Demonstration of egg producers in the Auchan hypermarket in Saint-Sébastien-sur-Loire, February 17, 2021. -

F. Brenon / 20Minutes

  • Egg producers demonstrated in Nantes and Rennes on Wednesday.

  • They emptied the egg shelves of Auchan and Carrefour stores.

  • They blame these brands for wanting to lower prices as part of the annual negotiations.

"Outside the law, Auchan does not pay producers".

The message is displayed in large letters on a tarpaulin covering the “eggs” section of the Auchan hypermarket in Saint-Sébastien-sur-Loire (Loire-Atlantique).

The consequence of an exceptional demonstration of a hundred poultry farmers inside the supermarket this Wednesday afternoon.

Coming from all over the Pays-de-la-Loire region, these producers of laying hens recovered all the boxes of eggs from the store and symbolically stacked them in front of the entrance, after having degraded the barcode.

Egg-hungry industrial pastries also paid the price of the operation, available at the same time in a Carrefour hypermarket in Rennes.

Objective: to denounce the "unbearable pressure" put "by the Auchan, Carrefour, Casino and Aldi banners" within the framework of the annual negotiations underway with suppliers.

"It's contemptuous and against the law"

“Since last summer, producers have been faced with an increase of nearly 25% in the price of materials making up the feed distributed to poultry,” explains Eric Guellaff, president of the Union of producers of the Great West.

Our operations are therefore weakened.

But instead of considering an increase in the purchase price of eggs, four large-scale retailers are demanding, on the contrary, lower prices from suppliers.

This is contemptuous, and above all contrary to the EGAlim law [adopted at the end of 2018, it aims, in particular, to pay the fair price to producers].

"

Demonstration of egg producers in the Auchan hypermarket in Saint-Sébastien-sur-Loire, February 17, 2021. - F. Brenon / 20Minutes

These discount requirements go all the more badly as the breeders have the feeling of having "demonstrated a strong mobilization during the health crisis", a crisis in which large retailers are perceived as "the big financial winner".

To pass on the increase in their charges, they therefore ask for an increase of 1 cent per egg.

This would amount to about 3 cents increase in stores since an egg is, on average, "sold three more expensive [between 15 and 50 cents per unit depending on its category] than the price paid to the producer".

"I think consumers are ready to understand"

“We are taken by the throat.

Only this increase of 1 cent per egg would save the local industry.

I think consumers are completely ready to understand, ”insists Olivier Traineau, representative of the Young Farmers FRSEA.

Spectator of the demonstration, the director of the Auchan store said “to understand the anger of the breeders”.

However, he assures us that the price negotiations do not “take place at one level”.

As for the eggs and products stored in front of the store, they will either be put back on the shelves at discounted prices, or distributed to associations.

"There will be no mess," he promises.

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