Frédéric Esmiol is living his last weeks at the head of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence Chamber of Agriculture. Sixteen years after being elected president, the man who had been vice-president for thirteen years is preparing to leave the public body which represents the agricultural world in the department. “I will take a step back but I will not disappear from the landscape“, reassures the 58-year-old market gardener, at the head of the Jardin de Font Reynière in Mane.
A few days before the last session of the mandate which will be held Friday November 22, 2024 at the Hôtel du Département, President Esmiol delivers, for Provencehis feelings on the professional elections of January 2025 which will make it possible to know the name of his successor and takes stock of his action within the consular body.
Why did you decide not to run for a new term at the head of the Chamber of Agriculture?
It's a thoughtful decision. I didn't want to do the term too much and I felt it was time to leave. Afterwards, we get into a routine and it's not good. Today, we need the emergence of new personalities. I think I fulfilled my mission even if everything was certainly not perfect. The Chamber of Agriculture is on track, it is holding up.
What assessment do you make of your actions?
Above all, it was the team. We were able to bring together men and women to defend departmental agriculture for almost thirty years. We had fun meeting up, working together. Chamber collaborators listen to farmers. From the start I have been in the field and enjoyed meeting the farmers.
