For the past four years, Greenpeace France has classified mass-market retailers according to their efforts to eliminate pesticides from fruits and vegetables on their shelves. Where are they at this year?
Casino, Monoprix, Carrefour, Auchan … Where is the large distribution in the fight against pesticides? Where do we buy the fruits and vegetables that are less exposed to endocrine disruptors?
In recent years, almost all brands have taken a position on the issue, but last February, the NGO Future Generations denounced the presence of pesticide residues in several fruits and vegetables sold in supermarkets after studying official data. of the General Directorate for the Repression of Fraud (DGCCRF) between 2012 and 2016, i.e. 30 samples of 19 fruits and 33 highly consumed vegetables. In order to take stock of the issue, Grennpeace conducted the field survey with farmers who supply major brands. Which best meet their commitments?
Carrefour and Monoprix, the good students
According to his classification, Carrefour and Monoprix would be the most committed. The first would have succeeded in reducing pesticides by around 75% of its private label (private label) channels. The brand would even have extended this initiative to potatoes, oranges and melons, and would develop experiments in other sectors: asparagus, mushrooms, among others. “Monoprix continues to work alongside Carrefour thanks to its Monoprix Tous Cultiv ‘Acteurs brand, also notes Grennpeace. By setting long-term objectives for its suppliers and adopting the BEE FRIENDLY blacklist of pesticides, the brand stands out above all for its its great transparency on the identity of its suppliers and its specifications “.
Système U and Intermarché continue their commitments
Système U and Intermarché are also maintaining their commitment. The first succeeded in eliminating synthetic pesticides on its fruits and vegetables (fresh, frozen and processed) and “carried out important work in the identification and characterization of the molecules most dangerous for human health and the environment” . System U has therefore increased its list of active substances. It will still have to be taken into account systematically for all products marketed.
Intermarché “is committed to achieving an objective of reducing the use of pesticides by 50% and eliminating the most dangerous active substances”. To do this, the brand hopes to bring private label (private label) fresh fruit and vegetable suppliers through transparent and responsible approaches, including High Environmental Value (HVE) and Organic Agriculture (AB) certification.
E.Lecler’s “two-speed efforts”
Grennpeace ranks E.leclerc in third position and refers to “two-speed efforts” in its policy against pesticides. Because if the brand announced in 2017 its intention to remove 50% of pesticides from its entire range of fruits and vegetables (all brands combined) by 2020, it seems that it has not yet expanded its objectives to the other brands it markets. However, it will have to come there “so as not to be confined to a simple announcement effect”, judges Grennpeace.
Casino and Auchan, donkey caps
Finally, the bad students are Auchan and Casino. In December 2017, Auchan made a commitment to market a range of 50 varieties of fruit and vegetables guaranteed to be free from pesticide residues by 2020. Currently, around twenty products respond to this approach. “The brand claims to follow the agricultural practices of its suppliers but no guarantee is given as to their agroecological development,” notes the NGO. “Auchan must above all work to eliminate pesticides in the fields and orchards if it wants to climb a step.”
The same goes for Casino, which is continuing to develop its Agriplus approach in order to eliminate pesticide residues from its fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables. For its efforts to pay off, Casino must set “objectives for agronomic resources for its producers and then guarantee a real reduction in the use of pesticides”.
Retailers must support producers
Auchan and Casino are turning to another approach called “Zero pesticide residue”, which aims to eliminate as much as possible traces of pesticides from products on sale. “The problem is that a food product that no longer has traces of pesticides does not guarantee a real decrease in the use of pesticides by farmers., says Ingrid Aymes, project manager at Greenpeace France! It is therefore not a guarantee of a real transition to ecological agriculture. Large-scale distribution must at all costs avoid turning to this misleading labeling “.
To effectively fight against pesticides, brands must support their producers. “Changing agricultural practices and using fewer pesticides requires financial efforts and risk-taking which should not be assumed only by farmers but supported by supermarkets,” explains the NGO. “The support of major brands for producers remains today a pure communication exercise, continues Ingrid Aymes. In reality, large-scale distribution continues to exert constant pressure on its suppliers. Most of those we met affirmed that no sign offers them a truly revalued price, commensurate with the efforts made, or truly reassuring contracts “.
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