They have a significant issue with a lack of vultures nowadays.
I bet. Number of vultures declining and number of people increasingâŚ
Thank you to everyone for your comments and helpful support, regarding our farmer. However, we now have another issue in that he is now storing a huge pile of composting manure (just stacked up on the soil with a plastic sheet over it) just inside his entrace and right next to our entrance and cleary visible as you arrive at our property.
I just wondered if anyone knew if there were any legal requirements as to how close this can be stored to a residential property? I have read that such composting manure must be stored in a way that doesnât contaminate surrounding soil etc., and drain into any water systems. Typically, this is just dumped directly on the soil by our farmer with the heavy rain just running straight over the manure and into the surrounding soil (he has no proper driveway once inside his entrance - itâs just a dirt track). The soil/slurry is then dragged all the way up our public access road as he drives in and out with his tractors each day (not to mention all the chicken and geese droppings mixed up with this - he now has 100 of each bird just strutting round in the filth). In fact itâs now impossible to walk from our property (on our main access road) unless you wear wellies!
Sorry if I sound desperate but Iâm about to confront our farmer yet again and I just wish to know whether I have any legal rights to complain. He is just one huge health hazard (despite being a GP by day) and I wondered if there was an environmental body that I could speak to as he really should be inspected. I am going to see the Maire again if he refuses to show any consideration. He has hundreds of hectares yet carries out all his âdirtyâ farming right next to our property - we are at the end of a country lane so there is no passing traffic so no one is aware of his filthy practices unless WE complain. He doesnât live on the farm so doesnât have to live with the stench or the noise of his barking dogs and birds! Sorry if I sound desperate but after 10 years of this man (and it wasnât like this when we moved here) I am simply amazed at how he gets away with it. There must be some official body responsible for inspecting farms on a regular basis ⌠donât think anyone has ever stepped foot on his! Thank you to anyone who reads this.
Yes, he has a terrible reputation here! I am not quite sure why he has this farm as he is a GP by day and doesnât live on the land. Our French friends tell us he does it purely for tax reasons and EU subsidies ⌠who knows? Whatever his reasons he cares nothing for his animals.
people often put on a old horse and donkey on their land to declare it agricultural and get off with taxes for said land.
Same for pigs they are just left to do their thing and as they have so many babies people take the losses but care nothing for the animals.
It is a sad fact of life and the only way it would ever stop is if everyone stopped eating meat. (i am a meat eater)
Just understand allot of the pork that you put on your plate comes from a place just like this blokes place.
Well thatâs food for thought Harry (pardon the pun!). Itâs just awful to think people can be so disconnected and uncaring. I always try to see the good in everyone and understand their reasons but in this case, he is as you said ⌠just an awful man!
there are many pig farmers out there, a lady and her husband near us called Louisa and stuart Haliwell and they really care for their pigs. One of our neighbours has sheep and him and his wife are in the fields with them all day every day rain or shine.
Alas its known that a great percentage of our meat is unfortunately not well cared for and is just money in the pocket for many places and losses are accepted in the numbers.
I always remember an advert on UK Tv for a chicken farm, showing happy chickens. I worked right next to that place and we rarely saw any chickens, most were locked up. yes they had a batch of free range but no where near enough for the number of free range eggs they sold unless the freee range were laying hundreds each a day
I think that French meat carries various âlabelsâ which tell about how it is reared etc. I certainly noticed that one chicken was clearly described as being reared in a cage⌠so I put it down and opted for the Label Rouge âŚ
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We seem to live at opposite ends of France, so not the same person, but someone with the same power mad mentality.
sound like a awful situation to be in.
Hope you do get it sorted out
One wonders why he is being such an ass though, often they do this sort of thing when they get pisssed off with you or the comune. Often complaining about them or to them also has this effect.
Do hope you get to the bottom of it and you guys can then carry on with your business. If you have guests complaining you could always consider suing him.
Thank you so much Harry. Do you know we very rarely complain because we try not to upset the apple cart so have been very tolerant indeed. The previous (French) owners of our property (and with whom we are still friends), complained all the time they lived here - they detest the man and I have to say that seems to be the general opinion of everyone in the commune. However, we have tried to so hard not take that thought on board and have tried to work with him rather than against. Itâs just his complete lack of consideration for anyone and that his farm is so filthy and badly managed ⌠itâs got worse over the years (probably because we havenât complained ha ha!). He is the kind of person who will try a little when you complain but soon reverts to normal practice and disregard when you donât! I am just concerned that if we try to sell now, he will be the huge fly in the ointment 
! Shame, as itâs a beautiful location and beautiful surroundings ⌠save for his farm 
yes hes probably giving the finger to the commune and your getting the raw end of the deal. we had the same issue with one of the neighbours in our commune luckily not next to us, but it was eventually dealt with, several farmers got together and surrounded his house with cow muck. he got the idea after that.