“The days when Lidl stood out for respecting French producers are long gone,” states the Sauvons les Fruits et Légumes de France collective, which accuses the German discount retailer of “reviving the price war.” This shift is directly linked, according to the group, to the departure of Michel Biero.
“Today, Lidl is once again waging a price war”
“Today, the retailer is reigniting the price war, with the major risk that its competitors will follow suit—completely disregarding the strong commitments made at the Agriculture Fair regarding French origin and fair producer compensation.” The group highlights examples like apples, cucumbers, and strawberries.
“In the apple category, not a single kilo should leave the packing stations at under €1. Yet RNM price listings show that entry-level items (like 2 kg bags) have been dropping since the beginning of the season and are now 10% below last year’s prices. For strawberries, during Easter week—despite insufficient supply—Lidl is demanding price cuts of over €0.20 per kilo compared to its competitors. For cucumbers, the same low-cost strategy is in place, and even comes with the threat of imports. Producers are seriously concerned about Spanish cucumbers appearing on the shelves very soon,” says the collective, which calls on consumers to stay alert:
“Low prices don’t support farmers. Imports are killing them.”
“As soon as Michel Biero left, Lidl abandoned its commitments to French origin”
“The departure of Michel Biero from Lidl raised concerns among upstream fruit and vegetable players about worsening purchasing practices harming producers,” the collective notes. For years, Lidl, through its (former) leader Michel Biero, had worked with French producers through sector agreements, tripartite contracts in certain categories, and a focus on French origin in the fresh produce section, including defined roadmaps. These concerns, the collective says, are now proving justified:
“Our producers are paying the price for Lidl’s renewed desire to wage a price war.”
Lidl targeted by protesting farmers in the Gard region
Yesterday on its X (Twitter) account, the collective shared the action carried out by farmers in Gard against a Lidl store. “Barely three months after his departure, @lidlfrance has already forgotten the wise commitments of its former president in favor of French food sovereignty.”
At the call of the Gard branch of the FDSEA, local farmers gathered on Tuesday morning in front of the Lidl store in Bagnols-sur-Cèze, dumping dozens of kilos of asparagus. Their goal: to denounce the sale of low-cost Mexican asparagus and Spanish strawberries.
