In a recent announcement at the International Agricultural Show, the French Government unveiled a plan to boost organic agriculture, which included a 10 million Euro emergency fund designed to aid organic farming operations facing severe challenges.
Today, the support plan is being expanded and strengthened. Marc Fesneau, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty, announced a set of measures during a visit to an organic dairy farm in Oise, reaffirming the government’s commitment to the organic farming sector.
Firstly, 60 million Euros has been earmarked to tackle the most pressing difficulties facing the organic farming sectors. The specific method for distributing this aid will be determined through discussions with industry professionals to implement a fast-acting solution on the ground.
Particular attention will be paid to the fruit sector. For example, the European program for fruit distribution in schools will prioritize using fruits from organic farming.
To address the sector’s structural challenges and the downturn in demand, several additional initiatives have been proposed:
To promote the consumption of organic products, an additional 500,000 Euros will be allocated to the ‘Bioréflexe‘ campaign led by the Organic Agency, adding to the 750,000 Euros already pledged by the state at the end of 2022. Furthermore, 3 million Euros from France 2030 will be used to launch a second communication campaign.
Lastly, the French government pledges to meet the objectives set by the Egalim law in public catering by the end of the year. Each state institution subjected to this requirement will aim to source 50% of its products from quality and sustainable providers and a minimum of 20% from organic ones. This pledge translates into demand-side support worth approximately 120 million Euros.
“We must support the development and sectors of organic farming to reach 18% of the organic agricultural area by 2027. After an initial support plan in February, this reinforcement brings massive support of 60 million Euros and a significant commitment from the state’s public procurement and encouraging citizens’ consumption. We can all be a part of the development of organic farming.” said Marc Fesneau, Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty.
Photo by Joshua Lanzarini on Unsplash
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