new regulations for purchases not yet applied in all supermarkets

Since January 1, it is theoretically no longer possible to use meal vouchers to purchase products that are not directly consumable, such as pasta or rice. A new government regulation which does not yet apply literally in all brands.

For Nathalie, it has almost become a reflex: when paying for her groceries, rather than cash or her credit card, it is always her restaurant voucher card that she takes out. “It’s practical“, she smiles.

As soon as it is put through the machine, payment is accepted. However, since January 1, the rules have changed, and the restrictions on use are in principle much more numerous: no more pasta, eggs, pastries, raw meat or even fresh fish. Only processed and ready-to-eat products can now be purchased with meal vouchers. The daily spending limit, previously set at 25 euros, has been lowered to 19 euros.

The fact remains that due to the lack of modification to the checkout software, many brands have not yet applied the regulations. A time of respite for customers, who are often not enthusiastic about having to change their habits. “19 euros per day, given that it is still quite expensive to eat at lunchtime, it’s not great“, sighs Nathalie.

For François Mattei, manager of a convenience store located at the Citadelle of Bastia, meal vouchers have become essential to his business. They represent more than 20,000 euros of its turnover each year. Since he accepted them there, “people come more willingly at lunchtime. They play the game and grab lunch at the office, for those who unfortunately don’t have time to go home or go to a restaurant.“

The report by Samuel Chassaigne, Capucine Laulanet and Fiona Le Ludec:

Restaurateurs, in fact, say that they are generally satisfied with a change in the use of restaurant vouchers. Owner of a pizzeria in the Old Port, Paola Freitag sees it as a way to encourage the population.to consume directly with us, the restaurateurs. I think it could bring us a few more people“.

“We need our customers to spend their restaurant vouchers on a daily basis with us, in our establishments in Corsica, insists Amaury Maigret, president of the catering branch of the UMIH of Corsica. We would really like to recover all of the restaurant vouchers, develop a consumption voucher in supermarkets, and everyone would be happy.“

Will the new regulations last? On January 15, the Senate will study a bill aimed at extending the use of tickets in supermarkets. Its adoption would in fact allow beneficiaries to continue to use their meal vouchers to do their food shopping, without restrictions. Answer next week.