Unbeatable prices, pretty trays, on which you can painfully read the origin of the tomatoes. “Unfair competition is very well organized…”
This Friday, April 26, several producers from the Légumes de France association organized a hit operation in Agenais supermarkets. Each product imported from Morocco was given a label on which it was written “Origin Morocco”.
“France continues to import products from outside the European Union, which meet much less strict environmental standards,” protest Nathalie Binda and Jonas Hollaar, tomato producers in Andiran, in Albret and Bias, in Villeneuvois. . “These countries, moreover, use pesticides which have been banned for more than thirty years here. »
Cost of labor
The cost of labor is also in the sights of these farmers, who are waiting for this to change. And quick. “In Morocco, they are 1 euro per hour on average. For us, it’s €13.70,” breathes Sophie Provent, producer of blueberries and tomatoes for the Cadralbret cooperative. “It’s an exciting job that we love. But at some point, we can no longer continue living like this. »
With inflation, people increasingly tend to favor the cheapest”
If the consumer favors the French origin, these market gardeners believe that they are misled by largely insufficient information on the origin of the product. “With inflation, people have an increasing tendency to favor the cheapest… We want to make them understand that you can sometimes buy a slightly more expensive product, in a smaller quantity, but of better quality. »
