French farmers blocked highways in the South-West on Saturday, December 13, to protest the mandatory culling of entire herds affected by lumpy skin disease (DNC). The anger, fueled by breeders' distress, led to blockades on the A64 and other routes, as the government defends its health strategy by announcing mass vaccination.
The mobilization of French farmers against the total culling policy for herds affected by lumpy skin disease (DNC) intensified on Saturday, December 13, 2025. Blockades began Friday evening, with an occupation of the A64 highway at Carbonne in Haute-Garonne, the starting point of a previous movement in January 2024. Around 80 tractors blocked a section of the A64 between Toulouse and Bayonne, making 150 km of the highway impassable between Bayonne and Tarbes.
Other actions were reported in the South-West: part of the northern Pau ring road, routes around Auch in Gers, the N20 in Ariège, and sections of the D911 and A75 in Aveyron. Nationally, the Interior Ministry counted 43 blockade actions involving about 2000 people in 13 departments, with localized tensions. In Pontarlier in Doubs, 70 farmers protested outside Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard's former office.
The DNC, which appeared in France in June 2025, now affects four Occitanie departments: Pyrénées-Orientales, Ariège, Hautes-Pyrénées, and Haute-Garonne, where a case was confirmed Friday. The government's strategy includes culling affected herds, movement restrictions, and emergency vaccination within a 50 km radius. Annie Genevard announced the upcoming vaccination of an additional one million bovines and indemnities, stating that «the culling of cattle is the only solution» to contain the epidemic.
Farmers denounce this measure as «absurd» and traumatic. Léon Thierry, co-president of the Rural Coordination in Pyrénées-Atlantiques, said: «It is out of the question that in the Pyrenean massif we cull animals that are not sick, that are healthy.» Jordan Bardella called for «flexibility and a lighter protocol,» while Jean-Luc Mélenchon described systematic culling as «absurd.» Mobilizations are planned for Sunday in Vendargues, Villefranche-de-Conflent, and elsewhere, amid broader anger over Mercosur and the CAP.
