Orange with 6Medias, published on Saturday, January 14, 2023 at 1:20 p.m.
To denounce the purchase prices of their fruit in supermarkets, apple and pear producers are mobilizing all over France, this Saturday, January 14. They are launching orchard uprooting actions, says Europe 1.
Large retailers sell their production at exorbitant prices, while their margins are eroded by inflation.
To denounce this phenomenon, apple and pear producers will carry out actions to uproot orchards from this Saturday, January 14, indicates Europe 1.
Some arborists in Tarn-et-Garonne had already started to uproot the plots that no longer bring them enough in anticipation of this day. “Here we are on a plot of Braeburn apples, which we uprooted a few days ago, just before Christmas”blows Christophe Belloc, producer, at the microphone of Europe 1.
Increase the purchase price and lower the margins
For this producer, who is part of the National Pear Apple Association, inflation endangers the entire sector. “The wood to make pallets or trays has been multiplied by two. Electricity by four, fertilizer and diesel for tractors, it’s between 30 and 100% more”, he says. Costs that only eat away at the small margins they have.
If we are only talking regarding apples, a producer must, on each fruit, have a margin of 1 to 2 cents. Today, with inflation, it will no longer be possible to have the slightest margin on our production. We see no other solution than to value a little more.” This means increasing the purchase price for professionals in the sector by twenty cents. And so that the price does not affect the consumer, arborists are asking supermarkets to lower their margins, on pain of publicly denouncing, in February, those whose margins are deemed excessive.