Thierry Lebert is not afraid to say it: “quinoa is the agriculture of tomorrow“. At 55, this farmer based in Flée, is one of the eight quinoa producers in the department. He embarked on the adventure two years ago, when he did not know this seed at all. “I remember, it started with a call from the Anjou quinoa cooperative asking me to plant quinoa on my plot. My first instinct was to look on the internet, because I had never heard of this cereal.“.
– Christophe Morin
A cereal that hardly needs any water
Today Thierry Lebert cultivates 20 tons of quinoa per year for the local cooperative “Quinoa d’Anjou”, the only French cooperative on the quinoa market. A seed that he pampers just as much as his production of wheat, corn or his pig farming, surprised in particular by the ease of growing this seed. ” It is a cereal that hardly needs any water, it is enough to sow it in March, once it has reached its adult size, it is pre-cut, it falls during the month of July, before harvesting six days later, “explains the farmer.”There is nothing more to do, no weeding, no insecticide, it’s really happiness“.
– John Rinaud
Suitable soil in Sarthe
After harvest, Thierry Lebert’s blond quinoa is controlled by the Quinoa d’Anjou cooperative, before being trilled at the Brissac silo in Maine-et-Loire. So far, the harvests are still good. ” All you need is clay-limestone soil without excess water for quinoa to grow properly.“, insists Emmanuel Pitault, from the Quinoa d’Anjou cooperative. “Afterwards, the weather just needs to be nice between the felling and harvesting period.. “
– John Rinaud
A more rewarding image
For the farmer from Sarth, who has been growing quinoa seed for two years now, this crop is also a way to improve his image. ” We will say that with this activity, I no longer really have the label of the old pork producer who pollutes. I see my neighbors around, they are really curious and they ask me lots of questions about quinoa. It’s much more rewarding“, certifies the farmer.
– Sebastien Gollnow
It’s a crop of the future if we think about the climate
A new culture that pleases Thierry Lebert but also his daughter Julie. At 26, she plans to take over her father’s business in a few years and it won’t be without quinoa. “Today you have to live with the times, quinoa is a crop of the future if you think about the climate, so yes, you have to adapt“.
– John Rinaud
For now, Sarthe has 8 Quinoa producers out of the 400 in the Maine et Loire cooperative.