- The vast majority of French lily of the valley is produced in the Nantes region.
- Harvesting should start around April 15, but producers are very worried about the orders.
- For the time being, only supermarkets are authorized to sell flowers.
May 1 is synonymous with thrush. Sixty million bruns are generally sold in France and almost 80% of the production comes from horticulturalists in the Nantes region. The bell flower soon matures, the picking must start in ten days, except that, this year, coronavirus forces, the blur is total. It's impossible to know which stores will be able to sell them on D-Day, or whether customers will really be able to get there. For the time being, only supermarkets are allowed to open.
"If it stays that way, 90% of my usual turnover goes," says Eric Harrouet, manager of Lilyval, in Saint-Julien-de-Concelles. Like the fifteen producers in the Nantes basin, it is suspended from the development of the epidemic and from the next announcements by the State, in particular those concerning florists and garden centers.
"The objective is to save the company"
"We have never known such a complicated situation," he continues. We will therefore start picking as late as possible and we will only collect what we are sure to sell. The rest, I don't know, we'll leave them in the field. "
Stéphane Marchais, producer in the same town, is also worried, even if he sells 70% of its volumes to mass retailers. “Given the uncertainties, the GMS did not take a lot of orders, he regrets. But it will make your back round and hold until next year. We know we will have a bad year, but the objective is to save the company. It seems complicated to imagine people in the streets and shops at the end of the month. "
Health precautions to anticipate
In this exceptional context, the recruitment of seasonal reinforcements is, paradoxically, not particularly difficult. "Most of the interested people have confirmed that they could respond present despite the confinement," said Eric Harrouet. "Many people have contacted us to come and lend us a hand," adds Stéphane Marchais. However, the number of hires is likely to be well below previous years. “We will adjust according to the last orders, confirms Stéphane Marchais. In a normal year, we climb to 600 people on the site from mid-April. There may not be more than 400 there. ”
On site, health precautions are planned such as the distribution of masks, gloves, hydroalcoholic gel. "Breaks and shifts will also be spread out in order to reduce risks," adds Stéphane Marchais. The producer remains hopeful. "If the situation improves, thrush could be the flower symbol of the end of the crisis. "
Nantes
Coronavirus in Nantes: Should we reopen allotment gardens?
Nantes market gardeners are recruiting
In parallel with the picking of lily of the valley, for which there are vacancies, the Nantes market gardeners are already looking for seasonal workers for the cultivation of tomatoes, cucumber, radishes, salad, lamb's lettuce, leeks, turnip, fennel ... The positions are varied and do not require specific knowledge. The companies are mainly located within a radius of 10 to 40km around Nantes and a few in Vendée. It is absolutely necessary to have an autonomous means of locomotion.
- Covid 19
- May 1
- Coronavirus
- Economy
- Nantes