Large distribution: the margins, at the center of the farmers' protest

Les marges, qu'elles soient de la grande distribution ou des industriels, sont pointées du doigt par les agriculteurs. MAXPPP – VALLAURI Nicolas

Comment sont-elles définies ? À combien s'élèvent-elles. Quelques réponses.

They are at the heart of the controversies submitted by farmers in their criticism of mass distribution: the famous margins practiced. What exactly is it ? "There are gross margins and  net margins , deciphers Nicolas Bringer, boss of Hyper U in Mende.

What we hear most often in the media is the net margin. I call it the net result. That is to say the last line of the income statement". It is, according to him, "2% on average".

He takes the example of a shopping cart presented at the checkout. "A cart that the customer pays 110 euros including tax, our average VAT varies between 5.5% and 20%. That is, an average of  10%, he explains. So, when the customer pays the 110 euros, it's 100 euros excluding turnover taxes. The net margin, that is to say the net result of a large distribution company, in France, being on average 2%, this therefore represents 2 euros, on a basket of 110 euros".

"Some are 12%" margin

He does not hesitate to criticize the food industry. "We can compare it with the net margin at our suppliers, notably at Danone, Coca-Cola or Lactalis. At  Lactalis, it is 10%, some are at 12%", he points out.

Hervé Pauze, commercial director of Prosain, which produces organic ready meals, recognizes a "gross margin of 35% among its specialist supermarket distributors ; afterwards, they must pay their charges".

"Large distribution takes the lion's share of the margin revenue to increase its prices", critic Jacques Molières, president of the Aveyron Chamber of Agriculture. He estimates that "if large retailers lowered their margin to 1.4%, everyone could find themselves there".