Eleven years after filming her television portrait, Claire, a farmer from the Gers region who rose to prominence through the hit reality series Love is in the meadow, continues her agricultural work at the Ferme du Rantoy in Saint-Ost while navigating a challenging economic environment and the heavy consequences of summer drought.
It’s been eleven years since I filmed my portrait with Karine Le Marchand. It was on October 18, 2015.
Claire recalls. Operating her Gascogne farm, she maintains a direct connection with regular customers who purchase local specialties such as foie gras, rillettes, garbures, and products derived from her ducks and Toulouse geese.
Life on the Farm and the “Markets of Love”
Beyond her daily operations in Saint-Ost, Claire’s professional life has been shaped by her television participation. She regularly travels across France to take part in the “love markets”, which gather former show participants to sell their agricultural goods.
We do an average of fourteen markets a year. The idea is to bring together all the producers who participated in “L’Amour est dans le pré” (Love is in the Meadow). It creates an amazing bond and then it becomes a family.
she explains. These events serve as a vital outlet for promoting her products amid a complicated economic climate. While she previously organized markets directly on her exploitation for eleven years, she relocated her summer event to Saint-Lary in the Hautes-Pyrénées, drawing visitors from distant locations including Strasbourg and the Pas-de-Calais.
Drought and Economic Pressures
Despite the community support and enthusiastic customer base found at her farm, severe seasonal challenges weigh heavily on the property. Like many agricultural holdings in the Gers department, the Ferme du Rantoy—spanning roughly 50 hectares—has suffered directly from the impacts of the summer drought, creating significant operational concerns for the farmer.
