On Saturday evening German farmers set up “warning bonfires” at hundreds of sites across the country in a continuation of protests against new environmental controls that have caught Berlin on the back foot.

The fires come sharp on the heels of a huge protest in Berlin, when close to 9,000 tractors converged on the Brandenburg Gate - many farmers driving overnight from far-flung regions.

“We feel that government is being driven by green groups and NGOs. They are chasing the Green party vote and ignoring farmers even though we are their core voters,” said Helmut Lebacher, the organiser of a bonfire in the small Bavarian village of Tyrlaching.

Himself a cattle farmer, Mr Lebacher said that ever stricter regulations are threatening the financial viability of small farms.

"I invested a million euros in a new cow shed five years ago, but it wouldn't get planning today. Constantly changing regulations are making it impossible to plan for the future," he said.

Another farmer at the demonstration, Matthius Michaelbauer, said that farmers are sick of how they are portrayed in the German media.

"We are always the bogeyman, the media reports negatively on pesticides and fertiliser without giving the full picture," he said.