The cooperative with €400 million in turnover and 3,500 members, Dijon Céréales, knows this better than anyone: the agricultural community is facing a difficult situation combining economic and financial crisis, trade war, political destabilization, restrictive regulations and climate change. Turbulence which increasingly threatens the sustainability of regional farms, but in which Didier Lenoir, president of Dijon Céréales, still sees a glimmer of hope: “We are certainly going through a complicated period, but everything is not over. Our professions remain attractive and essential to France. The challenge is to find new growth levers to offer greater resilience to our farms and encourage younger generations to take the step of setting up. »
Securing farmers’ income
This quest for diversification of resources has already begun within Dijon Céréales and took shape in 2023 with the creation of the Alliance BFC association bringing together under the same banner the skills and expertise of the three cooperatives Bourgogne du Sud, Dijon Céréales and Terre Comtoise. This structure has given itself the mission of building the future of agriculture in Burgundy Franche-Comté. To do this, it relies on dynamic R&D to innovate, in particular through the identification and implementation of new productions such as apricots or by seeking to optimize agricultural production thanks to the support of digital and data. It works to strengthen local outlets in a tense export context, through the creation of the “Nous Autres” brand or the development of the supply of regional proteins in short circuits. Finally, the development of agroenergy (methanization, agrivoltaism) offers real potential for securing income for farmers. And it is of course on this last aspect that the commitment of cooperation which has linked Dijon Céréales and TotalEnergies for four years now and which has just been strengthened by the signing on Monday December 16 of a co-operation partnership. -development for regional agrivoltaism which commits both parties over 30 to 40 years.
“Our desire is to push our farmers to achieve the objective of having 30 to 40% of the turnover of their farm which is resilient in the face of climatic hazards by 2050”, argues Christophe Richardot, general manager of Dijon Céréales. With GRDF, we opened in Cérilly on July 30 one of the largest methanization units in France supplied with fodder rye. An investment of €95 million, which offers diversification income to more than 150 farmers and annual gas production of around 230 GWh. While three other methanization projects are underway, with TotalEnergies, we aim to do the same on the agrivoltaic side by becoming an energy co-producer. “Agrivoltaism opens up an immense field of possibilities for our members. There is a real opportunity to do something other than corn under these panels, to test new ideas, to take advantage of the shade and protection to innovate. It is also a means for the farmer to achieve his potential and a vector of attractiveness for our young people, very much in line with societal expectations,” supports Didier Lenoir.
A partnership between €200 and €400 million
Before this signature, which plans to secure the income of Dijon Céréales farmers on 600 hectares of Côte-d'Oriennes agricultural land within two to three years, the two partners installed in 2021 an agrivoltaic demonstrator composed of vertical bifacial photovoltaic panels with Channay in Châtillonnais aimed at studying the evolution of soil quality, environmental quality and yield with or without panels photovoltaics, but also the “good understanding” of the two parties. The site has already welcomed more than 1,000 professional and institutional visitors. “Before signing, we needed to know each other well, to be convinced that we were good partners, before committing to 30 to 40 years… We have been working together for four years now, this signing is the culmination of this period of engagement. It is the marriage between people who share the same vision of farmers, says Marin de Montbel, general director of TotalEnergies. The two “married couples” will inject between €200 and €400 million into this partnership which aims, initially, to produce 200 MWp, or the electricity supply for 100,000 inhabitants of Côte-d'Or by 2030. In terms of distribution of roles: Dijon Céréales will identify the farms most suited to hosting agrivoltaic projects, and this “without segregation”, specifies Didier Lenoir.
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This will be open to breeders as well as market gardeners, including cereal producers, both organic and conventional. TotalEnergies, with its 3,000 researchers and technicians working on renewable energies, will be responsible for the studies, development, construction and operation of the project in co-activity with farmers.
Operating companies will be created with a distribution of capital between the two parties. Farmers will be able to expect an income, in the form of rent linked to the provision of their land, between 1,500 and 2,000 €/ha/year, as well as an improvement in their productivity thanks to the presence of photovoltaic panels. “Agrivoltaic solutions will be adapted to the needs of each farm and will remain on a human scale,” specifies Didier Lenoir, affirming that all the projects should occupy less than 1% of the total agricultural area. The duo already has around ten projects under development covering more than 300 hectares in the region. The first project should be able to enter the operational phase in 2028.
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