The confinement had the effect of a cold shower on French thrush producers, the lucky flower that we offer on May 1, Labor Day. A tradition specific to France that the coronavirus could undermine. Each year, 60 million strands are sold on this occasion, 85% of which come from the Nantes basin and the rest from Bordeaux.
"Faced with the uncertainty of being able to dispose of their sprigs, due to the government ban on street vendors and the closure of florists, producers have been cautious and have collected only about a third of the lily of the valley flowery ” , explains Patrick Véron, technical advisor to the Federation of Nantes market gardeners. He specifies: “ The first loss is that which one realizes in the field. The labor to pick up the precious strands represents 60% of the cost price: professionals have therefore limited the use of seasonal workers. They were 1,500 this year instead of 7,000 in previous harvests. Most of them are students and local job seekers. ”In this complicated context, the market gardeners therefore preferred firm orders that they had placed with large areas still open during the confinement period. A distribution channel which alone sells, in a normal year, almost half of the sprigs of lily of the valley sold in France. The rest is divided among florists, garden centers, wholesalers and street vendors.
Fearing the vagaries of the market, some market gardeners have not even harvested their lilies of the valley. "This year, I left 100% of the strands under the frames, I focused on the compositions of lily of the valley in pots, orders placed at the beginning of March with large and medium-sized surfaces ," says Jean-François Vinet, producer in Machecoul, market leader with a third of the sprigs of lily of the valley produced in the Nantes region.
Precisely, the other problem encountered by producers this year is the weather which is too mild. “There was no winter, the warm spring accelerated the growth of the strands. The producers put them in the fridge to keep them but with the thunderstorms and the heat of the last few days, the strands turned during their shipment, reports Maxime François, manager of the Flowers Assistance stand at Rungis. For this reason, my supplier in Nantes only delivered 10% of my order to me. ”
Internet platform
A relief in this blackboard: the producers of thrush from Nantes, who realize 20 to 30 million euros of turnover per year thanks to the sale of the white bell, do not depend solely on it. "It only represents 5 to 30% of their activity, the rest comes from the production of vegetables, including the famous lamb's lettuce, carrots, turnips but also tomatoes and cucumbers , reports Patrick Véron. Permission, like that of the prefect of Loire-Atlantique, this Monday, to give florists the opportunity to sell lily of the valley in drive mode in front of their shop, comes too late after picking, " he continues.
Some market gardeners have taken the lead, like Eric Harrouet, in Saint-Julien-de-Concelles, not far from Nantes. They created an internet platform, unbrindesolidarite.fr, to allow confined consumers to buy thrush between 3 and 8 euros depending on the presentation, while doing a good deed. 10% of the funds raised will go to the Fondation de France to help caregivers.
