“We have damage to yields and we quantify these losses between 25% and 35%”declared Tuesday August 16 on franceinfo Jacques Rouchaussé, president of Légumes de France, while France is still affected by the most violent drought since 1976. “The water restrictions that are taken will have to be better adapted” to protect the “French sovereignty and food security”, he adds.
franceinfo: How much production loss do you estimate?
Jacques Rouchausse: We have damage to yields. For the moment, we quantify these losses between 25% and 35% drop. We need to alert to the fact that if we want food sovereignty, if we want food security, we really need to find ways to continue producing on our territory. When we talk about food security, the water restrictions that are taken will have to be better adapted today. You have to be realistic and pragmatic. Obviously, for swimming pools, they should not be filled. However, it is imperative to use water to continue to produce for our food sovereignty.
“Today, you should know that one out of two vegetables is imported into France. What do we want? The end of the French origin?”
Jacques Rouchaussé, President of Vegetables of Franceat franceinfo
Will the prices go up?
Our product is dependent on production. If you have a big production, the price is almost normal, if the production is low, there may be, I say maybe, there will be an increase. Today, when we see the combination of load increases, drought, we have an accumulation that makes producers wonder if they will continue to produce tomorrow or not. I have had producers on the phone, they are very worried and are wondering if tomorrow they will still be able to produce fruit and vegetables.
Is aid needed for producers who lose a large part of their production?
Absolutely. When we talk about food sovereignty, the government must put its hand in the wallet to help producers get through this difficult period. Since the beginning of the year, we have suffered all the increases due to the war in Ukraine. Add to that the drought… If tomorrow, we still want to have French production, we will have to come to the aid of producers so that we can continue to supply French consumers with the products of French origin that they demand.