“Disappointing”, “useless”, “paradoxical”: the government deplores the absence of large retailers from a first meeting on the next commercial negotiations with the agro-industry

The "empty chair policy" carried out today by large retailers, during the first preparatory meeting for the next season of commercial negotiations which was held this Monday, November 2 in Bercy, is not only "regrettable" and "disappointing": it is also "useless" or even "counterproductive", as well as "contradictory", "surprising", "paradoxical". The words of the entourage of the two ministers present, Annie Genevard (Agriculture and Agri-food) and Serge Papin (Commerce and Purchasing Power) are very harsh regarding the choice announced before the weekend by the Federation of Commerce and Distribution (FCD) and by Lidl, which ignites even more than usual this annual meeting which is always very tense between the brands and their suppliers of national brands. This decision is all the more incomprehensible since, according to the government, the "two fundamental requirements" for which the FCD demands prior recognition were indeed retained by the agricultural emergency law adopted this summer - which nevertheless awaits the necessary texts to be fully applied.

Anticipated negotiations for SMEs Large distributors insist on the need to differentiate the treatment of SMEs and large multinationals. However, such a distinction is provided for by the agricultural emergency law, which brings forward the deadline for commercial negotiations, normally set for March 1, to January 31 for companies with a global turnover of less than 350 million euros, observes the executive. This anticipation, requested by smaller companies in order to have reserved negotiation time, has already been tested in 2025, he notes.

As for "transparency" on the costs of agricultural raw materials, it is indeed the condition for the application of the automatic price revision clauses provided for by law and approved by agroindustrialists and large distributors. Any questioning of the provisions of the Egalim law of 2022 which provide the possibility for manufacturers to limit themselves to declaring the evolution of these costs and having it certified by an independent third party is however refuted at this stage by the government, which invokes business secrecy and the unfavorable parliamentary context. Profitable inflation Despite the absence of mass distribution, the meeting nevertheless made it possible to take stock of the -exogenous- increases in costs" suffered by farmers and manufacturers, due to the climate and geopolitical crisis.

And to set an objective: that the inflation announced by manufacturers and large distributors primarily benefits farmers and SMEs, insisted the entourage of Serge de Papin and Annie Genevard, who calls for a "responsibility pact for a fair distribution of value". A new meeting will take place at the end of November or the beginning of December in order to begin "concrete discussions" based on the general conditions of sale which must be presented during the coming weeks by the manufacturers. It will also provide an initial view of the requested price increases.

Machine-translated from French