7 dramatic photos that sum up French farmer protests
Protests by French farmers have entered their fourth day and spread further south despite the government unveiling a €600m (£422m) emergency aid package.
The measures have been greeted with a mixed reaction, with some farmers agreeing to stop their blockades as a result, while others said they would step up action.
France’s second city, Lyon, became the target on Wednesday night (22 July) and demonstrators have threatened action further south around the Clermont-Ferrand area on Thursday (23 July).
See also: French farmer protests win €600m of government aid
The farmers have hit a wide range of targets since they embarked on their campaign at the weekend, with their actions getting increasingly dramatic as the week has progressed.
Here are seven pictures that sum up the past few days.
© Georges Gobel/AFP/Getty Images
Tyre-d of low prices… Farmers dumped tyres and waste in front of the Lactalis dairy factory in Bouvron, near Nantes, on Wednesday (22 July).
© Getty Images
Road block… Protesters used tractors, tyres and supermarket trolleys to block the A6 motorway at the northern entrance to Lyon, which is one of the key arteries to the southern regions.
© Georges Gobel/AFP/Getty Images
All fired up… Farmers set bales and tyres on fire as they blockaded the road between Morlaix and Brest.
© Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images
Sight-seeing with a difference… Tourists visiting Mont St-Michel – one of France’s most popular tourist destinations – were forced to weave their way around muck heaps and tractors to access the World Heritage Site.
© Getty Images
Feeling the heat… Pallets were set alight outside a supermarket near Qwimper in western France. Other retailers had their trolleys filled with manure.
© Getty Images
Consumer caution… A young farmer from Landes region put tape and stickers reading “meat from nowhere” on food in a supermarket in Mont-de-Marsan in a bid to raise consumer awareness of cheap imports.
Sows in supermarkets… Farmers herded pigs into three supermarkets in the Agen area of south-western France. This picture was kindly supplied by TV and radio reporter Brice Bachon (@bricebachon)