PARIS - France will cut social security taxes paid by farmers in a measure worth 500 million euros  to counter a crisis in the livestock sector, Prime Minister Manuel Valls told parliament on Wednesday.

The government has been trying to defuse protests by farmers in reaction to persistently low commodity prices, and has also turned to the European Union to obtain extra aid.

The tax cuts, which are in addition to hundreds of millions of euros in aid granted by France to livestock farmers since last summer, would benefit all farmers and take immediate effect, Valls said.

Reuters report that the tax cuts were flagged last week by President Francois Hollande in a televised interview where he pledged support for farmers, a sign of how serious the situation has become for the government in the EU's biggest agricultural economy.

"Livestock farmers and the livestock industry in France are going through a crisis that is unprecedented in its intensity and its duration," Valls told parliament. "The government wants to take action in relation to social charges, which is vital in view of competition farmers face from other European countries."

The tax cuts, in addition to hundreds of millions of euros in aid granted by France to livestock farmers since last summer, would benefit all farmers and take immediate effect, Valls said.

French farmers say the loss of the Russian market has compounded their problems in the face of cheaper supplies from countries like Germany and Spain, and as the EU liberalises its farm policy through steps like abolition of milk output quotas.

read full report from Reuters here