriculteurs de toute l'Europe convergent à Bruxelles pour protester contre le Mercosur, la taxe carbone sur les engrais, et la baisse de la PAC.#Brussel #Brussels pic.twitter.com/ensF2buU4W
— Luc Auffret (@LucAuffret) December 18, 2025Farmers from Poland, Sweden, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, and France, along with many other countries, are also participating in the protest.
The protest in Brussels is organized by Copa-Cogeca, Europe’s largest organization of farmers’ unions and cooperatives. The organization’s social media accounts report that 10,000 farmers from 27 countries have converged on the Belgian capital, including many traveling over 1,000 kilometers from countries like Sweden to attend.
🇸🇪 Swedish farmers have arrived after 1400km, crossing Sweden, Germany, all the way through Brussels !
J-1 before #FarmersProtestEU ! pic.twitter.com/9sVsuTpDmK
— COPA-COGECA (@COPACOGECA) December 17, 2025Farmers began gathering in front of the European Parliament yesterday evening. Dozens of tractors appeared on the streets of Brussels. The farmers began blocking one of the main streets leading to the EU institutions, surprising local authorities and leading to police intervention.
The free trade agreement has been described as a “fundamental threat to the food security of Europeans.”
This week, the European Parliament voted on a safeguard clause to the EU’s trade agreement with Mercosur countries, but that is not considered enough to avert disaster for Europe’s food security, food safety, and agricultural future.
“The changes voted on in the European Parliament do not eliminate the fundamental threat to the food security of EU citizens, and the safeguard clause will not prevent the destabilization of the agricultural market. A sham solution was passed, intended to create the impression of agricultural protection and facilitate political acceptance of the entire agreement,” Jadwiga Wiśniewska, a PiS MEP, commented on the EP’s vote on safeguard clauses for the agreement with Mercosur countries in an interview with wPolityce.
“The safeguards approved do not eliminate the threats to small and medium-sized farms, which constitute the backbone of Polish agriculture. For them, these mechanisms will be completely insufficient,” she adds.
