French sheep farmers permitted to reach for their rifles as wolf packs allowed to grow

THE French government will allow the wolf population to grow 40per cent despite pressure from farmers in mountain regions who are worried about their sheep flocks.

A strategy unveiled by the centrist government of President Emmanuel Macron yesterday will enable the number of wolves to increase from an estimated 360 now to 500 by 2023.

Hunting wiped out the grey wolf in France during the Thirties. Wolves returned in 1992 via Italy – currently home to around 2,000 – before spreading into Switzerland and Germany.

The regeneration of the population in France has led to tensions between the government and farmers in the Alps and Pyrenees mountains who complain that attacks on their livestock cause major financial losses.

In response, hunters will be allowed to kill 10 per cent of the population each year, rising to 12 per cent if attacks are more frequent than usual.

“We place trust in all of the stakeholders and local lawmakers to calm the debate and enable a coexistence over the long term,” Stephane Travert, the agriculture minister, and Nicolas Hulot, the environment minister, wrote in a foreword to the report.

Mr Hulot, a celebrity environmentalist, spoke recently of how wolf culling “makes me sick to the stomach” but he accepted it was a necessary measure to take farmers’ concerns into account.

Hundreds of sheep were let loose on the streets of Lyon last November in one of the protests against the wolf, which has protected status.

The 100-page wolf strategy will also enable livestock owners to apply for state funds to shield their animals.

Wolves eat 4.4-8.8lb (2-4kg) of meat a day on average, including deer, wild boar and even domestic animals.

A total of 10,000 sheep were killed in the Alps region in 2016, according to official figures from the regional government. Damages paid to farmers from the state rose to €3.2million (£2.8million) in 2016, up 60per cent from 2013.

A coalition of groups including the World Wildlife Fund and France Nature Environnement criticised a “lack of political courage” to stand up to farming lobbies.