According to the president of the Agricultural Show, Jean-Luc Poulain, distortion of competition and overloaded administration “discourage a good number of French producers”.
At the Salon de l’Agriculture, which will open its doors in Paris this Saturday, the question of food sovereignty will be inevitable. But, judges the president of the agricultural event, France is far from doing enough to go beyond declarations of intent. “If we do enough, we wouldn’t import so much beef,” said Jean-Luc Poulain this Friday evening at the microphone of BFM Business.
“We have people who are ready to produce beef, potatoes, carrots, cherries, but we are far too hindered to get there,” said the president of the Agricultural Show.
“Distortion of competition”
Jean-Luc Poulain points in particular to a “distortion of competition” which penalizes French farmers in the face of imports, as well as an “overloaded” French administration. “We discourage many producers,” he said. Some farmers manage to “maintain an income” by diversifying their production, but the heart of the problem is the renewal of generations.
“If we do not want to be, in ten years, in the situation of doctors today – we are going straight there – we must give prospects to young people”, estimated Jean-Luc Poulain. For the latter, the question of income is crucial but, beyond that, we must look at the “quality” of the profession and wonder regarding “what the profession can be” in the long term.
