More efficient, longer.
This is essentially what studies say and repeat on the effectiveness of FFP2 masks compared to “
standard
” masks today worn by the majority of French people.
Faced with the explosion of cases of Covid in the country, a growing number of them decide, however, to take the plunge and use this protection in the form of a coffee filter.
Result: sales explode as much in pharmacies as in supermarkets, despite a higher price.
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Read also Covid-19: faced with the Omicron variant, should we prefer the FFP2 mask?
“
Demand has increased by 50% over the past week.
We are out of stock
, ”explains Sophie, a pharmacist from Yvelines.
Same story in Rambouillet: "
the increase is visible and I had not anticipated it in my stocks
", adds Renaud Nadjahi, pharmacist and president of URPS Pharmaciens Île-de-France.
A trend common to the whole of France as confirmed by Philippe Besset, President of the Federation of Pharmaceutical Syndicates of France (FSPF): "
we do not yet have any figures but we have seen it for a week
".
Increased sales in distribution
An identical phenomenon is visible in supermarkets.
At Carrefour, sales of FFP2 masks have tripled with the arrival of the new strain: “
where we sold less than 100,000 per week before the arrival of the Omicron variant, more than 300,000 FFP2 masks were sold in our stores last week
, ”explains the sign.
A movement which should continue in the coming days: “
sales increased by 200% on Monday January 3, 2022, with 55,000 FFP2 masks sold on the same day.
We estimate to sell more than 600,000 from here to Sunday
”, adds the giant of the distribution.
Read alsoFFP2 masks: is France capable of being self-sufficient?
A success despite a higher price "
the box of 50 surgical masks is sold for € 4.50 as much as a box of 10 FFP2 masks
", illustrates Renaud Nadjahi. An investment that is not a priority according to him: "
although it protects better, it does not exempt from making barrier gestures, or covering your mouth and nose, as well as changing it regularly: every 4 hours for a standard mask and every 6 to 8 hours for an FFP2
”.
This higher price has the advantage of making the purchase of a French product less painful.
The Carrefour company emphasizes that "
Chinese masks are sold at € 4.90 per box of 20
" while "
French FFP2 masks will be sold at € 5.99 for 25
", an almost identical unit price, especially compared to the price of the surgical models “
€ 4.90 per box of 50
”.
French production
There remains the question of the capacity of the French sector to cope with this increase in demand.
According to Christian Curel, president of the union of French mask manufacturers F2M:
"Today, 80% of the masks used in France - surgical and FFP2 combined - come from China and 20% from France".
However, he believes that an increase in production is possible
"we have plenty to be autonomous in FFP2 in France,"
he added.
A position shared by the Minister for Industry Agnès Pannier-Runacher:
"The French sector is fully capable of meeting the needs of the country's FFP2, even in the event of an increase in demand".
Read alsoFFP2 masks: production "made in France" is on the rise
In addition to the obvious advantages for the country in terms of autonomy and reindustrialisassion, French production could make it possible to avoid certain misadventures encountered with masks originating in China.
In June, nearly 17 million of them were recalled because they contained graphene, a potentially harmful product.
The only concern: the duration of this surge in demand.
The industry does not want to embark on recruitments if purchases fall back in three months.
A situation in which she already found herself last May.