DUPLOMB LAW TRIGGERS STRONG REACTION FROM FRENCH CHEFS
Around 400 chefs – from Michelin-starred restaurateurs to school canteen managers – signed an open letter in Le Monde under the title “Nourish, not poison”, voicing concern over the quality of ingredients and the future of sustainable farming.
The law, named after senators Laurent Duplomb (LR) and Franck Menonville (UDI), is presented by its supporters as a way to ease certain regulations for farmers. It incorporates measures long advocated by the powerful FNSEA union, including streamlined administrative processes for large-scale livestock farming and water storage projects. Initially, it also included a provision allowing the reintroduction, under certain conditions, of acetamiprid – a neonicotinoid pesticide banned in France since 2018. However, this clause was struck down by the Constitutional Council before the law’s promulgation.
A culinary sector rarely seen in open protest
While farmers and environmentalists have long been at odds over pesticide use and intensive farming, such direct intervention from the restaurant industry is rare. The letter was initiated by Ecotable, a company that supports food businesses in adopting more sustainable practices, and was inspired by a widely shared social media post by three-Michelin-star chef Jacques Marcon.
Signatories include Mauro Colagreco and Olivier Roellinger, as well as bistro owners, canteen managers and farm-to-table collectives. Their shared message was that feeding people should never come at the expense of public health or the environment. At the same time, the letter acknowledges the pressures farmers face, caught between economic viability and growing public demand to move away from high-yield, pesticide-reliant models.
Three-star chef Glenn Viel, known to television audiences from Top Chef, called the law incomprehensible and warned against “pesticides that pollute our land” at a time when diet is closely linked to serious health conditions. He argued that if France can spend billions on national defence, it should be able to find comparable resources to help farmers transition to ecological methods. “As restaurant professionals, we are usually too busy working to speak out, but at some point you have to bang your fist on the table,” he said.
The pesticide clause removed, but controversy remains
On 12 August, President Emmanuel Macron promulgated the Duplomb law, following its partial censorship by the Constitutional Council. The court struck down the reintroduction of acetamiprid, ruling that the measure lacked sufficient safeguards and contravened principles set out in the Environmental Charter. This was a relief to environmental campaigners, who argued that even limited use of the pesticide could harm pollinators and long-term soil health.
Nevertheless, other elements of the law survived intact. These include looser rules for building or expanding large livestock facilities, as well as for constructing agricultural water storage basins – with the caveat that they must not draw on slow-replenishing groundwater and must remain subject to judicial review. Such changes are welcomed by parts of the farming sector seeking to modernise infrastructure and increase capacity, but criticised by others who fear they will encourage intensive practices.
Despite the pesticide clause’s removal, opposition groups – including the open-letter chefs – remain dissatisfied. A petition calling for full repeal has attracted over 2.1 million signatures, and the Green group in the National Assembly has announced plans to table a bill for total abrogation. Senator Duplomb has hinted that he may propose new legislation to reintroduce acetamiprid in line with the Constitutional Council’s requirements.
Chefs call for solidarity with farmers
At the heart of the chefs’ protest is not only a rejection of specific agricultural practices, but also a call for a different model of collaboration between producers and those who use their ingredients. Marcon, whose online post helped spark the campaign, has acknowledged that the restaurant industry also bears responsibility for unsustainable trends, from pressuring suppliers on price to favouring imported premium meats over traditional French breeds. He urged his peers to “help farmers” and support local, environmentally responsible agriculture.
While the Duplomb law has now been enacted in a modified form, the unusually vocal intervention from France’s culinary community has ensured that debates about farming practices, food quality and the rural economy will remain on the political menu.
Image credit: Fabrizio Magoni - Unsplash