French government to hold crisis meeting over egg-smashing protest

The French government is to convene a crisis meeting at the start of the week over ongoing protests by farmers at falling egg prices. A group of some 20 poultry producers in Brittany have dumped hundreds of thousands of eggs, including outside tax offices, in recent days, dpa reported. The farmers blame the low prices on excess supply, and are calling on the state, which regulates the egg market, to lower production quotas by 5 per cent. On Friday night an estimated 140,000 eggs were smashed on the streets of Saint Brieuc, the regional Ouest-France newspaper reported. The previous day, farmers dumped around 100,000 eggs. The Agriculture Ministry in Paris has said it will discuss the issue early next week, but farmers have vowed to continue the protest.