The light breeze on your skin does not deceive. You are in the fresh section of your supermarket. In front of you, a wafer of President butter “gastronomic” eyeing you. On the packaging, golden laurels surround the coats of arms of Normandy, Brittany and Maine. A small blue, white, red flag has also been printed above the mention “French family business”. However, this butter does not necessarily come from our beautiful French countryside. You just have to turn the tray over to see it. We can read there: “Cream of EU origin”.
This opaque mention, we owe it to a certain Lactalis. You know, “the family business” vaunted on the punnet of butter, it is she. If its name may not ring a bell, you are bound to know some of its brands: thes milk bottles Lactel, Société cheeses, Galbani, Salakis, Bridel or Lou Pérac … THEcompany, created by the cheese maker André Besnier in the 1930s in Laval (Mayenne), has become, in a few decades, the world leader in dairy products, with 266 factories in more than 50 countries. “It is both a feared and respected company in the sector”, abstract Véronique Richez-Lerouge, president of the Association Fromages de terroirs.
It must be said that Lactalis is today a key player in the dairy products sector. Thousands of breeders sell their production to him every day, across the country. On the counter: dozens of national brands and no less than 22 French PDOs, the stars of quality cheese. But this juggernaut is also renowned for its muscular business methods and low-key maneuvers. “They have a culture of fighting”, summarizes an observer of the sector. And their intense lobbying sometimes succeeds in overturning restrictive regulations.
This is where we find our President butter wafers. If the consumer does not know the country of origin of the milk used, it is because Lactalis has worked hard to make it disappear. In 2016, France was going through a serious agricultural crisis. Faced with the pressure, the government of the time decided to set up an experiment: the mandatory indication of the country of origin of milk in processed products. One way to protect French producers from their neighbors … but also an additional constraint for the international giant Lactalis.
The French group therefore goes to war against this regulation by filing an appeal before the state Council. And a few years later, bingo! On March 11, 2021, the highest court of the French administrative order judge that it is illegal to impose geographic labeling of milk. The announcement is like a bombshell in the dairy sector. “I was stunned by this decision”, remembers Aude Gaillard, breeder in a small family farm in Ille-et-Vilaine.
“If you take a Galbani mozzarella, it can be made with milk from Eastern Europe, then repackaged in Italy with a beautiful Italian flag. Everyone thinks it’s an Italian cheese … whereas it is is a cheese from Eastern Europe! “
Ghislain de Viron, 1st vice-president of the FNPLto franceinfo
With this remedy, the group Lactalis succeeds in gaining unanimity … against him. The main agricultural unions are rebelling. “We thought that displaying the origin of milk was a good thing for the consumer “, comments Ghislain de Viron, First Vice-President of the National Federation of Milk Producers. Even the Minister of Agriculture is stepping up to the plate. “Objectively, my arms fall to me”, spear Julien Denormandie, at the National Assembly, March 30, 2021.
So, what prompted Lactalis to fight against this rule of transparency? We contacted them about this … and their response may be surprising. “Our approach is to protect the market for French dairy producers”, assures Christophe Piednoël, general manager of the group’s communications. According to him, “this regulation had unbalanced the milk import-export market” at the expense of French production. He thus asserts that, in certain countries such as Spain or Italy where Lactalis markets its products, milk marked “French origin” was less popular than national milk from the zone in question.
Sector specialists rather see it as another interest for Lactalis. “Obviously, he is interested in being able to bring in milk from elsewhere without bothering to change the packaging”, explains economist Bruno Parmentier. And not only. “For the food industry as a whole, it is very interesting to keep this opacity. It does not have to indicate the origins of ingredients which could be in contradiction with the images of pure marketing that it wants to give to his products”, adds Olivier Andrault, in charge of food at the UFC-Que Choisir.
This confusion on the labels is also found on another star of the fresh section which is at the heart of a war between Lactalis and the French authorities: the President Camembert. This venerable industrial cheese was created in 1968 to fill the refrigerators of the French. Its label is easily recognizable, and for good reason, it has not changed for many years. Except that the rules have evolved.
At the start of the 1980s, Camembert de Normandie became a controlled designation of origin, with strict specifications requiring the use of raw milk. “As the word ‘Camembert’ is a generic word, the protection of the appellation is based on the word ‘Normandie'”, explains Patrice Chassard, president of the Dairy Appellations Committee at Inao. But manufacturers in the sector, including Lactalis and its pasteurized Camembert, continue to claim their Norman roots on the label. “It was total confusion for consumers”, completes the specialist.
After long years of debates around a possible extension of the PDO Camembert de Normandie to pasteurized cheeses, the project was finally abandoned at the beginning of 2020. A little scalded by this turnaround, the National Institute of origin and quality (Inao) decides to react to really remove the mention “Made in Normandy” industrial pie charts.
“We had to get out of the confusion for the consumer and avoid the disappearance of those who work with raw milk, in accordance with the rules of the PDO.”
Patrice Chassard, President of the Dairy Appellations Committee at Inaoto franceinfo
On July 9, 2020, the ax falls. “The highlighting of the words ‘Made in Normandy’ is not possible on a cheese that does not meet the specifications of the PDO”, written in black and white the repression of fraud in an opinion to operators.
Start the fight among the agribusiness giants. The Norman Union of Camembert Manufacturers, of which Lactalis is an influential member, asks the Council of State to suspend the application of this opinion, scheduled for January 1, 2021. The court rejects the appeal on December 24, 2020. One week later , all mentions “Made in Normandy” will have to disappear from industrial pie charts. A small victory for the defenders of the AOP. “The fact that they lost the word ‘Normandy’, for us, it is the terroir that wins”, welcomes David Aubrée, general manager of the Réo cheese dairy.
Nine months later, during a visit to a supermarket, our eyes fall on the cheese department. The Cœur de Lion camembert now claims “with good Norman milk”, Le Rustique boasts the Pacé cheese dairy in Orne. At Lactalis, Lepetit has opted for “Made in the Channel” and Lanquetot for “Made in the Pays d’Auge”. And there, surprise! The boxes of President Camembert, the star of Lactalis, always proudly display the mention “Made in Normandy” on the label.
After this discovery, we contacted Lactalis about this mention, which has been banned for camemberts made from pasteurized milk for several months. “It is a defense of the Normandy dairy industry! assumes Christophe Piednoël, general manager of the group’s communications. We believe that we are not deceiving the consumer. This is the reason why we maintain our position. “
Lactalis has actually engaged in a standoff with the administration on this subject, with the President Camembert as spearhead. “They won’t want to surrender like this, decrypts an observer of the sector. It’s a financial calculation: will the gain be greater than the penalty? ” And these sanctions still seem to be overdue. Contacted by franceinfo on several occasions, the DGCCRF (General Directorate for Competition, Consumption and Fraud Control) refused to give us the details of its controls. For its part, Lactalis simply recognizes site visits and requests for copies of labels from the DGCCRF. Not enough to scare the giant of the sector.
“You can’t trust a company that practices this kind of abuse. They keep stepping in the door and nobody dares to do anything.”
Véronique Richez-Lerouge, President of the Association Fromages de terroirsto franceinfo
The conflict should be resolved, once again, before the Council of State. Indeed, the court has not yet judged on the merits the appeal of the Norman Union of Camembert Manufacturers concerning the use of the term “Made in Normandy”. The judgment is expected in the coming months. “Obviously, we will respect the court decision”, promises the representative of Lactalis.
Boxes of Camembert are not the only controversies. A few months ago, the oldest French cheese appellation landed a sheep’s blue cheese sold in a green tray under the Company brand … Does that remind you of anything? Yes, Roquefort, but (once again) without the constraints of the PDO. “There is an appropriation of a heritage with the Company brand which is very associated with Roquefort”, castigates Alexandre Vialettes, producer of sheep’s milk affiliated with the Confédération paysanne.
Faced with this label, which could prove to be misleading for consumers, the authorities decided to react. “The Inao requested that the packaging be changed so that there is no confusion”, recalls Patrice Chassard, president of the dairy appellations committee of the institute. “We made that effort. And we launched this new product at the end of June”, confirms Christophe Piednoël, general manager of communication at Lactalis.
Despite these adjustments, Lactalis’ strategy is annoying. “Their method is always to make a copy. They make it a little cheaper and after a while they say ‘PDO does not work’ to try to change the specifications,” says Véronique Richez-Lerouge, president of the Fromages de terroirs association. The latter does not take offense. Between the originally fuzzy strips of butter, the pie charts “made in Normandy” excluding AOP and sheep’s milk blues that look like Roquefort, she wonders: “How do you expect us to believe these people when they do everything to make the milk more opaque?”
Download Radio Citizen – Silent Guide Album Mp3 Zip
Download Various Artists – The Package (Original Television Soundtrack) Special Album Mp3 Zip
Download Reg & Andreas – Christmas – A Son Is Given Album Mp3 Zip
Download The Phil Langran Band – The Distance Album Mp3 Zip
Download Joshua Burnside – EPHRATA (Deluxe Edition) Album Mp3 Zip
Download Los Tangueros Portugueses – Grandes Éxitos en Español Album Mp3 Zip
Download Morgan Davis – Home Away from Home Album Mp3 Zip
Download Edgar Rivas – Ilusiones Pasajeras Album Mp3 Zip
Download Lars Wickinger – La La La – EP Album Mp3 Zip
Download Fungo Bat – Fungo Bat – EP Album Mp3 Zip
Download Johnboy & Racquel – Evolution Album Mp3 Zip
Download Bel Suono – Избранное Album Mp3 Zip
Download Various Artists – Strictly the Best, Vol. 57 Album Mp3 Zip
Download Silvanita Choruna – Me Voy Con Otro Album Mp3 Zip
Download Saxon – Decade of the Eagle Album Mp3 Zip
Download Ibrahim Maalouf – Dalida Album Mp3 Zip
Download Gino Montacargas – Decisiones Equivocadas Album Mp3 Zip
Download Lil Silvio & El Vega – Versatilidad & Vivencias (Deluxe Edition) Album Mp3 Zip
Download Mark Knight – Toolroom Radio Ep399 – Presented by Mark Knight Album Mp3 Zip
Download Vybz Kartel, Masicka & Ishawna – Dancehall Tide Riddim (Produced by ZJ Chrome) – EP Album Mp3 Zip
Download The James Taylor Quartet – Quick Fire: The Audio Network Sessions Album Mp3 Zip
Download The Reytons – Kids off the Estate – EP Album Mp3 Zip
Download Game Over – Claiming Supremacy Album Mp3 Zip
Download Philipp Gorbachev & The Naked Man – I Don’t Give a Snare Album Mp3 Zip
Download Ed Askew – A Child In the Sun Album Mp3 Zip