Some crops in France have not received a drop of rainwater all summer. In Ille-et-Vilaine, in particular, farmers have seen their crops bake in the sun. Faced with such episodes of drought, which are likely to recur due to global warming, some market gardeners are developing more resilient methods to limit the use of irrigation. For the ecologist member of the European Parliament, Mounir Satouri, it would thus be necessary to register peasant seeds in the official catalog of plant species and varieties because these would allow crops to be less water-intensive and therefore more resistant in the event of drought. So, is he saying true or fake?
Growing vegetables without a single drop of water… topical…
It would make sense to draw inspiration from these large-scale practices, but the law forbids it!
Register reproducible peasant seeds in the Official Catalog @Agri_Govhttps://t.co/klPOrVduIn
— Mounir Satouri (@MounirSatouri) August 9, 2022
In France, “nothing prohibits a person from cultivating varieties not listed in the official catalog and for a farmer to sell the harvest as is or processed”. However, it is prohibited to sell these seeds “with a view to commercial use of the variety”can we read on the site of the Réseau Semences Paysannes.
In concrete terms, farmers have the right to grow peasant seeds, that is to say seeds taken from the previous harvest and which are not from certified seeds purchased from a seed company. They are authorized to sell vegetables, fruits and cereals from these peasant seeds, but not the seeds themselves. Their sale is reserved for non-commercial use: amateur gardening, community green spaces, for example. Some unregulated seeds, however, escape these restrictions, such as buckwheat and spelled, according to the Réseau Semances Paysannes.
The seeds listed in the catalog must indeed meet criteria “of stability and homogeneity”so that the buyer is assured of the quality of what he is going to grow. “When you buy a seed, you are committing to a relatively long time. A regulation has therefore been put in place to protect users”explains to franceinfo Christian Huyghe, scientific director of agriculture at the National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (Inrae).
Gold, “the movement of peasant seeds claims the fact of marketing seeds that are not stabilized, with heterogeneous and evolving material”, continues Christian Huyghe. Because of these characteristics, they are therefore not intended to be listed in the catalogue.
“Farmer seeds make it possible to maintain more biological diversity and ensure the marketing of minor plant species.”
Christian Huygue, Scientific Director at Inraeat franceinfo
This inclusion in the catalog is not a unanimous demand within the movement of peasant seeds. “There is no reason to register the living in a catalog. We don’t want to get into this game”, explained Ananda Guillet, president of the Kokopelli association, to France 3 Bretagne. For the defenders of these seeds, the catalog of seeds authorized for sale contributes to the impoverishment of biodiversity and is part of a logic of privatization of living organisms which benefits the industrial giants. The associations see the lack of stability of farmers’ seeds as a quality and not as a defect. They boast of their diversity and their ability to evolve, which would make them more resilient to diseases and stressful situations, including drought.
However, does this type of seed really make it possible to grow vegetables without water, as suggested by Mounir Satouri? To illustrate his point, the MEP cites the example of a farmer from Essonne, who claims to grow his vegetables without irrigation or pesticides. Peasant seeds or not, this market gardener’s method has provoked criticism from some of his counterparts on Youtube and Twitter. The latter question the reliability of his model and the possibility of generalizing it. Asked by franceinfo, this farmer did not respond.
Benoît, a market gardener in the Dordogne, also regrets, to franceinfo, that this example, located in the specific area of the Paris basin, is presented as a solution that can be reproduced by all farmers.
“There is a great difficulty in making a living by making vegetables. Someone who starts and follows this model, if he does not have a farm that has been amortized for generations and does not sell to restaurants Parisians in a niche market, he’s going to get a kick out of himself.”
Benoît, farmer in the Dordogneat franceinfo
This market gardener from the South is in favor of a sober agriculture, using fewer inputs and less water. “We have to move towards crops with less tillage and always a soil cover”, he defends, advocating the use of mulching, that is to say an organic or plastic layer, to limit the evaporation of water. According to him, it is as much this system that has enabled his vegetables to resist drought better than the use of seeds developed by him.
How can everyone be better informed?
Participate in the consultation initiated as part of the European project De facto on the Make.org platform. Franceinfo is the partner