“There should be checks before being able to use” this statement, argues an association

Gilles Attaf, president of the association Guaranteed French origindenounces Thursday February 22 at the microphone of France Culture the absence of real regulation regarding the appellation “Origin France” on certain products. To respond to the anger of farmers, the government announced on Wednesday a wave of checks in stores to verify the legitimacy of these labels. The Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire thus affirmed that a thousand establishments had been checked on the French origin of the products sold on the shelves and that 372 were in non-compliance and therefore displayed an inadequate French origin.

The named label “Guaranteed French origin”created in 2011, regrets that these labels fall under the “declarative”. Its president Gilles Attaf believes that it “controls should be [effectués] before you can use” this type of mention, so as not to “misuse the France brand or the French flag”.

To guarantee consumers of French origin, its association has chosen to “go through external organizations”. Gilles Attaf thus explains calling on “certifiers, whose job it is, to whom we give requirements with benchmarks by sector”. For example, in a particular food sector, the association may decide that it is necessary that “92% of the product comes from French territory” to obtain certification. “It gives the consumer the certainty of their purchase, of their civic act”insists Gilles Attal.

The president of Origine France Garantie also deplores that “Europe prohibits Member States from promoting their national production”, for example through a real state label. He considers that it would therefore be necessary “within Europe that national productions can be truly identified”. “We should have the right to do it, there should be recognition from the State and there we would really gain in traceability for the consumer”underlines Gilles Attaf.