Romain Desarbres, edited by Juliette Moreau Alvarez 8:33 p.m., September 23, 2022
The rise in energy prices is weighing heavily on SMEs, particularly chicory producers, often cited as an example and who are seeing the amount of their energy bills skyrocket.
On Europe 1, one of them denounces a bill that could explode within the next three years.
Fruit and vegetable producers are taken by the throat.
Their electric bill will go up so much due to soaring energy prices that it won't even be worth working for.
This is the case of Hervé Persyn, manager of the En'diva company and endive producer in Hauts-de-France.
Invited to the microphone of
Europe midi
, he sounds the alarm.
“I am being asked to pay 2.2 million euros”
"In 2021, we paid 100,000 euros for electricity. This year, I will pay close to 200,000 euros. And today, the proposal I had is 750,000 euros per year, on condition of signing for three years. That is to say that I am asked to pay 2.2 million euros to my energy supplier", he explains.
"For my part, I would have sold my house to pay for the electricity before the end of the three years."
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A catastrophic situation for this producer who has run a family business since his grandfather in 1948. His son was soon to take over the business.
"I ask myself a lot of questions. Can I afford to make it a slave to energy suppliers? I don't think so."
Hervé Persyn urgently requests state aid to pay his bill.
"It won't be possible otherwise."
The producer also thinks of his employees, who had to continue to work during the Covid crisis.
"I can't tell them today 'I'm sorry, you're all going to lose your jobs because you came to a crisis too late'", he concludes, his voice full of emotion.